The Cincinnati Reds love playing the Pittsburgh Pirates as they look to continue their recent dominance against the struggling National League team. The Reds are in the midst of a power surge and it is coming at the expense of the Pirates. With Homer Bailey taking the mound on the road, can the pitcher fix his recent struggles to keep the winning alive?
The Reds have won six of their last seven including five straight at PNC Park against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Reds have not won six straight games against Pittsburgh since 1992. Much of the team's recent success can be credited to Bill Hamilton. The center fielder is 11 for 19 with three doubles and two home runs in their last four games. He has helped Cincinnati to a .308 combined batting average. Brandon Phillips is doing his part with four straight multihit games while Todd Frazier has three home runs in his last six games.
Bailey takes the mound with a 7-3 record and a 4.68 ERA. He has no pitched well against the Pirates lately, going 0-3 with a 5.14 ERA in his last five games dating back to 2012. He gave up five runs in five innings to the team back in April. However, Bailey has done well lately with a 4-0 record and 3.51 ERA in his last five starts.
The Pittsburgh Pirates are trying to end a three-game losing streak. The team will send Jeff Locke to the mound who is taking the place of the injured Gerrit Cole, sitting on the disabled list with a bad shoulder. Locke has been impressive since returning from the minors. However, he is getting no run support and no a lot of help from the bullpen whole blew a lead against the Miami Marlins. Locke was strong last year, making it to the All-Star team, but has struggled this season with consistency.
Watch Pirates vs. Reds live stream, click here.
