Quite possibly the only thing negative thing about the Reds' winning spree is that it might convince management not to do much of anything at the deadline. I think this would be a mistake, though I could be persuaded otherwise. Depth is still a problem. The Pirates are making moves. And, as much as you'd like to, you can't say the Cardinals are out of it yet.
One reason not to start making knee-jerk trades is if you think things like Homer Bailey's step forward are real. There are some reasons to believe it's more of a half step (FIP, xFIP are higher than his ERA and say he's a similar pitcher to Bud Norris) and other reasons (his break, his velocity, his control) to believe he really has leveled-up. The Reds front office has already made their decisions on what they think the team's talent level and we'll have a good idea what those are within 5 days.
The Reds go for their 6th series sweep of the season. Sibilance.
Lineups and bullpen log after the jump.
LINEUPS
REDS
Zack Cozart (R) SS
Drew Stubbs (R) CF
Jay Bruce (L) RF
Ryan Ludwick (R) LF
Scott Rolen (R) 3B
Todd Frazier (R) 1B
Wilson Valdez (R) 2B
Devin Mesoraco (R) C
Homer Bailey (R) P
ASTROS
Marwin Gonzalez (S) SS
Jose Altuve (R) 2B
Justin Maxwell (R) CF
Chris Johnson (R) 3B
Scott Moore (L) 1B
J.D. Martinez (R) LF
Brian Bogusevic (L) RF
Carlos Corporan (S) C
Bud Norris (R) P