Rockies at Reds
The Cincinnati Reds entered the All-Star break with plenty of promise before dropping two of three against the Colorado Rockies to ignite a stretch in which they have lost eight of their last 13 contests. The Reds bid to get back on track Friday as they play the opener of a three-game series versus the Rockies.
Joey Votto is riding a hot bat as the former National League MVP had a run-scoring single in Cincinnati's 5-4 setback to Milwaukee on Wednesday to give him 10 hits and six RBIs in his last seven games. Votto is 2-for-3 in his career versus Friday starter German Marquez, although the slugger went 2-for-11 in the previous series versus Colorado. The Rockies appeared headed to their 10th loss in 11 games before Ian Desmond and Daniel Murphy burned their former team in the ninth inning of an 8-7 victory over Washington on Thursday. Murphy belted a solo homer among his three hits against the Nationals and also went deep among his three career hits versus Friday starter Luis Castillo.
TV: 6:40 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain (Colorado), FS Ohio (Cincinnati)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rockies RH German Marquez (9-5, 4.99 ERA) vs. Reds RH Luis Castillo (9-3, 2.36)
Marquez posted his first win in nearly a month after allowing two runs on three hits in seven innings of an 8-4 victory at the New York Yankees on Sunday. The 24-year-old Venezuelan continues to be haunted by the long ball as he surrendered a pair of solo shots versus the Yankees to raise his home run total to 13 in his last 10 starts. Derek Dietrich (4-for-8) and Yasiel Puig (3-for-11) have each gone deep in their careers against Marquez, who kept Cincinnati in the park and yielded one run in seven hits to win his lone encounter with the Reds in 2018.
Castillo continued his stellar performances at Great American Ball Park on Saturday after allowing one run on five hits in six innings versus St. Louis. While the 26-year-old settled for a no-decision in that contest, Castillo has given the fans a thrill by posting a 5-2 mark with a 1.67 ERA in 11 home starts while limiting the opposition to a .155 batting average. Raimel Tapia is 3-for-3 with a homer against Castillo, who surrendered four runs on nine hits in 5 2/3 innings to take the loss in his lone career encounter versus Colorado at Coors Field in 2017.
WALK-OFFS
1. Cincinnati rookie OF Nick Senzel's availability is in question for the series opener after he exited Wednesday's game because of illness.
2. Colorado OF Charlie Blackmon is 10-for-25 with five runs scored during his six-game hitting streak.
3. Reds LHP Alex Wood (back) will be activated from the 60-day injured list to start the series finale versus the Rockies, the team announced Thursday.