With his teammates looking for a boost from their ace right-hander, Hunter Greene returns to the mound Wednesday as the Cincinnati Reds close out their three-game series with the visiting Philadelphia Phillies.
Greene (4-3, 2.72 ERA) will be back on a major league mound for the first time since June 3. In the fifth inning of that game against the visiting Milwaukee Brewers, he felt a tweak in his right groin in the fifth inning, an aggravation of the same problem that sent him to the injured list in mid-May and forced him to miss two starts.
This time, instead of two starts, he missed more than two months.
The Reds are in desperate need of wins of any kind at this point. Cincinnati got six shutout innings from starter Brady Singer on Tuesday in a 6-1 win over the Phillies, setting up the decisive game of the series on Wednesday.
Cincinnati remains two games behind the New York Mets for the third and final National League wild-card spot.
“I mean, I’m not oblivious to the situation that we’re in,” Greene said. “I put a lot of pressure on myself. Nobody’s ever going to put more pressure on me than I will myself. I mean, I’m the one that’s going through this process and going through this journey of the sport and who I am as a person and a player.
“So, I think understanding that and being able to not lose sight of that is super important and keeping that perspective. But yeah, I mean, obviously I’m putting my best foot forward.”
In four minor league rehab starts, including three with Triple-A Louisville, Greene allowed 10 hits and 11 runs (nine earned) while striking out 24 and walking five and yielding four home runs over 13 innings. He gave up two home runs in his most recent start for Louisville on Friday.
Greene owns an 0-1 record and a 4.63 ERA in two career starts vs. Philadelphia.
The Phillies will counter with Cristopher Sanchez (11-3, 2.36 ERA), making his 24th start of the season. The left-hander has won four of his past five starts, including a victory at Texas on Friday. He held the Rangers to one run on six hits over six innings, striking out six and walking one.
Sanchez is 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA in three lifetime starts against the Reds.
Cincinnati’s Miguel Andujar, acquired for his production against left-handed pitching, homered Tuesday for the second time in three games. He is 21-for-51 (.412) with three home runs on the season against lefties.
The Phillies would love to receive some early-inning offense. On Sunday, in a 4-2 win over the Rangers, they didn’t get a hit until the fourth inning. On Monday and Tuesday, Cincinnati starters Andrew Abbott and Singer were perfect against Philadelphia through four innings.
“I’d like to get something going earlier, but those are just the ebbs and flows of the season,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “You just got to grind through it, and hopefully (Wednesday) we come out and we score five in the first three.”
–Field Level Media
