Why Cincinnati Reds' last best chance to rise from ashes could come in next 31 games

What’s the bright side of losing eight consecutive series, digging an 8 1/2-game hole in the standings and crashing into last place?

Sounds like a joke, right? It certainly seems laughable.

And it’s been anything but good, never mind bright, for the Cincinnati Reds.

But through a quirk in this year’s schedule, the Reds have played only three of their first 53 games against a division opponent (Milwaukee last month at home).

That means 49 left against all those teams they’re staring up at in the NL Central standings, starting Monday at home against the St. Louis Cardinals for the first of 23 division games in the next 31 games.

And that means one thing to the Reds.

“I look at it as a good opportunity coming up,” said veteran reliever Brent Suter, who retired Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman again Sunday in his second successful opener role against the Los Angeles Dodgers in 11 days.

“We’ll be able to make up ground,” teammate Emilio Pagán said.

If this team that talked so much about its playoff plans coming into the season has any chance to get relevant again, this might be it.

That will actually require winning games more frequently than they have over the past month.

And having more success than they had against the Brewers, who beat them in two of three in early April.

But coming off a huge weekend against the NL-favorite Dodgers doesn’t hurt the confidence that wins can be had.

And it all starts with the return Monday of electric-stuff lefty Nick Lodolo from two weeks sidelined with a groin injury, with hot-pitching lefty Andrew Abbott right behind him, followed by Opening Day starter Frankie Montas.

“It’s a great opportunity to gain ground and to gain steam as well,” said outfielder Will Benson, who homered in Saturday’s win over the Dodgers.

“When you’re playing in the division, these games are obviously a little more intense, a little bit more personal,” he said. “I think we’re going to match that level of intensity. I hope we do.

“The intensity of these games are going to be like no other,” he added.

Between now and June 20, the Reds’ only games against non-division opponents are three against the last-place Rockies in Colorado and two at home against AL Central-leading Cleveland.

Then they play three at home against Boston, followed by seven straight against the NL Central’s Pirates and Cardinals.

“In terms of trying to win the division, there’s some opportunity to make up some ground for sure,” Suter said.

“But other benefits, too, are the closer travel and playing in parks that a lot of guys here are familiar with and lineups we’re familiar with. That might be a boost. We’ll see.”

The flip side of that quirk in the Reds’ schedule is that all of those grueling west coast trips were done less than two months into the season. After Colorado next week they won’t have another trip farther west than the banks of the Mississippi River (in St. Louis and Minnesota).

“Little by little, man. Day by day,” veteran Jeimer Candelario said of how to think about climbing the ladder in the division. “We’ve just got to take care of our today.

“We’re playing with one of the best teams in the big leagues,” he said of beating the Dodgers. “That shows us and people that we can play with anybody.”

Candelario, who missed the last two games because of a stiff neck, said he expects to be back in the lineup Monday for the series opener against the Cardinals — followed by three games against the Cubs, his original team, which traded him away in 2017 and then traded to re-acquire him for last year’s stretch run.

He’s been one of the Reds’ best hitters for the last four weeks, going 23-for-82 (.281) with three homers, five walks and an .817 OPS.

“We’re finding our ways to have fun, to bring that smile again,” he said. “And be electric. That’s what we need.”

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Can Cincinnati Reds ride wave of division games back to relevance?