Despite a six-game losing streak that made it feel like the sky was falling, the Yankees are back to .500 in June, as their series victory against Baltimore got them up to 10-10. The additional good news? This three-game set is the final one before the Yankees finally get an offday on Thursday, ending their stretch of games in 16 consecutive days.

The Yankees begin their yearly series against the Cincinnati Reds tonight, visiting Great American Ball Park for the first time since 2023. The Reds enter at 40-38, fourth in a surprisingly stout NL Central, sitting three games out of a Wild Card spot.

A big part of the Reds’ (modest) success so far this season has been their rotation, with tonight’s starter Nick Lodolo doing his part. The former first-round pick enters with a 3.71 ERA (121 ERA+) and 4.00 FIP in 15 starts and 85 innings. His 21-percent K rate is a career-low, but he’s reduced his walk rate and has gotten better luck than he did last season, when he registered a 4.76 ERA in 21 starts.

Lodolo’s minuscule walk rate, paired with an elite chase rate, is what’s allowed him to succeed despite grading out as mediocre in terms of preventing hard contact and getting strikeouts. He uses an even four-pitch that varies in shape from start to start. He deploys his four-seamer, curveball, changeup, and sinker all between 21 and 29 percent. His arsenal is flexible based on matchups, as he hasn’t thrown one single changeup to a lefty this season, but uses it 27 percent of the time against righties. Similarly, lefties get a heavy dose of curveballs (43 percent), but righties not so much (24.6 percent).

The 1,825th Yankee in history will make his team debut tonight, as Allan Winans becomes the 519th starting pitcher in franchise history. Called up from Triple-A to replace the injured Ryan Yarbrough, Winans has some MLB experience, posting a 7.20 ERA across eight starts from 2023-24 with the Braves, tossing 40 innings. His last major-league outing was, coincidentally, against the Reds, where he allowed seven runs in 2.2 innings on July 24, 2024.

Despite his struggles in The Show, the 29-year-old has been a star in the minor leagues. In 11 appearances, he’s 7-0 with a 0.90 ERA with 59 strikeouts in 50 innings with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. His ERA is the lowest in all of Minor League Baseball, minimum 50 innings pitched. Looking at his most recent start at Triple-A, Winans has reduced his changeup usage from last year, but still uses it a healthy amount of his slider, four-seamer, and sinker, while mixing in a curveball. He’ll face a below average Reds lineup.

Paul Goldschmidt will lead off for the Yankees against the lefty Lodolo after sitting the last two games. Anthony Volpe also returns to the starting lineup, batting sixth, as will Jasson Domínguez, batting ninth. Today, Trent Grisham and Ben Rice are the ones coming off the bench, as the team continues to mix and match based on matchups.

TJ Friedl will lead off for the Reds, with Elly De La Cruz batting third from his stronger side against the right-hander. Old friend Jose Trevino, who’s having a great offensive season, will bat seventh. Austin Hays, Will Benson, and the struggling former All-Star Santiago Espinal are the notable Reds on the bench.

How to watch

Location: Great American Ball Park — Cincinnati, OH

First pitch: 7:10 p.m. ET

TV broadcast: YES, FanDuel Sports Network Ohio

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) / WLW 700 (CIN)

Online stream: MLB.tv (out-of-market), Gotham Sports App