National League Central News

The designated hitter turned 40 this season, and while Major League Baseball's part-timers only work for half of its teams, they are protagonists in the eternal debate between the game's progressives and purists.

Dillon Gee was decent in his start, but a pair of late home runs led the way as the Mets beat the Cubs for the second time in three games.

Right-hander Scott Feldman has been one of the best pitchers in baseball during his last five starts, while the rest of Chicago's starting rotation has been near the top of the league throughout the young season.

The St. Louis Cardinals have placed left-hander Jaime Garcia on the 15-day disabled list with a left shoulder strain.

Jose Tabata kept it simple in a mostly empty clubhouse prior to Wednesday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Houston's trip to Pittsburgh for a three-game series this weekend likely felt very familiar, as the two teams were NL Central foes just last year.

To say that exceeds the expectations of some is quite the understatement. Many, arguably most, baseball writers had the Cincinnati Reds picked as clear favorites to win the National League Central Division.

Domonic Brown drove in the tiebreaking run on an infield grounder in the eighth and the Philadelphia Phillies snapped the Cincinnati Reds' six-game winning streak with a 5-3 victory on Friday night.

A walk-off, bases-loaded error gave the Pirates a 5-4 win against the Houston Astros at PNC Park Friday night.

The Mets did the Cubs and the rest of the N.L. Central a favor Thursday by defeating the Cardinals .

Each weekday, Star reporter Mark Ambrogi, a life-long Reds fan, will provide links to Indy's four favorite teams -- the Reds, Cubs, Cardinals and White Sox -- and other hot topics in baseball.

The Milwaukee Brewers will need to take advantage of every opportunity they can in order to get back into the NL Central race.

The Milwaukee Brewers have lost 12 of their last 14 games, are in last place in the National League Central division and have the third worst record in the league.

The St. Louis Cardinals have arrived at the first-quarter turn in the baseball season, running ahead of the pack and trying to stay that way.

The Reds will get their ace back next week. Johnny Cueto, who has been on the disabled list since the middle of April with lat/oblique issues, will start Monday against the Mets, reports John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer .

In this week's Awards Watch, I take my first isolated look at the year's Cy Young races and find past winners and perennial contenders for the award leading very competitive fields in both leagues.

The rolling St. Louis Cardinals look to compete a rare four-game sweep of the slumping New York Mets Thursday at Busch Stadium.

The Milwaukee Brewers have lost 11 of their last 13 games, which has dropped them to last place in the National League Central division.

There's no shame in giving up singles to the Reds' Mike Leake or to the Cubs' Travis Wood, guys who take swings like they know their way around the tee.

Yovani Gallardo got himself back on track Wednesday night, and it still wasn't enough to lift the Milwaukee Brewers to a victory.