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May 26, 2009 - 12:53 AM By ALAN FERGUSON STATS Writer

Houston (18-24) at Cincinnati (23-20), 7:10 p.m. EDT

On the verge of their longest losing streak of the season, the Houston Astros couldn't find a much better time to have Roy Oswalt start against the Cincinnati Reds.

The right-hander will try to continue his dominance of Cincinnati on Tuesday night and help Houston avoid a sixth straight loss as the NL Central foes meet at Great American Ball Park.

The Astros (18-25) are 24-6 when Oswalt (1-2, 4.47 ERA) pitches against the Reds and 12-2 when the right-hander starts in Cincinnati. He carries a lifetime 23-1 record versus the Reds with a 2.35 ERA.

He's 8-0 in 10 starts against them since losing at Cincinnati on April 28, 2006. The only two games he didn't win in that span came this season, though Oswalt was outstanding as he gave up one run over 13 innings.

However, he comes into Tuesday having allowed at least three runs in four straight starts, failing to last seven innings in any of them. He pitched at least seven in half of his 32 outings last year.

Though Oswalt hasn't lost in eight starts since April 11, his team has dropped five straight to tie a season high.

Eight unearned runs sent the Astros to an 8-5 loss Monday as Cincinnati capitalized on three Houston errors.

"Defense was pretty much the culprit today," Astros manager Cecil Cooper said. "We didn't catch the ball. We didn't bail the pitcher out."

However, it was the fifth straight game in which Houston pitchers allowed at least 11 hits.

Lance Berkman hit a two-run homer in the first inning, his 10th of the season and 47th against the Reds - his highest total against any team. His 21 home runs at Great American Ball Park are the most of any opposing player.

The Reds (24-20) took control Monday with five runs in the first, including an RBI single from Johnny Gomes. The outfielder had three hits and drove in three runs during a game which included a 2-hour, 3-minute rain delay.

"Fun day, long day," said Gomes, who is 6 for 14 since being called up from Triple-A Louisville on Friday. "We ran out a good nine today. It was just good baseball all the way around. We did a good job with our situational hitting. We didn't leave a whole lot of runners out there."

Micah Owings (3-5, 4.70) will try to help Cincinnati win a season-best three in a row for the fourth time and end a personal two-game skid. Owings gave up one run in 5 2-3 innings of relief in the Reds' 16-inning loss at San Diego on May 16, then was shelled for five runs in three innings Thursday night in a 12-5 home loss to Philadelphia.

His only start against Houston came May 24, 2007, when he recorded his first career complete game in his seventh major league start - a 9-1 victory for Arizona.

Astros catcher Ivan Rodriguez, in a 2-for-19 slump, left Monday's game after the first inning because of left knee irritation but said he would return Tuesday. The 37-year-old veteran has caught 2,212 games - 14 shy of Carlton Fisk's major league record.

"I'll be playing tomorrow, no matter what," Rodriguez told the team's official Web site.