Cardinals turn to Lynn against Reds
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Lance Lynn will face the Reds for the fourth time this year. The Cardinals right-hander has never lost to Cincinnati and Sunday he will try to help St. Louis win the rubber match of a three-game set at Great American Ball Park.
Lynn has gone 0-3 in his last four road starts and hasn't won outside Busch Stadium since June 15 at Miami. Most recently, he's given up one run in each of his last two starts, a no-decision at Pittsburgh Tuesday and a victory against the Philadelphia Phillies July 25.
Lynn is 2-0 in seven games (4 starts) with a 3.96 ERA when facing the Reds. The problem is his ERA at Great American Ball Park stands at 8.10.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Mike Leake will try to win his fourth consecutive decision when he takes the mound for the Reds. Leake, who is unbeaten in his last four starts, didn't get a decision at San Diego Monday when he allowed no runs in seven innings.
Leake is 2-3 with a 4.76 ERA in seven games (6 starts) versus the Cardinals.
Devin Mesoraco homered twice and knocked in three runs as the Reds won 8-3 Saturday night. Shin-Soo Choo added a two-run homer and Jack Hannahan contributed a pair of RBI as well for a Cincinnati squad that had dropped six of seven coming in. Brandon Phillips finished with two hits, including a run- scoring double.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Tony Cingrani (5-1) struck out seven over five-plus innings and worked around five walks to pick up the win, though the rookie was charged with all three St. Louis runs.
"We've had a pretty rough stretch, but we had some really good offense today and some good defensive plays out there," Cingrani said.
Cardinals starter Jake Westbrook (7-6) also struggled with his command, issuing five walks and permitting five runs in his five-inning stint.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}St. Louis produced 13 runs in winning each of its last two outings, including Friday's series opener, but managed just four hits in losing for the eighth time in 10 games.
The Cards are 1 1/2 games behind Pittsburgh for the NL Central lead.
"We had two opportunities [to score], but we had trouble picking [runners] up," said Cardinals manager Mike Matheny.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}St. Louis leads the season series, 7-4.