Luis Castillo is a man of streaks and has recently set the tone for the Cincinnati Reds.
After an inconsistent start to the season, the right-hander has won his third game of the year. This time, doing so despite not having much breathing room.
On Wednesday, Castillo followed his first-career complete game with a quality start against the Pirates. He allowed just three hits, no runs, and struck out 10. The latter was just one off of his season-high.
The right-hander benefited from a single from Shogo Akiyama that scored Jose Garcia in the fifth inning. Archie Bradley and Raisel Iglesias followed Castillo to slam the door in the final two innings.
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Akiyama (.480 OBP) and Garcia (.304 average) have been Cincinnati’s hottest bats over the last seven games. While the former was signed to draw a lion’s share of starts in the outfield, Garcia was brought up to the big-league club in late August. He has started 15 of the Reds’ 22 games since Aug. 27.
The Reds made a large investment in Garcia when they gave him close to a $5 million signing bonus out of Cuba in June 2017. With Freddy Galvis set to become a free agent this offseason, the Reds are giving Garcia an early look in order to determine their approach moving forward.
Wednesday’s 1-0 shutout extended Cincinnati’s win streak to five games, its longest since winning six games from June 16 to 21 last season. The Reds now stand at 25-26 in the standings having won seven of their last 10.
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Perhaps the Cincinnati Reds are hitting their stride at the right time. However, that momentum will be tested soon, as they’ve got a three-game home series against the team with the American League’s best record.
The Chicago White Sox held a six-game winning streak before Wednesday’s 5-1 loss to the Minnesota Twins. They also clinched their first postseason berth since 2008 on Thursday.
AL MVP candidate Jose Abreu has hit four home runs in his last seven games and his batting average this season is .332, ninth in the AL.
The series begins Friday with the first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m. EST.
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