Milwaukee Brewers: How important is the upcoming series against the Reds?

The Milwaukee Brewers will finally head home to the friendly atmosphere of Miller Park starting tomorrow against the Cincinnati Reds. The upcoming three-game series could end up as one of the most important of the season.

Why is beating the Reds so critical?

Well, for one the Reds are in the last place in the NL Central. They will also look to play the role of spoiler in the division, and the Milwaukee Brewers are in a funk at the moment.

With the much-needed series finale victory against the Cardinals, the Brewers are being presented with a great opportunity. They have a chance to bounce right back into the division title race if they take care of business against Cincinnati.

What are the key factors for the series?

The Reds will start the series with Homer Bailey, who has not been good for them at all this season. Bailey owns a 6.33 ERA and a record of 1-10. Bailey will start opposite Chase Anderson who is due for a big bounceback game.

The second game will showcase Reds starter Sal Romano.  Romano, like Bailey, is having a bad year as he owns an ERA of 5.31 and a record of 7-10. He will battle against Milwaukee Brewers starter Junior Guerra, who needs to have a good start.  Do you see a trend here?

Finally, the third game will feature Robert Stephenson and his ERA of 7.94. His opponent, Freddy Peralta will need to have a quality start in order to stay safe in the rotation.

With the way the pitching matchups are set up for the Milwaukee Brewers, they should win the series or even have a chance at a sweep. You never know though with baseball. However, there is one major factor that will have an immense impact on this series.

Will injuries play a role in the series?

Joey Votto will not play as he was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a right knee contusion. He is an absolute Milwaukee Brewers killer. Votto has a .345/.470/.622 slash line and an OPS of 1.092 in Milwaukee. He has belted 18 home runs and driven in 53 runs in 76 career games at Miller Park.

The mere fact that Votto’s presence won’t be felt is already enough to give the Brewers a breather.

Now, of course, this series will not determine if the Milwaukee Brewers play in October baseball, but it should be looked at as a must-win for Milwaukee.