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Lackey takes second shot at 10th win

Jun 13, 2007 - 1:34 PM LA Angels (40-25) at Cincinnati (26-39) 7:10 pm EDT

CINCINNATI (Ticker) -- John Lackey and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim will look to cool the hot bats of the Cincinnati Reds when they continue their series Wednesday at Great American Ballpark.

Lackey (9-4, 2.60 ERA) suffered through his worst outing of the season last Wednesday against the Minnesota Twins when he allowed six runs - four earned - and seven hits in seven innings to absorb his first loss since May 5.

The Angels' ace would become the major leagues' first 10-game winner with a win against the Reds, but he'll have to contend with a streaky lineup that appears to be firing on all cylinders.

Not even a 16-strikeout performance by Kelvim Escobar and the Anaheim bullpen on Tuesday could hold down Cincinnati, which got an RBI from both Ken Griffey Jr. and rookie Josh Hamilton en route to a 5-3 win.

The Reds, unlike the rest of their National-League counterparts, seem to have found the key to beating American League teams. They took a series from Central-leading Cleveland and would claim a series win against the West leaders with a victory on Wednesday.

Former American Leaguer Kyle Loshe (3-7, 4.22) will take the mound for Cincinnati. The veteran righthander is riding a string of three straight quality starts, including a dominating 8 1/3-inning outing in which he allowed a run last Thursday at St. Louis.

Loshe has made nine career starts against the Angels and owns a 4-3 lifetime mark with a 6.35 ERA.