The Cincinnati Reds leaned on their ace to keep pace with Milwaukee's Jimmy Nelson in their last meeting with the right-hander. The 25-year-old figures to have better luck this time around against the back end of Cincinnati's rotation.
Looking for their first back-to-back victories, the Brewers will turn to their youngest starting pitcher Monday night against Reds right-hander Jason Marquis.
Nelson has been a revelation for the Brewers' staff through three starts, and put his ability on display against the Reds on Wednesday. He allowed only three hits and one run through eight innings, but was matched by Johnny Cueto in a 2-1 victory for the Reds.
"Outstanding ballgame," manager Ron Roenicke said following last week's loss. "His fastball command was great, he kept it down, he went up when he needed to. His curveball was great, a lot of really good sliders. It's a shame to (waste) that kind of outing."
Nelson (1-1, 1.35 ERA) has been perhaps the only bright spot during a so-far dismal season for Milwaukee, which lost three of four against Cincinnati in that series and sits nine games back of first-place St. Louis.
Injuries have been partly to blame for the poor start. Jonathan Lucroy is out four to six weeks with a broken toe, Carlos Gomez remains on the disabled list with a right hamstring strain and Scooter Gennett is working his way back from a left hand laceration.
Additionally, both Ryan Braun and Aramis Ramirez requested days off Sunday. The Brewers prevailed in spite of those absences, beating the Cardinals 6-3 to avoid a sweep.
Marquis (1-1, 7.20) will take the hill for Cincinnati, which looks to bounce back from a two-game sweep by the Chicago Cubs. The Reds fell 7-3 in 11 innings on Friday, were rained out Saturday and lost 5-2 on Sunday.
Marquis was on the winning end of a 16-10 slugfest with the Brewers on Tuesday, although his outing was hardly dominant. The veteran right-hander allowed five runs and nine hits in five innings, raising his opposing OPS to .936.
The Reds have not produced the same offensive support in their four games since Wednesday's outburst, averaging just 2.25 runs. Manager Bryan Price hopes to see that trend end Monday.
"It's not where we want to be offensively," Price said. "We create opportunities. We just can't cash in. We've got to get better at it."
Billy Hamilton stood as a bright spot for the Reds against Chicago, stealing four bases over the two games to bring his total to 13. That speed led to Cincinnati's only run against Nelson on Wednesday, as Hamilton singled to lead off the game, stole second and promptly scored on Joey Votto's single.
Votto was 6 for 17 with two homers in that series and Zack Cozart hit three.
Jay Bruce should be back Monday after a day off Sunday. The slugging right fielder is mired in an 0-for-14 slump and had only two hits during the four-game set with Milwaukee.
