The Reds found life in their bats recently, and take their modest 2-game win streak to Chicago to battle the Cubs. Here's what to look for in this weekend series;
CINCINNATI REDS
The Reds were hoping for a boost from the return of right-hander Homer Bailey. They certainly got in Thursday's 10-4 victory over the Houston Astros. Bailey, in his season debut, pitched six innings and allowed one run on five hits. He walked one and struck out seven.
"That was one of the best games I've seem Homer pitch," right fielder Jay Bruce.
Said catcher Ryan Hanigan: "Homer changed speeds well. He didn't fall into any patterns. That's what happened in the past. We talked about it before the game. He was throwing all his pitches for strikes. When he needed pitches, he made them. He made pitches down in the zone to get groundballs. He did a great job."
Bailey had been on the disabled list all season after a late spring bout with shoulder impingement. He was 2-0 with a 0.54 ERA in three rehab starts. Bailey has mostly been about potential to this points in his career.
"He's had spurts of dominance throughout his career," Hanigan said. "It's just a matter of consistency. He's such a competitor. He wants it bad. He works at it as hard anybody. He's got the stuff to do it."
Bailey worked a 1-2-3 first, mixing his off-speed stuff with 94 mph fastballs.
"You're looking for signs of rust," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "But he was sharp. He has good velocity. He had a good breaking ball, a very good split."
NOTES, QUOTES
--1B Joey Votto extended his on-base streak to all 31 games this season with a single Thursday as the Reds beat the Astros. Votto's streak is longest in the majors and three short of Reds' record to start a season.
--3B Scott Rolen (left shoulder) did not travel with the team to Chicago, where the training facilities are limited. He'll rejoin the team Monday in Houston and begin swinging the bat.
--INF Miguel Cairo (hamstring) was scheduled to start Thursday. But Reds manager Dusty Baker decided against it after watching Cairo run to first on grounder Wednesday.
--OF Fred Lewis hit a home run Thursday for his first hit as a Red. It was Lewis' first career pinch-hit home run. "That's good," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "He's going to have to do that for us."
--RF Jay Bruce went 3-for-4 with a home run on Thursday. It was his first multi-hit game of the season. He's tied with Jonny Gomes for team lead with six home runs.
--RHP Jordan Smith was optioned to Louisville to make room on the roster for Homer Bailey. Smith had a 5.29 ERA in 14 games. He had given up seven runs over his last 8 1/3 innings.
BY THE NUMBERS: 2 -- The Reds have won back-to-back game for the first time since April 11-12.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "He's coming. He's close. He's real close. He's got to work on some things. Sometimes, there's space on the roster. He's close to staying here for a long time. He's got the right attitude about pitching. He hates to give it up. He has the reliever mentality that you like to see." -- Reds manager Dusty Baker on Jordan Smith, who was optioned to Louisville.
ROSTER REPORT
MEDICAL WATCH:
--RHP Homer Bailey (sore right shoulder) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 24. He made rehab starts for Class AAA Louisville on April 17, April 24 and April 30. He was activated and started for the Reds on May 5.
--RHP Johnny Cueto (right shoulder impingement) had to leave his March 11 start after two innings, then had to leave after one inning March 19. He went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 22. He made rehab starts for Class AAA Louisville on April 16, April 21 and April 26. He is scheduled to make his first start of the season for the Reds on May 8.
--3B Scott Rolen (sore left shoulder) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April 21. He said on May 3 that the shoulder has improved, but he isn't close to being ready to return.
--INF Juan Francisco (strained left calf) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April 17. He ran on the field May 3 and was expected to start a rehab assignment in a few days if he felt OK.
--RHP Jose Arredondo (Tommy John surgery in February 2010) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 25. He began a rehab assignment with Class AA Carolina on April 11. He moved from Carolina to Class AAA Louisville to complete his 30-day rehab assignment.
--RHP Jared Burton (right shoulder inflammation) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 29. He suffered a setback in early April, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on April 18. He underwent arthroscopic surgery April 22, and the timetable for his return was unknown.
