Cincinnati @ Houston preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 2, 2011 ) Cincinnati 5, Houston 1

THE STORY: If the Cincinnati Reds hope to make some sort of a comeback in the National League Central, they can’t afford to drop a series to the lowly Houston Astros. Homer Bailey did his part in pitching the Reds to a win on Tuesday, but a loss in the first game of the three-game set makes Wednesday’s rubber match an important contest. The Astros have introduced so many new players to their roster this season; they just want to spend the final two months seeing which of the new faces is good enough to stick around for the long term. And if at all possible, they probably would not mind winning a few more games. Cincinnati will take its chances behind Dontrelle Willis when it closes out the three-game set at Minute Maid Park on Wednesday night.

TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, FSOH (Cincinnati), FSH (Houston)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Astros RH Jordan Lyles (0-6, 4.41 ERA) vs. Reds LH Dontrelle Willis (0-1, 3.52 ERA).

Lyles is still searching for his first major league win after 11 starts. The 20-year old righthander made a spirited bid last time out, allowing two runs in six innings at Milwaukee, but was let down by his offense in a 4-0 loss. Lyles has issued only two walks in 20 1/3 innings over his last three starts.

Willis is trying to earn his first win as well, though the former NL Rookie of the Year is at a much different stage of his career. Getting another chance at the majors after performing well at Class AAA Louisville, the 29-year old Willis has allowed three runs or less in each of his four starts for Cincinnati but has yet to complete seven innings. He is 3-2 with a 2.61 ERA in seven career outings against Houston.

ABOUT THE ASTROS (36-74): No other team is even close to Houston in the race to avoid the worst record in the majors. While that might not convince the fans to come out to Minute Maid Park, the record does allow manager Brad Mills and the front office to try out some new players. After trading away Hunter Pence and Michael Bourn prior to Sunday’s deadline, the Astros have fielded a team the past two nights that bore little resemblance to the squad that began the year. Brian Bogusevic, who was drafted as a pitcher by the team in 2005, started in the No. 3 spot in the order on Tuesday and Luis Durango drove in his first run on his first hit of the season in the 5-1 setback. Rookies like Jose Altuve and Jimmy Paredes will be given every chance to succeed the rest of the way.

ABOUT THE REDS (54-56): Cincinnati is more concerned about the win-loss column, as Milwaukee continues to pull away in the National League Central with the St. Louis Cardinals chasing them down. The Reds, who have been scuffling along at or below .500 since the middle of April, are looking for any kind of spark they can use over the last two months. Homer Bailey and Edgar Renteria provided a burst on Tuesday. Bailey pitched a season-high eight innings and Renteria hit a grand slam in the 5-1 victory. Cincinnati mostly stayed out of the fray at the trading deadline and will need to get more efforts like Bailey’s from the rest of the rotation if they are to hang around the fringes of the race.

FINAL PITCH: Houston starter Wandy Rodriguez took the loss on Tuesday but set a franchise record for strikeouts by a lefthander with 947. Bob Knepper held the previous record of 946. Nolan Ryan holds the overall mark with 1,866 career punchouts for the Astros.