Red Sox vs. Reds lineups: Luck be against Luis tonight

The Red Sox host the Reds, who are tied with the Royals for the worst record in baseball, in an interleague matchup tonight at Fenway Park behind Michael Wacha (7:10 p.m., NESN) as they look to put last night’s disastrous 10-0 loss to the Orioles behind them.

It’s hard to find a weaker opponent than the Orioles, but in the Reds, the Red Sox have done just that; this is a team that no-hit the Pirates and still lost the game and whose left fielder, Tommy Pham, was returning from a three-game suspension for slapping another player over a fantasy football beef (he was scratched last minute for Nick Senzel, hwoever). Meahwhile, Joey Votto, one of the best hitters in baseball for more than a decade and Cincinatti’s defining player over the same period, is batting .165, which is like Tom Brady averaging 45 yards a game. It stinks!

Even their ace, Luis Castillo, who takes the mound tonight, is underperforming his peripheral stats with a 4.35 ERA that’s a full run above expected. It’s the opposite situation for Wacha, whose 2.98 ERA is a full run and a half below expected. Regression is almost certainly coming for our mans, but maybe tonight, against these Reds, it will stay at bay.

The Sox turn out the same lineup as they did yesterday, but with Kevin Plawecki at catcher; seems unlikely, with Boston leading the AL in runs (!), to turn out like it did on Monday.