MLB Preview: Cincinnati Reds (67-61) at Arizona Diamondbacks (66-61)

CINCINNATI REDS NOTES:

TRANSACTIONS

• Today the Reds placed on the 10-day injured list 1B Joey Votto (left shoulder discomfort).
• Recalled from Louisville IF/OF Nick Senzel (#15).
• OF Henry Ramos, who was designated for assignment when OF Nick Martini was promoted Tuesday, cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Louisville.
• C Curt Casali was returned from a rehabilitation assignment.

TONIGHT’S GAME

• Is Game 1 of a 4-game series vs Kat Ritter’s Diamondbacks and Game 4 (3-0) of a 10-game road trip (3-0 at LAA, 0-0 at Ari, 3g at SF) that included yesterday’s day/night doubleheader sweep at LAA.
• Is the Reds’ third trip of the season to the West Coast.
• Sunday, the Reds completed a 2-3 homestand (1-1 vs Cle, 1-2 vs Tor) and a 5-9 stretch in which they played 11 of 14 games at Great American Ball Park (0-3 vs Wsh, 1-2 vs Mia, 2-1 at Pit, 1-1 vs Cle, 1-2 vs Tor).

SERIES NOTES

• From 7/21-7/23 the Reds earned their first series sweep of the Diamondbacks since 8/27-8/29, 2012 and their first series sweep of Ari at Great American Ball Park since 7/6-7/8, 2007.
• In 2022, the Reds earned a 4-3 season series win vs Ari, including a 2-1 series win at Chase Field.
• The Reds are 8-6 in their last 14 games here.
• The Reds are 36-21 at Ari with the ballpark roof closed and 7-13 with the roof open…Cin won its first 7 games here until a 9-6 loss on 7/1/00.

BIG ROAD MACHINE

• The Reds are 29-12 over their last 7 road trips covering 13 road series.
• The Reds won 10 of their previous 13 road series, including a streak of 7 straight road series wins snapped by the Brewers in the last series before the All-Star Game break.
• From 5/26-7/6, the Reds won at least 7 straight road series for only the third time in their history (1923, 1976).

ROOKIES ON THE ROSTER

• For yesterday’s day/night doubleheader at LAA, the Reds had a season-high 12 rookies on the roster, the most of any team in the Major Leagues:
• IF Elly De La Cruz, IF Christian Encarnacion-Strand, OF TJ Hopkins, IF Noelvi Marte, IF Matt McLain, OF Michael Siani, IF/OF Spencer Steer, LHP Andrew Abbott, RHP Fernando Cruz, RHP Brett Kennedy, LHP Brandon Williamson and 27th player RHP Lyon Richardson, who returned to Louisville today.
• 14 Reds players have made Major League debuts this season, the most of any team in the Major Leagues:
• RHP Casey Legumina, RHP Levi Stoudt, IF Matt McLain, LHP Brandon Williamson, RHP Eduardo Salazar, OF TJ Hopkins, LHP Andrew Abbott, IF Elly De La Cruz, RHP Ricky Karcher, RHP Randy Wynne, RHP Jake Wong, IF Christian Encarnacion-Strand, RHP Lyon Richardson and IF Noelvi Marte.
• 21 rookies have played in at least 1 game for the Reds, the most of any team in the Major Leagues.
• The Reds have used 57 players overall…RHP Michael Mariot was on the roster for 1 day (7/8) but did not appear in a game…in 2022, the Reds used a club record 66 players.

