Reds at Padres, Game 3 - Preview and Lineups

Cincinnati Reds ace Luis Castillo was a member of the San Diego Padres once upon a time. Back in 2016, the Miami Marlins - in their infinite wisdom - sent Castillo to the Padres as part of the massive Andrew Cashner trade, only to be returned to Miami some three days later when it was revealed that Collin Rea’s elbow was made of spoiled string cheese. So, the Reds can thank Padres’ GM A.J. Preller and his somewhat shady dealings for how they ended up with their current ace in the first place.

The Reds will send Castillo to the mound against his ‘former club,’ as the Reds will look to take a third straight game from San Diego and claim a series victory. Of course, to do that the Reds will need some solid output from a starting lineup that features precisely none of Jesse Winker, Joey Votto, Derek Dietrich, or Curt Casali, largely because San Diego is sending lefty Eric Lauer to the mound to start.

If you think about it for a second, though, perhaps David Bell is on to something here. Lauer has only topped 77 pitches once in his four starts so far this year, and considering the San Diego bullpen only features one lefty - Brad Wieck, who the team saw on Thursday and who hardly strikes fear into the hearts of anyone - odds are there will be plenty of pitches thrown late by right-handed Padres relievers. So, at least he’s got some big guns set for some good matchups down the stretch tonight, assuming the interesting starting lineup can actually back Castillo enough early to make this game a puncher’s-battle late.

First pitch is a bit earlier for you tonight, too, as it’s set for 8:40 PM ET.

Reds Lineup

Padres Lineup