Giants at Reds
The Cincinnati Reds have put a beating on the visiting San Francisco Giants in the first two contests of their three-game set, and they can make history by doing it again in Sunday’s finale. The Reds have won the first two games by at least 10 runs, marking the first time they have won back-to-back games by that margin since 1976 and only the second time they have down so since at least 1913.
The Reds have pounded 34 hits in the series and have recorded double-digit hits in every game during a four-game winning streak to pull even with the Chicago Cubs atop the National League Central. Former Reds ace Johnny Cueto will make his second career start against the club he was with for his first seven-plus big-league seasons. There was speculation the Giants might push Cueto back a day or skip his start due to a nagging blister on the middle finger of his pitching hand, but the right-hander told reporters San Francisco would “have to take out on a gurney” for him to miss the chance to face his former team. The National League-worst Giants hope Cueto can turn around their recent pitching woes, as they’ve allowed 13 or more runs in three of their past four games.
TV: 4:10 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Bay Area (San Francisco), FSN Ohio (Cincinnati)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Giants RH Johnny Cueto (4-1, 4.86 ERA) vs. Reds RH Scott Feldman (1-3, 4.83)
Cueto has recorded quality starts in four of his six outings, including two straight since a rocky turn in Colorado. The 31-year-old beat the Dodgers on Monday, allowing three runs and six hits over seven innings with six strikeouts. Cueto faced the Reds for the first time last season and was roughed up for six runs in five innings in a no-decision.
Feldman is looking to bounce back from two straight rough outings, as he has allowed 11 runs in nine innings over his last two starts. The 34-year-old was roughed up for seven runs and six hits in four frames in a loss to Pittsburgh on Tuesday, and the Reds have lost five of the six games he has started. Feldman is 1-4 with a 3.86 ERA in six games (four starts) against the Giants.
WALK-OFFS
1. Cincinnati 2B Jose Peraza was the only Reds starting position player without a hit Saturday, as he went 0-for-5 to snap a nine-game hitting streak.
2. Giants SS Eduardo Nunez is 11-for-32 during an eight-game hitting streak, while OF Gorkys Hernandez is 8-for-28 during a seven-game streak.
3. San Francisco OF Hunter Pence is 5-for-14 with three doubles versus Feldman.