LET THE KIDS PLAY

• The Reds are the first team in Major League history with 3 rookies, in a single season, with at least 10 HR & 10 stolen bases each (Elly De La Cruz, Matt McLain, Spencer Steer).
• For the first time since 1890, when Cincinnati joined the National League, 3 Reds rookies have produced at least 10 HR…courtesy @EliasSports.
• Reds rookies have combined for 48 HR (Spencer Steer 18, Matt McLain 15, Elly De La Cruz 11, Christian EncarnacionStrand 4)…the franchise record for home runs in a season by rookies is 54 in 2008 (Joey Votto 24, Jay Bruce 21, Chris Dickerson 6, Ryan Hanigan 2, Paul Janish 1).
• Tue at LAA, in his 64th career game, Elly De La Cruz recorded his 20th stolen base to become the fastest player since 1900 to accumulate at least 10 HR and at least 20 steals…Barry Bonds did it in his 65th career appearance, just ahead of Reds rookies Chris Sabo (66g) and Gary Redus (67g)…courtesy @EliasSports.
• Elly De La Cruz is the first Major League player since RBI became a statistic in 1920 to produce in his first 60 career apps at least 60 hits (64), 10 HR (10), 25 RBI (26) and 15 stolen bases (19).
• Elly De La Cruz and Spencer Steer on 7/4 at Wsh became the first set of rookie teammates in Major League history to finish in the same game 4-for-4 with at least 1 RBI (since RBI became an official statistic in 1920)…courtesy @EliasSports.
• IF Matt McLain (5/22-5/28) and IF Elly De La Cruz (6/19-6/25) each earned National League Player of the Week awards, McLain in the second week of his career and De La Cruz in his third week.

RED HOTS

• The Reds are the first team in Major League history to move into first place alone in 9 games or fewer after falling 5 or more games under .500 while facing a deficit of at least 5 games…on 6/9 were 29-35 and trailed the first-place Pirates by 5.0 games…beginning 6/10 won 9 straight games to move into first place alone on 6/19…courtesy @OptaSTATS and @EliasSports.
• The Reds’ 12-game winning streak from 6/10-6/23 tied their modern club record (5/16-5/27, 1939 & 4/30-5/12, 1957).
• The Reds went 18-9 in June, their highest victory total in any month since June 2014 (18-10).
• From 6/14-7/8 Reds batters established a new franchise record for consecutive games with at least 1 home run (22g, 45hr), a streak snapped in the 1-0 loss at Mil in the final game heading into the All-Star Game break…the 1956 Reds held the team record by homering in 21 consecutive games.

Tonight’s Pitcher – #55 Brandon Williamson, LHP

• Tonight is making his 18th career appearance and start…will be his second start vs the Diamondbacks.
• In his last 9 starts beginning 7/1 went 3-2, 3.38 (48ip, 37h, 18er, 15bb, 47k, 6hr, .214baa).
• In that span ranks among the National League leaders in starts (T15th), ERA (23rd), batting average against (14th, .214) and WHIP (19th, 1.08).
• Twice picked runners off second base, KC’s Bobby Witt Jr. (PO/CS 145) and SD’s Fernando Tatis Jr. (PO/CS 165).
• Once was called for a pitch timer violation, on 5/22 vs StL (Paul Goldschmidt batting).
• Once was called for a disengagement violation, on 8/7 vs Mia (Jorge Soler batting, Jon Berti to second on the balk).
• On 6/26 at Bal walked his second batter, Adley Rutschman, to snap at 10.0 his consecutive innings streak without issuing a walk.
• On 5/16 at Col, became only the 10th visiting pitcher to make his Major League debut with a start at Coors Field, the first since Hou’s José Urquidy on 7/2/19.
• Became only the fourth Reds pitcher to make his Major League debut with at least 5.2 innings, 2 hits or fewer allowed and at least 6 strikeouts, joining Tom Carroll (7/7/1974 vs StL, 7ip, 2h, 6k), Mo Sanford (8/9/1991 at SD, 7ip, 2h, 8k) and Johnny Cueto (4/3/2008 vs Ari, 7ip, 1h, 10k).
• Became only the fourth Reds pitcher in the expansion era (since 1961) to retire at least 14 consecutive batters in his Major League debut, joining Wayne Simpson (16, 4/9/1970 at LAD), Rob Bell (16, 4/8/2000 vs Cubs) and Johnny Cueto (15, 4/3/2008 vs Ari).
• In that 3-1 win on 5/16 at Col, allowed a single to Charlie Blackmon, his first career batter faced, but didn’t allow another hit until Ezequiel Tovar’s solo HR in the sixth inning snapped the scoreless tie…Williamson retired 14 consecutive batters leading up to Tovar’s home run.

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS NOTES:

IN THE WEST: The D-backs are tied for second in the NL West with the Giants, 11.5 games behind the Dodgers and 5.5 games ahead of the Padres.

