The Reds begin a 10-day, nine-game trip Tuesday with stops in Chicago, Denver and Houston.
How does manager Dusty Baker keep things interesting? The first three games in Chicago mean something to the Cubs. They are trying to hold off Milwaukee and maybe St. Louis. The Reds have 37 games remaining and 21 are against teams still in the playoff picture. So Baker is trying to convince his team that those 21 games are an educational laboratory and that the Reds need to approach them seriously.
They have six against the Cubs, six against the Brewers, six against the Cardinals and three against the Diamondbacks.
"This is very beneficial because we plan on being in that race next year," said Baker. "The guys who have never been there think they know what it is all about or think they can handle it. But you don't know until you get there: the importance, the pressure.
"You get a taste of it and think, 'This is what we want. This is what we need.' It is a long road to get there, into a pennant race," Baker added. "A lot of our young guys can get a taste of what that long and windy and up-and-down road is all about."
