Reds at Brewers
Three consecutive losses to the Cincinnati Reds at the beginning of this month cost the Milwaukee Brewers the top spot in the National League Central. The Brewers hope they can begin repaying the favor Monday when they host the opener of a three-game set against the Reds.
Milwaukee dropped the final three of four games in Cincinnati from July 2-4 to trigger a 1-5 finish heading into the All-Star break and a stretch in which it lost eight of 10 overall. The Brewers (53-48) started righting the ship with Tuesday's 13-1 rout of Atlanta to avoid falling to .500 and enter this series winners of five of their last six following Sunday's 7-4 victory at Arizona, which allowed them to maintain a one-half game lead for the second wild-card spot in the National League. Cincinnati closed to within 3 1/2 games of the division-leading Chicago Cubs on July 4 but finds itself nine games off the pace after dropping each of its last four series. The Reds lost for the fifth time in six contests and fell to 3-9 since Independence Day following Sunday's 3-1 setback against St. Louis.
TV: 8:10 p.m. ET, FS Ohio, FS Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Reds RH Sonny Gray (5-6, 3.40 ERA) vs. Brewers RH Chase Anderson (5-2, 3.96)
Gray is enjoying one of the best four-game stretches in his career (2-1, 1.65 ERA, 35 strikeouts over 27 1/3 innings) but is winless in his last two outings. The Vanderbilt product settled for a no-decision in Colorado on July 12 despite yielding one run on five hits in seven frames and took the loss in Chicago on Wednesday despite permitting two hits - both solo homers - across six innings versus the Cubs. Gray has made three starts in 2019 against the Brewers, going 2-0 with a 1.96 ERA.
Anderson was in fine form in Wednesday's victory against Atlanta, allowing only one hit and issuing three walks over 5 2/3 scoreless innings. The 31-year-old hasn't made it through six innings in any of his last seven outings since his last quality start on June 9, but he has held the opposition to three runs or fewer in six of those turns. Anderson is 5-3 with a 3.80 ERA in 13 career starts versus the Reds, but 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA in two trips to the mound against them this year.
WALK-OFFS
1. Three of the five shutouts the Brewers have suffered this season have come against the Reds.
2. Milwaukee rookie 2B Keston Hiura has multiple hits in eight of his last 10 contests and at least one hit in 17 of his last 19, batting .392 over the latter stretch.
3. Despite going 0-for-3 on Sunday, Cincinnati OF Yasiel Puig is batting .361 in July. Against the Brewers this season, he is hitting .389 with four homers and 12 RBIs.