FOURTH SERIES WIN: The D-backs have won 4 consecutive series (2-1 vs. Padres, 2-1 @ Rockies, 3-1 @ Padres and 2-0 vs. Rangers).

♦ The series sweep in their last matchup vs. Rangers marked the team’s fifth of the season and first vs. Rangers since Sept. 22-23, 2020 (2-0).

VS. REDS: The D-backs welcome the Reds for a 4-game series @ Chase Field…since 2021, the D-backs are 8-8 vs. Reds and 17-17 since 2017…at home since 2021, the D-backs are 3-3 vs. Reds.

♦ Since 2022 vs. Reds, Ketel Marte is hitting .421 (16-for-38) with 4 doubles, 1 triple, 3 home runs, 7 RBI and 6 walks over 10 games and Geraldo Perdomo is hitting .355 (11-for-31) with 1 double, 1 triple, 2 homers and 10 RBI over 10 games.

♦ Corbin Carroll, in his 3 games @ Reds this season, homered twice. 20-40-60 CLUB: The D-backs’ 3 players (Corbin Carroll, Ketel Marte and Christian Walker) with 20+ homers, 40+ walks and 60+ RBI rank tied for second most in the Majors (also: Padres, Dodgers and Astros), behind the Braves (4 – Ronald Acuña Jr., Matt Olson, Marcell Ozuna and Austin Riley).

PHAM’S MLB-LEADING 13-GAME HIT STREAK: Tommy Pham’s 13-game hit streak is the longest in the Majors and tied for second longest in his career (also: June 6-June 19, 2018 while with the Cardinals)…in the span, Pham is batting .296 (16-for-54)/.909 OPS with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 3 homers, 14 RBI and 2 walks… it marks his fi rst 13+-game hitting streak since Aug 21-Sept. 14, 2018 (career-high 17 games) while with the Rays.

THE FLASH MEETS THE FLASH: The top 2 sprint speedsters, D-backs’ Corbin Carroll and Reds’ Elly De La Cruz, meet for the first time in Arizona.

♦ De La Cruz’s 31.5 average sprint speed (ft/sec) ranks atop the leaderboard while Carroll’s 30.9 average ranks seventh.

♦ Carroll leads with his 38 stolen bases (5 CS) while De La Cruz has totaled 20 stolen bases (6 CS).

CARROLL ON THE BAGS: Corbin Carroll’s 38 stolen bases rank third in the Majors, behind Ronald Acuña Jr./ATL (58) and Esteury Ruiz/OAK (49).

♦ Carroll’s 38 stolen bases are the most by a rookie in D-backs’ franchise history, ahead of Chris Young/2007 (27).

♦ Carroll’s 38 stolen bases rank fifth all-time by a D-back in a season, behind Tony Womack/1999 (72), Eric Byrnes/2007 (50), Tony Womack/2000 (45) and A.J. Pollock/2015 (39).

♦ Since 1990, Carroll is 1 of 10 MLB rookies to steal 30+ bases at age 22 or younger.

STRONG STARTS: The D-backs’ 6 games this season with 10+ strikeouts and 0-1 runs allowed by a starting pitcher are tied for third most in the NL (also: Marlins), behind the Padres (8) and Braves (7)…Arizona is 6-0 in those games.

MOUND SUCCESS: Since Aug. 17, D-backs’ pitchers collectively boast the second lowest ERA (2.45 ERA; 15 ER in 55.0 IP), second-fewest hits allowed (37) and second lowest WHIP (1.07)…the Orioles have the lowest ERA and WHIP in the span (2.30 ERA, 0.98 WHIP).

♦ In the span, D-backs’ starting pitchers have combined for a MLB-leading 1.63 ERA (5 ER in 27.2 IP).

SAVIN’ SEWALD: Paul Sewald is 6-for-6 in save opportunities since Aug. 12… since Aug. 1, his 6 saves are tied for second most in the Majors (also: 6 others), behind Kyle Finnegan/WSH (7)… he has converted a career-high 27 saves in 31 opportunities, which are tied for ninth in the Majors (also: David Bednar/PIT
and Josh Hader/SD).

♦ Has not allowed a run in 43 of his 54 appearances…is scoreless in 16 of his 21 games vs. NL opponents.

MARTE TARGETING 100: Ketel Marte’s 99 home runs as a D-back ranks tied for ninth (also: Matt Williams) on the D-backs franchise list.

