The Cincinnati Reds may have needed a bit of time to locate their offense in Mexico, but their pitching has been front and center throughout the majority of the season.
The Reds look to keep both in gear as they bid for a fifth straight victory on Sunday in the finale of a two-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals in Monterrey.
Jesse Winker went deep for the third time in four games on Saturday when he launched a solo homer in the sixth inning for Cincinnati’s first hit in a 5-2 win.
Derek Dietrich went deep in the seventh to highlight a three-RBI performance for the Reds, who have outscored the opposition 26-3 during their winning streak.
“Derek is great example — he has made the most of his opportunities, and he is going to be a great part of this team,” Cincinnati manager David Bell said of Dietrich, who has a team-leading four homers. “He is already contributing both as a bench player and as a starter. He’s going to be an important part of the team going forward.”
Dietrich is 2-for-6 in his career versus Sunday’s Cardinals starter Miles Mikolas (1-1, 6.19 ERA), who returns to the international stage after spending three seasons in Japan.
Mikolas picked up his first win after allowing three runs for the second straight outing and scattering five hits in six innings of a 4-3 victory versus the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday. The 30-year-old right-hander kept the ball in the park after surrendering four homers in his previous two trips to the mound.
Mikolas improved to 2-0 with a 3.15 ERA in five career appearances against Cincinnati after winning both decisions in three starts last season.
Right-hander Anthony DeSclafani (0-1, 6.75 ERA), who owns a 5-2 mark with a 3.42 ERA in 10 career appearances against St. Louis, split a pair of decisions versus the Cardinals last season despite surrendering 11 runs (10 earned) on 20 hits on 12 innings.
DeSclafani has struggled mightily against Paul Goldschmidt (7-for-11) and Matt Carpenter (9-for-20, three homers), although he has flustered Yadier Molina (3-for-20) and Kolten Wong (0-for-14, seven strikeouts).
Four days from his 29th birthday, DeSclafani will look to avenge a brutal outing last Sunday, when he allowed six runs on seven hits — including a pair of homers – in 4 1/3 innings of a 7-5 setback at Pittsburgh.
DeSclafani admitted that he’s looking forward to playing in front of a raucous audience in Monterrey.
“I assume it’s going to be a little crazy,” DeSclafani said of the atmosphere. “I’ve never been to Mexico. If it’s a crazy atmosphere, I think it’s going to be awesome.”
Atmosphere aside, St. Louis manager Mike Shildt told reporters that the team needs to convert when it has runners aboard — as it stranded a man at third base on four separate occasions on Saturday and left 10 aboard overall.
“You know, 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position is not characteristic of our club,” Shildt said following Saturday’s performance. “(We) left some money on the table out there, especially early on, and not able to cash in.”
