Arthur Rhodes Disappoints Everyone, Phillies 9-6

Disregarding his utter dominance for the last two months, the Reds Rocket is disappointed to announce that Arthur Rhodes was not very good last night. He faced four batter, walked one and gave up three hits. Three of the runs were charged to that ERA he'd been maintaining so carefully, jumping it all the way up to 1.13, on .04 ahead of Jordan Smith. Smith may have a couple fewer appearances and the only reason I point out the ERAs is that Smith immediately preceded Rhodes in the game and in the box score.

Leake looked not great again. Though he only gave up the two big hits, a three-run bomb to Brian Schneider and second three-run bomb to Wilson Valdez. I assumed that both Valdez and Schneider opened up theme-restaurants in their respective home towns. I'd order some baby back ribs served to me by Brian Schneider, then I'd throw them back in his face. I'd let them cool down a bit beforehand, so his face doesn't get too badly scarred. Anyway, apparently those two guys are still playing baseball and hitting bombs off Leake. The bullpen held the deficit and Joey Jo-Jo went all dramatic on Brad Lidge's ass hitting a two-out, three-run bomb in the bottom of the 9th to tie things up. But, as stated above, Rhodes imploded and the Reds went home as losers. At least they get an easier assignment today against Holliday. Joe Blanton is virtually unhittable. Maybe Lidge will get to try it again.

Rolen Reveals That He Is, In Fact, Sweet, Reds 7-3

Reds started their long string of non-terrible teams with a victory tonight over the Phillies. The Reds certainly looked like the better team. Cueto was real shaky early but was bailed out by some good defense and ended up posting a very impressive stat line. Eight innings with just the one run allowed on a Ryan Howard triple which, should Drew Stubbs take a time ship back, would probably make that play. Or maybe not, one run is still pretty solid.

The offense took a little time to get going against Kyle Kendrick, three innings, but once they did they lit him on fire. Rolen hit his 300th home run of his career, joining such lofty company as Jay Buhner, Jeremy Burnitz, and Richie Sexson. Those guys were something special. But, now he's only 5 behind Reggie Sanders, which, if he is to pass him would be an actual accomplishment. That guy could rake and is a exceeded his success on the field with a pleasant demeanor. In addition to Rolen, Votto and Cabrera both had three hits. The latter, really needed a couple of knocks. VFortunately, Kyle Kendrick was happy to oblige. He also made a couple of rock solid defensive plays, that one with his back to the infield was the bee's knees. Votto's three hits get glossed over because of his consistent high level of performance. Sorry, Joey. The Reds Rocket penalizes success. The team also got to work Bill Bray and his wholly hittable stuff back into the game. He gave up a single followed by a bomb from Ibanez. He did retire Howard, which, perhaps, should be his lone occupation. Either way, welcome back Bill, we expect slightly less poor performances in the future.

Reds plan victory number two tomorrow. Phillies have announced that they concede. Reds! Reds! Reds!

Reds Respect a Woman Who Knows How to Wear Face Paint, Reds 2 of 3

Reds continued with the dominance of non-Seattle based American League ball clubs with a couple of beatings of the Indians followed by a loss today. Still, two out of three is, as they, specifically Meatloaf, ain't bad. The offense showed up all day Friday and late Saturday before the Indians' partial rain dance threw Arroyo off stride allowing Shin Soo Choo to hit a couple of bombs and the Indians were able to salvage the final game. Koreans, like American Indians, possess an uncanny ability to hit a baseball following short rain delays. The Reds were aware of that, so his success this afternoon was not terribly surprising.

After his worst start in his short Major League stay, the Reds awarded Sam LeCure with a demotion to Louisville where he can go back to racking up big time stats. He'll be more comfortable down there. The move also freed up a roster spot for long lost friend, Bill Bray. Bray has been missing for almost two years due to arm trouble and general ineffectiveness. But now he's back, giving the Reds three left-handed options out of the pen. One, Rhodes, who gives up runs about once every three months, the second, Herrera, who does nothing but give up hard hit balls which typically lead to runs and the third, or "thrid" as I typed three times before mastering the correct spelling, Bray. Bray, used to throw pretty hard and will be asked to get out a few of those left-handed Phillies. He claims he's up the task and Dusty isn't one to question unsupported assertions such as that.

The offense also saw a minor readjustment at the top of the order. Out-factory Cabrera got bumped down one slot in favor of B. Phill leading things off. Phill's been hot for about the last month (and allowed that to carry over to his driving over the weekend - hence the reckless driving charge with his mom in the car) and is planning to keep things up getting on base 3.5 times out of 10 as opposed to Cabrera's approximately 0 out of 10. The offense prefers to have a few guys on base at the top of the order, prompting the change. So, we'll hope that the production keeps up against Kyle Kendrick tomorrow. I'm pretty sure that it will.

Reds Sweep So-Called Athletics, Reds 3-0

The Reds continued their unpredictability, getting swept by a bad team but then sweeping a slightly better but still bad team in Oakland. Cueto was pretty solid. He went 7 and two batters, turned things over to Masset who has undergone his tenth transformation of the season back to effective reliever. Masset immediately induced a double play and struck out the third out of the inning before giving way to Coco who was, for the second day in a row, competent. Good job bullpen. Didn't even have to use Arty Rhodes and his complete dominance.

