Cincinnati Reds probable pitchers & starting lineup vs. Oakland A's, April 28

Cincinnati Reds probable pitchers & starting lineup vs. Oakland A's, April 28

1. Probable starting pitchers
2. Cincinnati Reds starting lineup
3. Which Cincinnati Reds player needs to bounce back in tonight's game?
4. Which Cincinnati Reds player will be the X-factor in tonight's game?

Probable starting pitchers

After a day off, Cincinnati Reds baseball is back. The team had just completed a 20-game stretch of games without break, so David Bell's troops will be fully rested once the upcoming series in Oakland begins.

The Reds will send Luis Cessa to the hill tonight. Cessa's last outing was much better as the right-hander almost made it through five innings and allowed just two earned runs on six hits while striking out four.

The Oakland A's have yet to name their starter just yet, but the Reds always seem to struggle on these West Coast road trips. Hopefully that sweep of the Texas Rangers at home gives this team confidence that it can play with anyone, especially the hapless A's.

Cincinnati Reds starting lineup

No, Matt McLain isn't a big leaguer yet. But it's coming, Reds fans. Just be patient. Jonathan India will lead things off agains the A's with TJ Friedl playing center field and batting second. Spencer Steer will man first base in Wil Myer's absence and Tyler Stephenson is batting cleanup.

Jake Fraley is batting fifth and will be followed by designated hitter Henry Ramos. Nick Senzel gets the start at third base and he'll be followed by Stuart Fairchild and Jose Barrero.

Which Cincinnati Reds player needs to bounce back in tonight's game?

The Cincinnati Reds could use a nice bounce-back performance from Spencer Steer tonight. Steer has gone 0-for-9 over the past two games with four strikeouts. Manager David Bell will need more from his No. 3 hitter this evening.

After starting out the season red-hot, Steer has cooled off a bit. The 25-year-old is hitting just .148/.200/.222 in his last seven games.

Which Cincinnati Reds player will be the X-factor in tonight's game?

Luis Cessa can be the X-factor in tonight's game against the Oakland A's. Now, the need for Cessa to go deep isn't necessarily there given that the Reds were off on Thursday, but if Cessa wants to remain in the rotation, he's going to need to prove that he can give the club more than four innings.

Bell has yet to allow Cessa to go through the opposing batting order more than twice. Perhaps tonight's matchup against a below-average Oakland team will be just what the doctor ordered.