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NL Central foes start series at Miller Park

Jul 7, 2011 - 3:12 PM (Sports Network) - The Cincinnati Reds continue their recent tour of the elite challengers in the National League's Central Division tonight when they head to Milwaukee to face the Brewers in the opener of a four-game series at Miller Park.

Champions of the Central in 2010, the Reds enter the series after a three-game set in St. Louis, where they dropped the initial two games before salvaging Wednesday's finale, 9-8, in 13 innings.

Pinch-hitter Ramon Hernandez lined the go-ahead RBI ground-rule double in the 13th inning, as Cincinnati overcame blowing an eight-run advantage to beat the Cardinals, 9-8, spoiling the return of Albert Pujols to the St. Louis lineup.

Cardinals reliever Raul Valdes (0-1) walked Jay Bruce to start the 13th. Drew Stubbs singled with one out, and with two down Hernandez hit a low line drive just inside the left field line. The ball took three bounces before hopping into the stands.

Aroldis Chapman, the eighth Cincinnati pitcher of the night, recorded his first career save. He allowed a single to Tony Cruz with one out in the bottom of the 13th, but fanned Daniel Descalso and caught Jay looking at a 101 mph fastball to end it.

Jose Arredondo (1-3) pitched a pair of innings to get the win, Cincinnati's second in six games.

St. Louis leads the jumbled Central by a game over Milwaukee, 1 1/2 games over Pittsburgh and three games over the Reds.

The Brewers ended a three-game skid Wednesday when Casey McGehee cracked a pinch-hit three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh inning in a 3-1 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in the finale of a three-game home series.

Yovani Gallardo (10-5) was spectacular in seven innings of work to earn the win, giving up one run on four hits for Milwaukee. Jon Axford struck out the side in the ninth inning to pick up his 22nd save of the season.

The Brewers will send 29-year-old lefty Chris Narveson to the mound in search of a first career defeat of the Reds. The Colorado native is 0-3 in six meetings with Cincinnati, including a 7-3 loss on May 30 in Ohio, where he allowed five runs on five hits in four innings.

He's won three of four decisions since, including a 6-2 defeat of Minnesota on June 26, when he gave up just two runs in 6 2/3 innings.

The Brewers are 8-9 in his 17 starts.

Cincinnati will reply with righty Homer Bailey, who's been racked by injury this year while making just seven starts in three-plus months.

He won his initial three decisions between May 5 and 16 while allowing only four earned runs in 19 innings, but is 0-3 in four starts since as the earned run average has climbed to 3.64.

Bailey's 0-2 lifetime against Milwaukee in seven starts, allowing 43 hits and 24 runs in 40 1/3 innings.

Cincinnati is 3-4 in his four 2011 starts.