After starting the road trip by getting swept in Milwaukee, the reslient Reds have grabbed two of three in St. Louis and look for a 3-4 road trip by beating the Cardinals tonight.

Micah Owings goes for the Reds, while Cy Young winner Chris Carpenter takes the hill for the Cardinals.

Brandon Phillips has been incredible while playing with a fractured finger, going 8 for 19 with three homers and six RBI’s since May 30th.

Jay Bruce continues to struggle, however, and rumors of his demotion to AAA to find his confidence persist.  Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News pondered if it was time to give CF Drew Stubbs a taste of the big leagues.

UPDATE:  Thanks to a commenter (and since I’m a moron), obviously Aaron Harang went for the Reds on Thursday night, not Micah Owings.  Must have been thinking about cold beers, great weather, and fireworks on Friday got me all excited for Micah’s start.