Steady progress:

William Deck McGuire will become the 16th pitcher to start at least one game for the Reds in 2017 when he takes the mound for the opener of Cincinnati’s three-game series at Milwaukee on Tuesday.

McGuire, a right-hander who goes by his middle name, will make his first career major league start as the replacement for injured right-hander Rookie Davis. McGuire will be the 10th Reds rookie starter this season.

“His hip is a little cranky,” manager Bryan Price said about Davis before Sunday’s game against Boston, the Reds’ final home game of the season. “He felt it for about three weeks, but it wasn’t as big a hindrance as it is now.”

McGuire, Toronto’s 2011 first-round draft pick and that year’s 11th overall selection, was signed as a minor league free agent in February and spent the season starting for Double-A Pensacola. He was 9-9 with a 2.79 earned-run average in 28 games, including 27 starts, while striking out 170 batters and walking 57 in 168 innings.

He led the Southern League in starts, strikeouts and innings and the Cincinnati organization in strikeouts, and was named to the mid-season Southern League all-star team.

He started Game One of the Southern League championship series and became the first Blue Wahoos pitcher to turn in eight shutout innings with zero walks and as many as 13 strikeouts.

The Richmond, Va., native, who is pitching in the major leagues for the first time in his seven-year professional career, was called up after Pensacola’s playoff season ended. He hasn’t allowed a run in 5 ⅔ innings over four appearances.

“He makes the most sense to start right now,” Price said. “It’s an opportunity to see what kind of fit he’ll be moving forward. He’s got the full arsenal. He’s a strike thrower, controls the running game – showing some competitiveness.”

The 6-foot-6, 220-pound McGuire, 28, is relishing the opportunity.

“Any time you get the opportunity to pitch in the major leagues, it’s a big deal,” he said. “I’ve been challenging people, throwing strikes. I’m throwing all four pitches for strikes.”

Right-hander Homer Bailey (5-9, 6.96 ERA) is Cincinnati’s scheduled Wednesday starter, and rookie righthander Sal Romano (5-7, 4.43) is projected to start on Thursday.

Davis, who was on the 10-day disabled list for two weeks with a right forearm problem in April and spent most of the season with Triple-A Louisville, will be shut down for the rest of the season, Price said. He finishes 1-3 with an 8.63 ERA in seven games, including six starts.

The pitchers for the final three regular season games of the 2017 season against the Cubs at Wrigley Field in Chicago next week had yet to be announced.

The Reds have won two of their last three series in Milwaukee and six of the last nine games against the Brewers, who went into Sunday’s game against the Cubs at Miller Park in second place in the National League Central Division, 4 ½ games behind Chicago and one-half game ahead of thirdplace St. Louis. Milwaukee was in third place in the wildcard standings, one game behind second-place Colorado.

Cincinnati is 6-10 against the defending World S eries-cha m pion Cub s, including 2-5 at Wrigley Field.

Righthander Anthony DeSclafani, who missed the season with an elbow problem, threw 64 pitches over three innings in a simulated game in Arizona on Saturday, Price reported.

The next step is throwing 80-85 pitches over five innings in an Instructional League game, Price sais.

“I’m hoping to see him pitch when I get home,” said Price, who makes his off-season home in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Center fielder Billy Hamilton returned to the starting lineup on Sunday, his second appearance since being activated from the 10-day disabled list after missing almost two weeks with a fractured left thumb.

Despite the abs e nce, Hamilton went into Sunday’s game still leading the major leagues with 58 stolen bases. He led Miami’s Dee Gordon by two.

Hamilton would be the first Reds player to lead the National League in stolen bases since Bobby Tolan with 57 in 1970.

Hamilton was leading the majors in steals the last two seasons before suffering injuries in September.

Still ahead: Attendance slips:

The Reds needed a crowd that was roughly double the Great American Ball Park capacity on Sunday to equal last season’s total home attendance. They went into the game having drawn 1,811, 372 for their first 80 home games and needed 82,713 to match last year’s total of 1,894,085. They had to settle for drawing the fewest fans since the 2009 team attracted 1,747,919 to the ballpark.

Saturday’s loss guaranteed that Cincinnati would finish the 2017 season with a losing home record for the third consecutive season. The Reds went into Sunday’s game with a 39-41 home record.

Two were thrown out between second and third in the first four innings.

Gennett was caught in a rundown as Cozart scored on his double into the rightfield corner in the first.

Cozart singled to lead off the fourth and was thrown out at third on Joey Votto’s single to right after stopping a couple of steps around second base.

Rookie right-hander Jackson Stephens, who retired the first 10 batters he faced in an 8-7 10-inning loss to St. Louis on Tuesday, allowed two base runners through the first four innings of his sixth career major league appearance and third start on Sunday.

Devers tied the game 1-1 with his 10th home run of the season and second of the series leading off the fifth.

Adam Duvall snapped a career-worst 19 at-bat hitless stretch in the fifth with a oneout infield single, a dribbler up the third-base line. One out later, Stephens blooped a single into short center field and Duvall scored when center fielder Xander Bogaerts throw sailed over Devers’ head into the visitor’s dugout on the third-base side.

Hamilton followed with an RBI triple into the rightfield corner.

Stephens (3-0), aided by some flashy glove work, finished six innings.

Former shortstop Eugenio Suarez, playing as part of a shift where Cozart normally plays, made a diving backhand stop in the hole and threw out Mitch Moreland leading off the second inning.

Gennett dove to his left to snare Pedroia’s sharp one-hopper, scrambled back to his feet and threw out his Red Sox counterpart.

Stephens limited the Reds Sox to two hits and one run with two walks and three strikeouts.

Red Sox starter Doug Fister’s first six strikeouts all were called before Hamilton went down swinging to end the third inning.

The Reds had nine hits and struck out nine times in 5⅓ innings against Fister (5-9), who didn’t walk anybody.

The Reds wrap up the regular season on the road this week with three games at Milwaukee and three at the Chicago Cubs. RedsFest is Dec. 1-2 at the Duke Energy Convention Center in downtown Cincinnati.