Cincinnati Reds Team Update (5/22)

CINCINNATI- The Cincinnati Reds will look to build upon their series road victory against the Washington Nationals as they will host the St Louis Cardinals for a three game Memorial weekend series, beginning Friday, but the recent results against the Cardinals have not been kind for the redlegs.

The last 10 series against St Louis, Cincinnati is 1-9, with the only victory happening during  Sept. 2-5 last year, when they took three of four.

So far this season, the Reds are 2-4 against the Cardinals, having dropped the season-opening series in Cincinnati and another set in St. Louis a week later. The Reds are 1-4 in their last five series against the Cardinals at Great American Ball Park and will be looking to change that this weekend.

“They’ve been our strongest competition in the five years I’ve been in the Central,” Reds manager Bryan Price said. “We’ve won the division a couple of times. They’ve won it. They’ve won a World Series. They’ve been to the World Series and lost. I think as far as the Central goes, over the last five years, they’ve accomplished more than anybody in the division. It’s always fun to play them.”

It’d probably be even more enjoyable if the Reds could figure out a way to sneak in a series win, especially in St. Louis, where they have gone 3-36-2 since the start of the 2003 season.

Series Pitching matchup probables:

Friday: Homer Bailey vs Shelby Miller (7:10pm on FSN OHIO)

Saturday: Tony Cingrani vs Jaime Garcia (7:15pm on FOX)

Sunday: Mike Leake vs Adam Wainwright (8:05pm on ESPN)

Joey Votto was placed on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to May 16, due to an injury to his quadriceps and knee. Votto has not played in the last six games and did not make the trip to Philadelphia and Washington.

Jay Bruce came off the disabled list Wednesday, but he did not play. He had been out since May 5 after surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. He had been expected to be out until early June, but he started taking batting practice May 13.

Ryan Ludwick did not start for the third straight contest Wednesday, as he is dealing with both a slump and a nagging injury to his quad. “It just seemed to make sense to give him the day off,”  Price said. “Hopefully we’ll have him at 100 percent for the St. Louis series.”

Alfredo Simon registered his first career double in the fifth inning Wednesday, ripping a shot deep into the right-center gap that hit off the scoreboard. It is just the third hit of Simon’s seven-year career, although four of those years were spent in the AL with Baltimore.

Zack Cozart went 2-for-4 with a run scored and stole his first base of the season in the seventh inning Wednesday. Cozart, who stole 30 bases in the minors in 2010, has just five career major league steals, and this was his first since 2012.

May 21, 2014; Washington, DC, USA; Cincinnati Reds relief pitcher Aroldis Chapman (54) pitches in the 9th inning during 2-1 win over the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Jack Gruber-USA TODAY Sports

Homer Bailey has made three quality starts in his four appearances in May, but on Friday he will face a Cardinals team he has struggled against. Bailey has started against St. Louis 19 times and has lost 10, both career highs vs. an opponent.