Cincinnati Reds probable pitchers & starting lineup vs. Oakland A's, April 30

Cincinnati Reds probable pitchers & starting lineup vs. Oakland A's, April 30

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

Probable starting pitchers

Well, Reds fans, Cincinnati is officially on a five-game winning streak. The ole Redlegs will look to make it six in a row as they close out their series with the Oakland Athletics this afternoon.

Toeing the rubber for the Cincinnati Reds will be left-hander Nick Lodolo. This will be a bit of a test for the Reds southpaw as he's struggled during his last two outings. Lodolo has been hit and hit hard over his last few starts.

Making the start for Oakland during Sunday's series finale will be another left-hander in Ken Waldichuk. Formerly of the New York Yankees organization, Waldichuk has walked 11 batters in five starts this season. The 25-year-old will be looking to keep the Reds bats a bay this afternoon.

Cincinnati Reds starting lineup

With a left-hander on the mound, David Bell unsurprisingly goes with all right-handed bats on his lineup card. Jonathan India gets the afternoon off and Kevin Newman will bat leadoff and play second base. He'll be followed by Spencer Steer, Stuart Fairchild, and Tyler Stephenson.

The red-hot Henry Ramos will be in right field and Nick Senzel wil start in center. Matt Reynolds gets his first start of the 2023 season, with Jose Barrero batting eighth and Curt Casali in the No. 9 hole.

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

You don't have to look very hard to find a bounce-back candidate for today's game in Oakland. The Cincinnati Reds need to see the best version of Nick Lodolo on the hill today. The lefty has struggled of late.

Lodolo looked unhittable in his first two starts of the season, going 1-0 with 21 strikeouts in 12 innings of work and allowing just tow earned runs. His last three outings, however, have seen the former first-round pick allow 16 runs on 29 hits. He has just 16 punch outs and five walks over his last 14.2 innings of work.

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

In case you haven't been paying attention, Henry Ramos has hit safely in all five of the games he's played thus far. The 31-year-old is 7-for-17 with four walks, three RBIs, and only one strikeout.

There was a lot of groaning from the Reds fanbase after Ramos' contract was selected last week, as so many want to see Matt McLain make his major league debut. But Ramos has slashed .412/.524/.529 since receiving the call-up to the bigs. So far, it looks like the Reds made the right move.