The Reds, who improved to 33-31 with a 10-2 victory Monday on the road against the Milwaukee Brewers, are 14-10 since Moustakas last played.
The Bats play the Omaha Storm Chasers in Nebraska at 8:05 p.m. Tuesday. Manager David Bell said Monday the plan is for Moustakas to play two games in Omaha and then join the Reds in San Diego, where they start a four-game series Thursday. Given the seriousness of the injury, Moustakas has recovered quicker than Bell thought he would.
“I know he’s worked hard, and the medical staff has worked hard to get him back quickly,” Bell said. “It will be great to get him back in the lineup. He’s obviously a major part of everything we do on this team. It’ll be nice to have him back and get some consistent playing time and kind of get our entire lineup back, the way we started out.”
In other injury news, the Reds moved center fielder Nick Senzel, who’s been sidelined with a left knee injury since May 18, to the 60-day injured list Sunday. That means he won’t return until July 17 at the earliest.
With Moustakas and Senzel out, Kyle Farmer and Tyler Naquin have become regular starters. Naquin’s hitting .261 with 11 home runs and 41 RBIs in 57 games, while Farmer’s hitting .214 with five home runs and 19 RBIs in 62 games.
“The injuries have created some opportunities for some guys,” Bell said, “so we’re even in better shape maybe than we thought we were going into the year.”
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