A.J. Ellis starts at catcher in Dodgers opener vs. Reds

The Dodgers stack right-handed batters against Reds southpaw John Lamb in the opener of a three-game series on Tuesday night at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati.

A.J. Ellis starts at catcher, his 20th start against 24 left-handed starting pitchers this season when he was active. Ellis is hitting .250/.400/.400 against southpaws this season, and in two starts last week reached base seven times in nine plate appearances, with a home run and a double.

Scott Van Slyke gets the call in left field. Van Slyke, a career .261/.370/.498 hitter against left-handed pitching, is hitting .237/.395/.390 against southpaws this season with two home runs, three doubles and 14 walks in 76 plate appearances. He's in an 0-for-13 slump overall.

Kiké Hernandez is back in center field, and had two hits against Lamb 11 days ago in Los Angeles. In addition, Jimmy Rollins was 2-for-3 with a double against Lamb, and Justin Turner was 2-for-2 with two RBI and a sacrifice fly against him.

Adrian Gonzalez hit a three-run home run against Lamb on Aug. 14, and on the season against left-handed batters is hitting .306/.356/.472 with three home runs and nine doubles in 118 plate appearances.

Joey Votto had his way with the Dodgers during the four-game series at Dodger Stadium, going 7-for-15 with three doubles, a home run and two walks, including an RBI double and a two-run home run against Alex Wood, Tuesday night's Dodgers starter.

Votto since the All-Star break is hitting a ridiculous .393/.567/.735 with 13 doubles, nine home runs, 46 walks, 33 runs scored and 20 RBI in 36 games.

The Dodgers will miss Billy Hamilton in this series, on the 15-day disabled list with a sprained right shoulder. Hamilton, who has missed six games on the DL, was 5-for-12 with one stolen base in the four-game series in Los Angeles, including a career-high four hits, including a home run, on Aug. 13.

Manny Parra is also on the DL for the Reds, placed their Sunday with biceps tendinitis in his left shoulder. Cincinnati currently has only one left-handed pitcher in their bullpen, and that's closer Aroldis Chapman.