Sunday 12:40 first pitch in Cincinnati, and both of these teams are limping into it for very different reasons. The Astros showed up to the Queen City and dropped a 10-0 hammer in the series opener, then split the next one as the Reds finally snapped what had ballooned into an extended losing skid. Now the rubber game, and there is a lot of weirdness baked into this pitching matchup.
Start with Houston. Kai-Wei Teng is the listed starter and he is technically a reliever. He owns a 2.35 ERA over 23 innings with a 22:7 K:BB, but he hasn't gone more than 9 outs in any appearance this year. The Astros are doing this because they have to — Hunter Brown, Hayden Wesneski, Ronel Blanco, Cristian Javier, and Brandon Walter are all parked on the 60-day, and the bullpen behind Teng owns the worst ERA in baseball. Bullpen game with a Sunday lineup. Buyer beware.
- Day-To-DayLance McCullers Jr. SP — McCullers was removed from his start Wednesday against the Dodgers in the top of the third inning after he appeared to be contending with a blister on his pitching hand, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports. He was charged with six earned runs on four hits and three walks over 2.2 innings prior to his departure.
- Day-To-DayWalker Janek C — Double-A Corpus Christi placed Janek on its 7-day injured list Sunday due to an unspecified injury.
- Day-To-DayLucas Spence OF — Double-A Corpus Christi placed Spence on its 7-day injured list April 22 due to an unspecified injury.
- 10-Day-ILJeremy Pena SS — Pena (hamstring) ran the bases Saturday, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- 10-Day-ILJoey Loperfido LF — The Astros announced Monday that Loperfido (quadriceps) has started light running and light baseball activity, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- 10-Day-ILCarlos Correa SS — The Astros placed Correa (ankle) on the 10-day injured list Wednesday.
- 10-Day-ILJake Meyers CF — The Astros announced Monday that Meyers (oblique) has started swinging a bat and reincorporating other baseball activities, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILTaylor Trammell CF — The Astros announced Monday that Trammell (groin) has begun a running progression in addition to taking part in light baseball activity, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- Day-To-DayRhett Lowder SP — Lowder was given an injection in the AC joint of his right shoulder after an MRI on Friday came back negative, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 Now Cincinnati reports.
- Day-To-DayConnor Burns C — no
- Day-To-DayJosh Staumont RP — The Twins reinstated Staumont (calf) from the 15-day injured list Friday and optioned him to Triple-A St. Paul, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
- 10-Day-ILEugenio Suarez 3B — Suarez (oblique) took 50 swings Thursday, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 Now Cincinnati reports.
- 15-Day-ILCaleb Ferguson RP — Ferguson (oblique) allowed one run on one hit and struck out two over one inning for Double-A Chattanooga on Friday.
- 15-Day-ILEmilio Pagan RP — Pagan said Wednesday that he's been diagnosed with a Grade 2 left hamstring strain and is expected to be sidelined 4-to-8 weeks, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
- 60-Day-ILHunter Greene SP — Greene (elbow) is playing catch from 110 feet and is about three weeks away from progressing to bullpen sessions, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 Now Cincinnati reports.
- 60-Day-ILBrandon Williamson SP — The Reds transferred Williamson (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Wednesday.
On the other side, Andrew Abbott carries a 5.13 ERA into this one and he has not looked sharp. The Reds also dragged a long losing streak into the weekend before finally getting one in the books, and they are without Eugenio Suarez at third while Hunter Greene is still weeks away from a bullpen session. The lineup that's left still has Elly De La Cruz to make things uncomfortable for any pitcher Houston runs out, especially a parade of relievers.
The market reads this as a Reds spot — Cincinnati at -124 with a total of 9, which feels right when the visitor is essentially announcing a bullpen day in a hitter's park. The Astros' team total math here is doing a lot of work given who's actually pitching the middle innings. Both sides of every market grade out negative EV at Pinnacle's prices, so this is one to watch as a fan more than as a betting card.
Bottom line: it's a getaway day at GABP with a patched-together Astros staff against a Reds team desperate to stack wins. If Teng can give Houston 3 clean innings and hand it off to a bullpen that has been a tire fire, it might be enough. If not, this gets out of hand quickly. First pitch 12:40 ET.