The Reds just wrapped up their final NL Central season series with the Suburban Houston Division B-9 Little League Travelling All-Star Team by dropping two of three against them at home. It really isn't anything to get your sugars all up about, though. Good teams have bad stretches, even against amateur competition. Their division lead is still 8.5 games with 21 to go. I don't want them losing two of three to the Astros, but I'm not going get upset about it right now, either.

This upcoming series with the Pirates was looking like a compelling and critical divisional match up just a month and a half ago, but the Reds surge coupled with the Pirates collapse has rendered it decidedly less so. As fun as a dramatic division race can be, I'm pretty comfortable with the fact that it has turned out otherwise. The last time Mat Latos faced off against Wandy Rodriguez back on August 3rd, Latos threw a gem and hit a home run. That was a good game. He should do the exact same thing tonight.

If you follow after the grunt, you will find the lineups for tonight's game as well as the extended jumbo bullpen log.

LINEUPS