First pitch is 1:15 PM CT at Busch Stadium with the Cardinals (34-28) playing for a sweep against a Reds team (31-32) that has dropped 4 of its last 5. Pinnacle has St. Louis at -130 on the moneyline and the total sitting at 9.5, which feels about right given the mismatch on the mound.
Rhett Lowder (3-3, 5.40) is the storyline. He's been on the shelf since early May with a shoulder issue and the Reds are reinstating him from the 15-day IL specifically to make this start. The leash is short — reports out of Cincinnati have him capped around 70-75 pitches after a rehab outing where he threw 70, struck out 8 and gave up 3 runs in 5 innings at Triple-A Louisville. Michael McGreevy (3-5, 2.98) goes the other way for St. Louis and has been the steadier arm all year, even if his last two times out have been a little rougher than his ERA suggests.
Cincinnati is also doing this without Elly De La Cruz, which is the single biggest thing tilting this matchup. His hamstring MRI got bumped up to Friday, June 12, and the lineup card in St. Louis looks a lot smaller without him in the middle of it. Throw in Hunter Greene still parked on the 60-day, Ke'Bryan Hayes at third, and a bullpen missing Emilio Pagan and Pierce Johnson, and you've got a road team scraping together a roster for a 1:15 PM CT start the day after a doubleheader sweep.
- 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-ILElly De La Cruz SS — De La Cruz (hamstring) had his scheduled MRI moved up three days to this coming Friday, June 12, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
- 10-Day-ILJose Trevino C — Trevino (hamstring) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Louisville on Thursday, going 0-for-3 with a strikeout.
- 10-Day-ILKe'Bryan Hayes 3B — Hayes is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Phillies.
- 15-Day-ILRhett Lowder SP — Reds manager Terry Francona confirmed Wednesday that Lowder (shoulder) will be reinstated from the injured list to start Sunday's game in St. Louis, Charlie Clifford of NBC 5 Cincinnati reports.
- 15-Day-ILEmilio Pagan RP — Pagan (hamstring) underwent an MRI exam Friday that showed positive results, MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILPierce Johnson RP — Johnson threw a scoreless seventh inning in Tuesday's win over the Phillies to pick up his fourth hold of the season. He struck out two while allowing a walk.
- Day-To-DayJJ Wetherholt 2B — Wetherholt (groin) isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game versus the Reds, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
- Day-To-DayPacky Naughton RP — Naughton will undergo surgery next month to repair the damaged UCL in his left elbow, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- Day-To-DaySem Robberse SP — Robberse (elbow) signed a minor-league contract with the Cardinals on Monday, which includes an invitation to spring training, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- Day-To-DayVictor Santos RP — The Red Sox traded Santos (undisclosed) and Nick Robertson to the Cardinals on Friday in exchange for Tyler O'Neill (foot), Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.
- Day-To-DayIxan Henderson SP — Henderson (elbow) is starting the season on the 60-day injured list at Triple-A Memphis.
- Day-To-DayZack Thompson RP — The Cardinals reassigned Thompson (shoulder) to minor-league camp Monday.
- 10-Day-ILRamon Urias 3B — Urias (elbow) returned to St. Louis to undergo an examination on his left elbow, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
- 10-Day-ILNathan Church LF — Church (shoulder) could be reinstated from the 10-day injured list ahead of Tuesday's game against the Mets, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
The Cardinals aren't fully healthy either — JJ Wetherholt's groin has him day-to-day and Ramon Urias is back in St. Louis getting his elbow looked at — but they've at least been playing winning baseball. Three straight wins, including the 10-3 and 6-5 beatings of these same Reds on Saturday, is the kind of stretch that buys a manager some patience on the lineup card.
The pick here is whatever side you trust the pitching matchup to deliver. McGreevy at home, with a real bullpen behind him, against a Reds offense missing its best player and a starter on a strict pitch count, is a clean read. If you like the Reds, you're betting on Lowder's stuff playing up after a month off — and that's a leap of faith Terry Francona is also being forced to take.