Reds v. Brewers Preview (9/13-9/15)

(Ed. Note: Since the next two series are against teams the Brewers have played against multiple times recently, we are just going to have new Brewer articles on Monday and Friday but Highlights/Lowlights will stay)

Pitching Probables & TV Times
Friday: Mat Latos (14-5 3.02) v. Kyle Lohse (9-9 3.59)                      7:10 pm FSNWI
Saturday: Homer Bailey (10-10 3.39) v. Johnny Hellweg (1-3 8.64)     12:05 pm FOX
Sunday: Bronson Arroyo (13-11 3.58) v. Yovani Gallardo (11-9 4.19) 1:10 pm FSNWI

Five Things to Watch
1. Do they really have to face Bronson? - I think my least favorite National League Central pitcher is Bronson Arroyo because he pitches well against the Brewers by just throwing junk.  Brewers Twitter likes to make jokes about him being a Brewer next year and if that happens, I will need some whiskey and a long conversation with myself. That would be worse than the thought of Aramis Ramirez being a Brewer (Now I love it).  Good news, he pitches Sunday so the odds are 96 percent of Wisconsin will not be watching it.

2. Why are the Brewers on FOX? - I know the actual reason because they are playing the Reds who are vying for a playoff spot maybe even the National League Central crown. But does part of America really want to watch the Brewers play baseball?  This is not as bad as the Brewers playing in primetime next Sunday night. Milwaukee is like the disappointing child I would never want to show in public, but I still love them unconditionally.  

3. Johnny Hellweg versus the Reds - At first, I thought he would have to pitch at Great American Ballpark, but being at Miller Park against Cincinnati's offense will still not be easy for the young Brewers pitcher.  For any young pitcher, the biggest part of the start is the second time through the order. Hellweg needs to get the groundballs that he got last Saturday pitching against the Cubs.  

4. Yo's bounce back looks to continue - Maybe the one person to stop Arroyo's reign of terror will be Yovani Gallardo whose been excellent since coming off the Disabled List. He goes Sunday against Arroyo and even with his season being sort of topsy-turvy, Yo has done well against the Reds so far this season.

5. Can the Brewers win a home series? - The Brewers have not won a series at Miller Park since mid-July when they swept the Miami Marlins. They had a split against these very Reds in mid-August, but that's been their best result at home. While I want them to tank, it would be nice to take a couple games from the Reds and make the National League race more interesting.

Charlie.