Cincinnati Reds

Reds starting pitcher Bronson Arroyo tossed his fourth quality start in a row Wednesday, in a 2-1, extra-innings win over the Pirates.

Arroyo allowed just one unearned run in seven innings of work, but that was nearly enough to earn him a loss. He left the game down 1-0, and it took a ninth-inning home run by Jay Bruce to get Arroyo off the hook for the loss.

Arroyo gave up six hits and three walks in the outing, while striking out three batters. The run came around to score on an error by Arroyo in the third inning, as he could not handle a bated ball from Russell Martin.

Arroyo has lowered his ERA to 3.04, but has just one win over his last four outings, despite all of them being quality starts. He is 6-5 on the season heading into his next start, scheduled for Tuesday in Oakland. 

Reds reliever Sean Marshall has extended his throwing program to 120 feet in recent days, as he continues to recover from shoulder inflammation.

"He threw very well [Tuesday]," trainer Paul Lessard told the Cincinnati Enquirer.

Marshall has been out since the end of May due to this injury, and still does not have a timetable for his possible return to the bullpen. 

Reds reliever Jonathan Broxton has yet to throw since being put on the disabled list earlier in the week with a forearm injury, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer. He will try to begin a throwing program in the next few days.

"He's been working on strengthening it," trainer Paul Lessard said. "He finally has his full range of motion back. We wanted to get it flushed out. He'll probably start throwing again this weekend. I don't want to call it a target date, but that’s what we’re looking at."

Broxton has a 4.33 ERA in 29 appearances this season, prior to being placed on the disabled list. 

Reds starting pitcher Mat Latos turned in a decent outing as he struck out nine but suffered his first loss of the season Tuesday night against the Pirates. Latos (6-1) surrendered three runs on three hits and three walks in five innings in a 4-0 loss.

Latos has allowed six runs combined over his last two starts (13 innings). He is scheduled to make his next start Sunday at Arizona. He is 2-0 with a 3.20 ERA in eight starts away from home.

Reds third baseman Todd Frazier entered June hitting .230, having hit his last home run on April 24. In 14 June games, though, Frazier has hit .294 with three home runs, an .889 OPS and a stolen base. 

While Frazier's overall line (.245 average, .762 OPS) leaves little to be desired, most of the damage came from an ugly May -- he was solid in April and relatively hot in June. The upside here is a decent average (maybe .260-ish), with around 25 home runs and 10-12 steals. Considering Frazier has first and third base eligibility, he gets a small boost in value for the multi-positionality. 

He's not a slam-dunk option for all leagues, but Frazier should be considered for a starting spot in most formats.