Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Reds (91-59)	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0	0	5	9	0
Cubs (58-92)	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	3	11	0

Boxscore

Remember when Johnny Cueto became the first National League pitcher to get his 17th win? Yeah, that was the last time Cueto got a victory, 4 starts ago. But finally, on his 4th try, he picked up his 18th victory.

Cueto wasn’t Cueto, but he was pitching against the Chicago Cubs, so it didn’t matter. Over 6 innings, Cueto allowed no runs on 5 hits with a season-high of 4 walks. He struck out 2. But thanks to the offense finally coming through in the top of the 7th, he was able to get the win.

That top of the 7th inning was the only time the Reds scored. The lack of runs could’ve been due to the minor league line-up the Reds were using, but again, it was the Cubs. And in the 7th, the lineup they scored 5, which was one more than they needed.

With runners on 1st and 3rd, Didi Gregorius singled to right to break the scoreless tie. Then Joey Votto pinch-hit for Cueto and laced the 2nd pitch he saw into left field to drive in another run. Xavier Paul and Henry Rodriguez finished out the scoring with hits of their own.

The bullpen was shaky, with Jose Arredondo, Logan Ondrusek, and Alfredo Simon all allowing runs. Considering the small number of runs the bullpen’s been allowing lately, it was kind of nice for them to allow some when the team had a big lead.

In the end, the 5-run deficit the Cubs faced was too much to overcome. The Reds won by a score of 5-3, sweeping the series and lowering their magic number to 2. Should the St. Louis Cardinals lose to the Cubs tomorrow and the Reds defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Reds will clinch the division. Bronson Arroyo will go against Joe Blanton at 7:10pm.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Reds (89-59)	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	3	4	0
Cubs (58-90)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	4	0

Boxscore

Last night, thanks to an excellent start from Homer Bailey, the Cincinnati Reds returned to their record to a season-high 30 games over .500.

Bailey has been pitching much better of late, certainly placing himself into the consideration for a playoff rotation spot. Over 7 1/3 innings, Bailey allowed 1 run on 4 hits and 2 walks. He struck out 4. The outing improved his record to a career-high 12 wins. He joins fellow starters Johnny Cueto, Mat Latos, and Bronson Arroyo with at least 12 wins.

The offense was held largely in check by the Chicago Cubs except for one inning. In that inning, the 6th, Joey Votto, Ryan Ludwick, and Jay Bruce all walked to load the bases. The next batter, Scott Rolen, flew out to the center fielder. It was a hit that was deep enough for a normal runner to attempt to tag up and score from 3rd base, but Votto barely budged. That surgically repaired knee was not going to be tested.

Thankfully, it didn’t have to be. The next batter, Ryan Hanigan, came through with a bases-clearing double that gave the Reds all the runs they’d need. Plus, it allowed Votto to basically walk home.

The win reduced the Reds’ magic clinching number to 4. Mike Leake will attempt to reduce that further tonight when he starts against Chris Rusin at 8:05pm.

After Johnny Cueto’s string of bad starts–the most recent being Saturday’s loss to the Marlins–the Cincinnati Reds announced that the order of the rotation is going to change.

Oddly, though, instead of getting rest, Cueto has moved up a day in his position.

Instead of Mike Leake, Homer Bailey, Bronson Arroyo, Johnny Cueto and Mat Latos, it’s now Bailey, Leake, Cueto, Arroyo and Latos.

John Fay speculates that the shuffling will set the postseason rotation as Cueto, Arroyo, Latos, and Bailey. Separating the two hard-throwing starters of Cueto and Latos with the soft-tossing Arroyo makes a lot of sense. Those are the four guys likely to get starts during the playoffs, so it’s not a stretch to assume it’s true.

However, I’m surprised to see Cueto not getting another day of rest. Before the switch, Cueto would’ve had 6 days of rest between his starts. Now he’ll have 5. While it is one more day off than normal thanks to the off day Monday, given how Cueto’s struggled this month, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to give him more rest. At 197 innings pitched, he’s 11 1/3 innings past his previous high in 2010. Some fatigue from all that isn’t surprising.

It’ll be interesting to see how Cueto performs on his next start. I expect the Reds will be watching his inning and pitch count closely. And once the division is clinched–their magic number is 5–I expect all the starters will get some rest.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Reds (87-59)	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	2	0	4	8	2
Marlins (65-81)	3	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	-	6	10	2

Boxscore

Perhaps it’s the 4 pints of beer talking, but the Cincinnati Reds are playing like I feel when I watch them: I’ve already entered the play-off tickets sweepstakes, let’s get the season over with already.

The Reds lost the series to the Florida Miami Marlins today when Johnny Cueto had another crappy start. When Cueto doesn’t win the Cy Young award, look back to this start as the the reason. Cueto didn’t make it out of the 5th inning, allowing 6 runs on 9 hits, 2 walks, and only 2 strikeouts.

The Reds’ offense was more up to the task than the day before when they were shutout, but they still managed only 4 runs, half of which were provided by a 2-run home run from Ryan Ludwick. The others were driven in by Wilson Valdez and Scott Rolen. Joey Votto scored one of those, of course.

The Reds’ magic number is currently at 7 and the St. Louis Cardinals are winning as I write this. It’s unlikely the number will go down tonight.

But I hope it does soon. And that Cueto gets past his September dead-arm phase. The playoffs are coming, and the Reds need to be ready.

I am.