Cardinals at Reds, Game 4: Preview and Lineups

Along with Tucker Barnhart, Homer Bailey has been one of very, very few bright spots for the Cincinnati Reds during this early season disaster to which we’ve all played witness. Fresh off a start against the Philadelphia Phillies in which he took a no-hitter into the 6th inning, Homer gets the nod on Sunday with a chance to help the Reds salvage a lone game of this four game set against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Of course, the Cincinnati bats will have to tangle with Cardinals ace Carlos Martinez, which is always a daunting task. The Reds, off to their worst start since 1931, are as in-need of a victory about as badly as at any point as I can remember.

First pitch is set for 1:10 PM ET.

Cincinnati Lineup

St. Louis Lineup

Other Notes

• Kevin Shackelford, who provided the Reds with 30.2 largely decent innings of relief in 2017, began a rehab assignment with AA Pensacola on Saturday. Hopefully, that means we’ll see a further bullpen augmentation in the coming days.
• Michael Lorenzen, on the other hand, appears to still be a long ways away from a return. He’s still limited to throwing on flat ground and has an MRI scheduled for next week to further determine his status, as MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon relayed. That, plus a rehab assignment, would put him at least two-ish more weeks out, I’d wager - and that’s best case scenario at the moment.
• I cannot emphasize how enjoyable it would be to see the Reds go. So, go Reds. Go.