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With consecutive nights of double-digit hits, it appears that maybe the offense is starting to stir a little. Then again, last night was only the 3rd time in June they have scored more than 4 runs, so maybe not. It's good to see 3 hits from Willy Taveras and 2 hits from Jay Bruce and Brandon Phillips. Ryan Hanigan also had 2 hits, but is anybody seriously surprised by that at this point? Look for another similar lineup on the field today with another lefty pitching for the White Sox.
Not many of the current Reds have faced Mark Buehrle much. In fact, there isn't a single player on the Reds right now that was with the team the last time Buehrle faced them back in 2001. However, those that have have seen him with other teams have seen quite a bit of him. Ramon Hernandez has faced him 37 times, but may not be looking forward to today: .167/.189/.250. Neither is Jerry Hairston Jr., who has batted against him 23 times for a .211/.286/.368 line. Jonny Gomes is excited though: .400/.462/.600 in 10 PA. Buerhle is a tough lefty that will probably give the Reds fits today. I wouldn't be surprised if the improved offense is non-existent today.
Aaron Harang has an 11.2 inning scoreless streak going and all he has to show for it is a loss and 2 no decisions. In fact, Harang has not gotten the win in the 4 starts he's made since coming out after the 2 hour rain delay against Houston on May 25th. He was blasted in one of those starts, giving up 8 runs in 4.1 innings against Milwaukee, but the others have been good. He's coming off of a 2 inning stint in his last start because of a rain delay. That one was especially unfortunate because Harang looked as good in those 2 innings as he has looked all season, throwing 26 of his 33 pitches for strikes and hitting 94 on the radar. Hopefully that zip will be there today and he can shutdown the White Sox attack. Unfortunately he faces another tough foe on the mound, so getting a win could be a stretch once again.
In other news, Edwin Encarnacion has been sent to Louisville for a rehab stint. He's eligible to come off of the DL on Saturday, though I imagine we won't see him until after the road trip on the 30th. The same probably holds true for Joey Votto as well.