Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh preview
PNC Park
Last Meeting ( Sep 24, 2011 ) Cincinnati 3, Pittsburgh 4
THE STORY: Dontrelle Willis is down to his last start. The 2003 National League Rookie of the Year has yet to taste victory this season, and he'll attempt to post his first win in over 16 months on Sunday when the Cincinnati Reds try to salvage the finale of a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Pittsburgh won the two earlier contests by identical 4-3 scores.
TV: 1:35 p.m. ET, FSOH (Cincinnati), ROOT (Pittsburgh)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Reds LH Dontrelle Willis (0-6, 5.04 ERA) vs. Pirates RH James McDonald (9-9, 4.28 ERA)
Willis struggled in his last outing, permitting season-highs in both runs (eight) and hits (nine) in just 3 1/3 innings en route to a 12-8 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Sept. 12. The 29-year-old Oakland native has also struggled with his control. In each of his previous three outings, Willis came undone after issuing five walks. Willis is just 2-6 in his career against the Pirates, although he yielded just three runs on eight hits in six innings in his last outing against them on Aug. 20.
McDonald will look to snap a two-game losing skid on Sunday. The 26-year-old yielded five runs on seven hits in three innings en route to a 6-1 loss on Sept 17 against his former team, the Los Angeles Dodgers. McDonald has enjoyed success against the Queen City residents, winning three of four decisions - including two of three this season.
ABOUT THE REDS (76-82): What a difference a year makes. In 2010, Cincinnati was the talk of baseball en route to winning the NL Central. Fast forward back to the present, the Reds need to win out just to finish two games under .500. Brandon Phillips had three hits and reigning NL MVP Joey Votto recorded a pair of RBI doubles in Saturday's loss. Both have fared well versus the Pirates this season as Phillips is 15-for-37 (.405) while Votto is 7-for-20 (.350). Infielder Todd Frazier's X-rays on his left hand were negative. On Saturday, he returned to a pinch-hitting role and struck out.
ABOUT THE PIRATES (71-87): Rookie Josh Harrison had a career night on Saturday. The former Big East Player of the Year at Cincinnati, Harrison collected four hits and fell a homer shy of the cycle. Despite being a Bearcat, Harrison didn't express any mixed feelings about beating the hometown Reds. "I really wasn't a big Reds fan growing up," he said. "I didn't have a favorite team. I was just a baseball fan." Allegiances aside, Harrison's effort helped Pittsburgh post its 10th win in 14 meetings this season over Cincinnati. With Joel Hanrahan unavailable after tossing 31 pitches on Friday, Jason Grilli worked the ninth on Saturday for his first save since April 2009.
FINAL PITCH: With one more victory, Pittsburgh will secure its highest win total since 2004.