The Gold Sheet
(955) Cincinnati Reds at (956) Pittsburgh Pirates
Paul Skenes has passed a lot of tests over the last three months, but things aren't going to get much easier. Teams are starting to get a second look at the flame-throwing righty, and this will be his second time facing the Reds' lineup. Skenes was in a similar situation against the Dodgers two weeks ago as Los Angeles got its second look against him. The Dodgers tagged Skenes for four runs on six hits in 6.0 innings. It's optimistic to expect the Reds to put a similar number up, but we are optimistic about what Cincinnati can do against the Pirates' bullpen. Both Aroldis Chapman and David Bednar have appeared in back-to-back games entering Thursday (Bednar gave up the game-winning run in the ninth inning last night). Skenes has not gone past 6.0 innings in his last four starts, so the Reds will likely get some at-bats against some of Pittsburgh's lower-tier relievers. Over their last 16 games, the Reds are scoring an average of 5.06 runs per game. Cincinnati leads MLB in stolen bases this season, and the Reds will be able to manufacture scoring opportunities against Skenes in ways that most other teams can't.