♦ Marte is 1 of 12 D-backs with 90+ home runs and looks to become the ninth D-back to reach the 100+ home run mark: 224 – Luis Gonzalez; 209 – Paul Goldschmidt; 153 – Steve Finley; 132 – Chris Young; 121 – Mark Reynolds; 109 – Christian Walker; 110 – David Peralta; 108 – Justin Upton; 99 – Matt Williams; 99 – Ketel Marte; 97 – Miguel Montero; 91 – Jay Bell.

ANSWER-BACKS: The D-backs’ 32 comeback wins this season are tied for fourth most in the NL (also: Giants and Dodgers) [T-7th most in MLB], behind the Reds (38), Phillies (35) and Braves (33).

♦ The D-backs 11 wins this season when facing a 1+-run deficit in the eighth inning or later are tied for the most in the Majors (also: Braves, Marlins, Phillies and Giants).

STARTING PITCHER – RHP MERRILL KELLY ♦ #29
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: With his start tonight, passes Ian Kennedy (119 games) for sixth all-time with 120 games started for the D-backs.

• D-backs pitching leaders in starts ahead of Kelly are Randy Johnson (232), Brandon Webb (198), Patrick Corbin (154), Robbie Ray (147) and Brian Anderson (129).
• In 4 starts in August, is 1-0 with a 2.70 ERA (7 ER in 23.1 IP, 25 K).
• In his last 4 starts against NL Central opponents, is 3-0 with a 1.88 ERA (6 R-5 ER in 24.0 IP), 0.83 WHIP and .179 opponent average…the D-backs are 4-0 in those starts.
• His 3.13 ERA is fourth-best among NL qualifiers behind Blake Snell/SD (2.73), Justin Steele/CHC (2.80) and Zac Gallen/AZ (3.11).

NL RANKINGS: Ranks among NL pitchers in ERA (4th, 3.13), win percentage (6th, .667), wins (T-9th, 10) and WHIP (10th 1.18).

LAST START: Improved to 10-5 on the season after earning his first win on Aug. 19 @ Padres [3 ER in 5.1 IP] since June 19 @ Brewers.

• Earned his seventh road win of the season, which is tied for second-best among NL pitchers with Taijuan Walker/PHI and behind Spencer Strider/ATL (8).

VS. REDS: In 4 career starts vs. Reds, is 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA (8 ER in 24.0 IP)…the D-backs are 3-1 in those contests.

• Tossed 7.0 shutout innings on Sept. 14, 2019 vs. Reds and 6.0 shutout innings on June 8, 2022 @ Reds.

VS. NL CENTRAL: In 26 career starts vs. NL Central opponents, is 13-5 with a 3.31 ERA (63 R-57 ER in 155.0 IP).

PITCH TRACKING: Opposing batters are hitting .163 (20-for-123) with 34 strikeouts on his changeup and .220 (13-for-59) with 18 strikeouts on his cutter.

TAKING CARE OF RISP-Y BUSINESS IN AUGUST : In 4 starts in August, is holding runners in scoring position to a .111 average (1-for-9) with 3 strikeouts.

FIRST TIME THRU: Limiting batters to a .198 average (35-for-177) with 18 walks and 51 strikeouts the first time through the lineup.

AHEAD IN THE COUNT : Holding batters to a .168 average (31-for-185) with 74 strikeouts when he is ahead in the count.

VS. LEFT AND RIGHT: In his last 2 games, is limiting lefties to a .188 average (3-for-16, 7 K).

• Limiting lefties to a .205 average (49-for 239) with 69 strikeouts and righties to a .237 average (55 for-232) with 65 strikeouts.

IT’S UNDER CONTROL: Has walked 2 or fewer batters in 6 of his last 7 starts.

LEAD OFF SUCCESS: When leading off an inning, holding batters to a .202 average (25-for124) with 33 strikeouts.

0-2 GOT YOU: Opponents are 11-for-59 (.186) with 31 strikeouts on an 0-2 count and are batting .153 (41-for-268) with 134 strikeouts with 2 strikes.

IL REPORT: Placed on the 15-day injured list (right calf inflammation) on June 27…reinstated on July 25.