Reds vs. Brewers, Game 3: Preview/Prediction Thread

I am a Greg Reynolds fan. There, I said it. Reynolds, drafted number two overall by the Colorado Rockies in 2006 immediately behind Clayton Kershaw, has mired in the minor leagues and some pretty bad Rockies teams since 2008. The Rockies, as they are wont to do, rushed him to the majors after Reynolds had major shoulder surgery in 2007. Since then, he has been learning to pitch without the velocity that made him a standout star at Stanford a decade ago.

Since signing with the Reds, Reynolds has proven that he can transition from hard-thrower to softer-tossing pitcher at the minor league level. He has impressed with Louisville this season, going 12-3 with a 2.42 ERA. He doesn't have a solid strike out rate (just 97 in 156.1 IP), but he has been an anchor for the Bats' rotation in 2013. In his one start with the big club, his strike out rate seemed foreshadow his struggles. Greg pitched 5 innings, giving up 5 runs in a loss to the Giants.

Reynolds gets to redeem himself from his one lackluster start against the Giants today when the Reds attempt to take another series against the Milwaukee Brewers. Reynolds gets the call in light of Tony Cingrani being placed on the 15 day D.L due to a back strain. Hopefully this will not be Reynolds' last outing for the Reds, since the rotation cupboard is bare absent another appearance of Pedro Villareal or a desperate acquisition of someone like Edinson Volquez. (DID NOT WANT THEN, DO NOT WANT NOW.)

The Brewers will counter with Marco Estrada. Estrada was pretty terrible in his last start against St. Louis, but he has pitched decently in previous outings since being placed in the Brewers' rotation at the start of the month. Regardless of what I write here, the Reds will most certainly perform the opposite this afternoon against the 30 year old right-hander. So, at the risk of being wrong, I'm just going to say Go Reds!