CINCINNATI (AP) — Right-hander Greg Reynolds joined the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday, ready to start the final game of a series against the Milwaukee Brewers — if needed.

The Reds were leaning toward letting him do it.

Left-hander Tony Cingrani got more treatment Saturday for a strained lower back that forced him out of his last start. He’s on schedule to pitch the final game of the series Sunday, but manager Dusty Baker was wary about putting him back on the mound so soon.

If Cingrani starts Sunday and has to leave the game early again, the Reds’ busy bullpen will have another long day.

“I can’t afford to use my bullpen again,” Baker said.

Cingrani had to leave in the fourth inning of a 5-2 loss to Arizona on Tuesday. He said the back had been sore lately, but got worse in the game. A few days of treatment helped it.

“I feel fantastic,” Cingrani said Saturday, just before Reynolds walked into the clubhouse carrying his Reds equipment bag. “Everything’s moving around fine.”

Baker was waiting until Cingrani worked out on Saturday to make a decision, but he made it clear that Reynolds will most likely start.

“Kind of leaning that way or else he wouldn’t be here,” Baker said.

It would be Reynolds’ second start this season for the Reds. He was called up from Triple-A Louisville to pitch the second game of a doubleheader on July 23 in San Francisco, the area where he grew up. Reynolds pitched at Stanford and had a lot of friends and family on hand for the game.

Reynolds was the second overall pick in the 2006 draft, going to Colorado. He made 16 starts and 27 appearances overall for the Rockies in 2008 and 2011. It was a big moment for him to get a chance to start in San Francisco last July, when he ended up giving up five runs and eight hits in five innings of a 5-3 loss.

“I think I’ll be a little more comfortable this time, just having met everybody,” Reynolds said. “In San Francisco, things were moving a little fast in that first inning and I was having a tough time slowing it down. I don’t anticipate that will be an issue again.

“There was a lot of other stuff that went along with it, with family and friends coming out. This one will be a little more comfortable.”

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