James Shields of the Chicago White Sox and the Cincinnati Reds play in opposite leagues and rarely see each other Abry Jones Jersey , yet they currently have much in common.

Now that they’re starting to make something out of what appeared to be a totally lost season, they’d like to keep it going.

The Reds got off to the worst start in baseball at 8-27, one so bad that getting to .500 looked to be as much of a challenge as winning a division title would be for most teams.

But when the Reds (36-48) take on the right-handed Shields and the White Sox on Monday night at Great American Ball Park, in the teams’ first matchup since 2015, they’ll be one of the majors’ hottest clubs. They’ve won 11 of 14 after taking the final two games of a four-game weekend series against the Milwaukee Brewers, and interim manager Jim Riggleman now has a 33-33 record for a last-place team.

Considering that Riggleman took over a Reds team that was 3-15 under former manager Bryan Price, that’s something of an accomplishment. And the Reds own a 6-1 record in interleague games.

“We know we can play with these teams that are in first place in their division,” Riggleman said.

They’re winning now in grand fashion, too. Jose Peraza hit the team’s major league-leading ninth grand slam Sunday in an 8-2 win over the Brewers, their second in two games (pitcher Michael Lorenzen hit a pinch-grand slam Saturday) and sixth in 17 games. They’ve already tied a club season record.

“We’ve been getting better at-bats … and we’ve happened to have men on base,” Riggleman said.

Cincinnati starter Matt Harvey pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings before being lifted after a rain delay Allen Robinson Jersey , and the Reds dealt Brewers rookie Freddy Peralta (3-1), who gave up three runs in five innings, his first major league loss. Peralta allowed only one hit in seven shutout innings against the Kansas City Royals in his previous start.

“That’s probably the best I’ve felt since 2013,” said Harvey (4-5), who won his third straight start.

Shields (3-9), likewise, is beginning to see a ray of sunshine in what previously was a gloomy season. He’s coming off his best start of the year, pitching seven shutout innings and giving up four hits Wednesday in a 6-1 win over the Minnesota Twins. It was his 12th quality start of the season, or five more than he had all of last season.

Shields still isn’t the pitcher that won 13 or more games seven times from 2008 to 2015, but it hasn’t helped that he’s pitching for a team that’s off to the second worst start in franchise history. He has allowed a respectable six earned runs in his last four starts, and twice yielded one or no runs while lasting at least seven innings.

At age 36 Ryan Kalil Jersey , Shields is making adjustments to compensate for his decreased velocity, yet has pitched at least six innings in 12 of his last 13 starts for a last-place team.

“My body’s feeling really good this year, and this is kind of what I’ve done my whole career,” Shields told reporters after the game against the Twins. “I strive to go as deep as I possibly can in games and so far it’s been good.

“I’m not throwing as hard as I used to. If I were to throw over the top, I’d still throw a little harder than I am right now. (But) at the end of the day, I’m feeling really good with my delivery right now, my mechanics. It’s been a lot of fun making these adjustments.”

Shields goes against Reds right-hander Luis Castillo (5-8), who was 1-3 with a 6.75 ERA in five June starts. He retired the first 11 batters he faced Wednesday at Atlanta, only to give up four quick runs on a walk and five consecutive singles, although the Reds came back to win 6-5.

Castillo is 0-1 in two starts against American League clubs this season, giving up eight runs in six innings. He has never faced the White Sox.

Shields is 18-18 with a 4.57 ERA in interleague play and 0-2 in two career starts against the Reds Pat McAfee Jersey , the last of which was in 2015.

The White Sox (29-54) ended a three-game losing streak Sunday by salvaging the final game of a three-game series against the Texas Rangers, winning 10-5 as Avisail Garcia went 4-for-5 with a double and an RBI.

The Reds have won five consecutive interleague games but are facing the White Sox at Great American Ball Park for the first time since 2009. The White Sox are 16-4 overall against the Reds and 10-2 in Cincinnati, though that success there predated any of the current players.

Panthers wide receiver Torrey Smith believes the NFL ”dropped the ball” with its new policy that forbids players from sitting or taking a knee on the field during the national anthem.

Smith is upset because he feels like the ruling has created a ”false narrative” surrounding the message former NFL teammate Colin Kaepernick was originally trying to convey while taking a knee prior to NFL games.

He said it also paints players as anti-American.

”Guys aren’t against the military,” Smith said. ”Kap originally started that against police brutality. It was never against the military. It was never about the military, but that narrative changed.”

Smith, acquired in an offseason trade with the Eagles, denounced the league’s ruling following Carolina’s practice on Tuesday – its first since it was announced last week at the NFL owners meetings.

He said the restrictions imposed by the league on players go against the beliefs that protesters like Kaepernick have stood up for the past couple years.

”When you see reactive policy … I always think that’s a problem,” Smith said. ”Especially when the message has been changed. … It makes it seem like Kaepernick or Eric Reid and the guys who started it, what they did was in vain – like they were villains. And that is not the case.”

Smith reacted quickly to the league’s change in policy on social media last week.

He tweeted : ”Appropriate respect for flag and anthem” implies that guys were being disrespectful towards it. Which is an opinion. Most people who believe that ignore the responses from the players and more importantly why men chose to protest.”

Smith was teammates with Kaepernickin San Francisco in 2015 and 2016 and got to know him well.

The league made the decision to fine teams whose players don’t stand during the national without consulting with the NFL Players Association. There have been protests in different cities since the ruling came down with claims the league is interfering with the right to free speech.

Smith believes the NFL made a mistake bringing the issue – one he felt like was dying off – back to the forefront.

He said the league’s policy to fine teams for players protesting likely will only serve to ”stir things up ” between players and owners this coming season.

”You’re being told to be quiet, when it could have been done together to figure out what we can do to move forward and what would be best for the players,” Smith said.

Smith has long been outspoken on public matters because he feels the platform of being a professional athlete should be used for the betterment of society.

”It’s going to be a long-term process Duke Johnson Jersey , and we’re just trying to do our part,” he said. ”That’s essentially what the protests started with and we have to continue with. It’s not so much about the protests but the work going forward.”

Smith said he was disappointed, but not surprised by the league ruling.

”At the end of the day, the league is about money, it’s a business,” Smith said. ”To try to silence those guys when they’re trying to do the right thing for our country, I don’t know what to say about it.”

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