Cincinnati @ San Diego preview

Last Meeting ( Apr 25, 2010 ) San Diego 4, Cincinnati 5

The San Diego Padres are in a battle to the wire in the National League West. The Cincinnati Reds have the Central all but sewn up.

The Reds will be looking to clinch the Central while knocking the Padres back when the teams kick off a three-game series on Friday.

Cincinnati has whittled its magic number to three in its bid to clinch the franchise’s first playoff spot since 2000, taking advantage of the St. Louis Cardinals’ collapse to open a 7 ½-game edge in the division.

The Reds took two out of three from the Milwaukee Brewers earlier in the week, getting a very encouraging start from Edinson Volquez in Tuesday’s 4-3 triumph as they look for a shutdown starting pitcher to go up against the likes of Roy Halladay and Roy Oswalt in the playoffs.

Johnny Cueto wasn’t so promising on Wednesday, however, allowing eight runs while recording just four outs in the series finale. Cueto’s ERA still sits at 3.73, but he has proven to be just as capable of throwing up a stinker as he is of tossing a gem.

But the real worry for Cincinnati, which leads the NL in runs scored, is at the back of the bullpen where Francisco Cordero has eight blown saves and has allowed at least one run in four of his last six appearances. The big right-hander earned a save in Tuesday’s win despite allowing two runs - one earned - in one inning.

The Padres are locked in the tightest race left in baseball, currently one-half game behind the San Francisco Giants in the NL West and one-half game behind the Atlanta Braves in the wild card race.

San Diego did not do itself any favors on Thursday, dropping a 3-1 decision at Los Angeles to fall off the division lead.

Bronson Arroyo will get the call for the Reds on Friday. The veteran right-hander has plenty of postseason experience and a World Series ring as a member of the 2004 Boston Red Sox and appears to be getting stronger at the end of the season. Arroyo has won each of his last two starts, allowing a total of three runs while striking out 13 in 12 innings.

He got hammered by the Padres earlier in the season, however, surrendering eight runs on eight hits in just three innings on April 23. Arroyo has never had much success against San Diego, going 4-7 with a 4.92 ERA in 11 games.

The Padres will counter with Chris Young, who is making just his third start of the season. The 6-foot-10 right-hander made one start in April before going down with a strained right shoulder. He made his return last week and pitched four solid innings against the Cardinals, allowing one run on four hits.