CHICAGO CUBS
The Cubs have more than one decision to make about shortstop and Sports Illustrated cover boy Starlin Castro.
The 21-year-old Castro has played in all 30 of the Cubs' games this year, and he's arguably been the team's best player. However, he's slumped of late, and manager Mike Quade has been thinking about giving him a day off.
Quade started Castro in Wednesday's series finale at Los Angeles because the Dodgers started left-hander Ted Lilly.
Castro went 1-for-4, and his average stands at .313. Over the last week, Castro is 5-for-28 (.179) with no walks, five strikeouts and an on-base percentage of .207.
The second problem is where to hit Castro so that he's most effective. Quade has used him first, second and third in the order with varying results.
As a leadoff hitter, Castro is 25-for-59 (.424). Batting second, he's 11-for-39 (.282). But in the third spot, where he might be putting pressure on himself, Castro is only 5-for-33 (.152) with an OBP of .200.
Castro might get that day off this weekend against the Reds even though the Cubs had a scheduled off-day Thursday.
As far as where he hits, that's less certain. Quade terms his overall lineup "evolving," meaning Castro is likely to keep moving around, depending on when right fielder Kosuke Fukudome leads off and also how center fielder Marlon Byrd does.
Byrd began the season as the No. 3 hitter. He's been up and down, and Quade moves him up and down accordingly.
NOTES, QUOTES
--CF Marlon Byrd has had a streaky season, and he's hot again. Over the last week, he's 9-for-26 (.346) with a double and his first home run of the season, a three-run shot at Los Angeles. Byrd has done all of that hitting in good weather. The Cubs come home Friday, and it's been a cold spring in Chicago. "I'm not saying it's the weather or not getting on the field as much as we do in Chicago, but it was nice to get out there and get some live swings and see what the ball was doing," Byrd said.
--RF Kosuke Fukudome has been an April hitter since coming to the Cubs in 2008. He's traditionally cooled after that. The Cubs aren't panicking, but Fukudome is 2-for-19 over his last seven games. Manager Mike Quade said during the final days of the trip that he might give Tyler Colvin a start or two this weekend against the Reds.
--C Geovany Soto has turned on the power of late, and that's important for the Cubs, whose only home run production has come from LF Alfonso Soriano. Soto hit two home runs on the trip to Arizona and L.A. He has three for the season and is 6-for-20 over the past week.
--RHP Matt Garza opens the weekend series against the Reds. Despite a 1-3 record, Garza has been an effective starter for the Cubs. He has four of the team's 10 quality starts. He also has given up no home runs and was atop the NL leader board with 11.87 strikeouts per nine innings. Garza earned his first victory as a Cub April 30 at Arizona. He will be making his first career start against the Reds.
--RHP Jeff Samardzija has lowered his ERA to 2.45 with a run of 13 consecutive scoreless innings, dating to April 12. The Cubs used him for two innings Monday at Los Angeles. Control continues to be an issue for Samardzija. He has 18 walks in 18.1 innings, but he's spotting his slider better, and he has 20 strikeouts.
BY THE NUMBERS: 26 and 17 -- The Cubs have hit 26 home runs, and 17 have been solo shots. Solo home runs by C Geovany Soto and 1B Carlos Pena on Wednesday made it 10 straight solo homers before CF Marlon Byrd hit a three-run homer in the sixth inning.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "He was Big Z today, he wasn't Carlos." -- CF Marlon Byrd, on RHP Carlos Zambrano, who beat the Dodgers on Wednesday.
ROSTER REPORT
MEDICAL WATCH:
--INF Jeff Baker (sore left shoulder) left the April 30 game. He pinch-hit May 1, and he didn't play May 2-3. He returned to action May 4.
--RHP Andrew Cashner (mild right rotator cuff strain) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April 6. He began a throwing program April 22, and he threw off a mound for the first time May 2. He might be able to return in late May.
--RHP Randy Wells (slight right forearm strain) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April 5. He began a throwing program April 22, and he threw off a mound for the first time May 2. He might be able to return in mid-May.
--RHP Brian Schlitter (strained right forearm) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 22. The timetable for his return was unknown.