The offense put some runners in scoring position and were able to focus long enough to drive in three of them. Ray Jay knocked in two with a single in the first and Jonny Gomes scored was responsible for the third with a double off the wall in right to score Votto. Phillips also contributed with a fine defensive play in the 5th. With the bases loaded and no one out, rather than fielding a soft liner, he let it bounce, fired home and Hernandez completed the double play with a throw to 3rd. Very wise B. Phill and a much quicker response than most would hope to make. I guess he does more out there than think about how cool that weave-cap looks under his hat. I'm pretty sure that's all I'd be thinking about. 'Damn B. Phill, this cap under my ball cap sure looks sweet."

The Reds get a travel day tomorrow before starting up with the Indians on Friday. That's the last real bad competition for a while. After the Savages, the Reds have three with the Phills at the GAB followed by an 11-game road trip with 4 in Chicago (who qualify as bad, even at home), 3 with the Mets and 4 with the Phills, again, then All-Star break. So, the upcoming schedule may demonstrate what sort of club the Cincinnatians have this year, though I'm pretty sure I already know the answer - the tops. Also, Volquez appears to be making above-average progress from his rehabilitation for sexual inadequacy. He hit 98 on the radar gun and minor league batters don't seem to know what to do with a pitcher that looks like a lion. Volquez's progression, coupled with the front office's potential interest in using Chapman out of the pen seems to indicate some options will be available to better the staff. Then of course there's Bailey who maintains that he's healthy but continues to rehab. The Reds, for some reason, seem to be in no hurry to get his 1 win in 9 starts back in the rotation. He has been quiet for about a week, so chances are he's saving up some quality quotes about the way he is being handled. Regardless, Reds remain relevant and enjoyable. Reds! Reds! Reds!

Cork Wields a Very Powerful Bat, Reds 4-2

The offense took strides in becoming adequate again, with Cork leading the way with a solidly stroked bloop hit in the 3rd to drive in a couple o' runs. In case you were wondering, yes, his boiler was spilling over his pants when he made contact. Votto made it 3-0 with a double scoring Phillips. Arroyo did give Coco Crisp a break, allowing his first bomb of the season despite his overwhelming inability, but that was the only major blemish. Bronson went 8, gave up just the two runs and picked up the "w", which is an abbreviation for the term "win."

Coco even made an appearance and surprised all with a successful close out. He's back on track, as long as he has more than one run to fool around with. So, the Reds have won the series and a win tomorrow will even up the road trip at a solid 3-3, even with the debacle in Seattle, which is a fun term to use. Looks like there are going to be a lot more debacles going forward. Everyone can monitor my use of the term. Each mention enters readers in a drawing to win some new deodorant from your friends here at the Reds Rocket and their annual budget of about $10. Reds wrap things up tomorrow with Cueto speaking words of disrespect in Spanish to the Anglo members of the Athletics. Including that Elephant. He doesn't belong on the baseball diamond. Reds! Reds! Reds!

Reds Bide Time, Wait Until Extras To Stop Being Terrible, Reds 6-4

Gio Gonzalez continued the recent trend of starting pitching absolutely dominating the Reds lineup, giving up only a single unearned run over 7 very strong innings but, as mentioned, Dusty put a new strategy in place and that involved some closer fences in the 10th inning of which the Reds took advantage. Votto followed up Ramon Hernandez's 3rd bomb on the year with his 15th. Rolen then, as he will prove to anyone on the team that he is at least the man they are, hit his 15th. Nix nearly made it three in a row but was rewarded with a three-base error due to Rajai Davis' unfamiliarity of the rule that just touching the ball with your glove doesn't constitute an out.

Leake matched Gonzalez for 6, allowing just a lone run but again didn't factor in the victory. Masset was solid, as was Rhodes but Coco blew his fourth save of the season when he offered Kouzmanoff the opportunity to be, for the time being the hero. He, Coco, even came out for the 10th but walked the first two he saw, leaving things up to Jordan Smith. Smith penalized Cordero by allowing one of the inherited runners to score but locked things down picking up his first big league statistical category, in the form of a save. Now when you look on the list of all time save leaders, he only has about 600 to go to catch Hoffman. The Reds Rocket thinks he has the potential. Keep up the good work kid.

So, the Reds, hopefully, have forgotten how poorly they played in Seattle and will take things up with Dallas Braden tomorrow. Has anyone heard that he's from Stockton, California? Ask him about his tattoo, he'd be happy to share with you. Reds! Reds! Reds!

Reds Treat Host Real Hospitable Like, Mariners Sweep

The Reds made the long trip up to the Pacific Northwest but forgot their hitting bats. Bringing either the oversized red bats which afford good contact but no power or the yellow wiffle bats which generate good bat speed but again, no power, they were only able to muster one run in three days. The problem appears to be the distance of the outfield fences from home plate that other teams utilize as an unfair advantage. The Reds Rocket proposes that all teams agree to move things in a little bit so that more balls leave the park, equating to larger run totals for the Cincinnati batters.

The photo accompanying this post was found on the first page of a Google image search. Someone was nice enough to sum up the 2010 Mariners club without me having to resort to creating something along similar lines. Cliff Lee and Felix's performances are, perhaps, excusable, as they are both pretty okay but Ryan Rowland-Smith? That doesn't make any sense. Rowland-Smith, who is, by all accounts, Australian and poor at baseball, went 6 scoreless today to best Harang, who was also pretty good. At least the Reds were able to get to the Mariners bullpen but that once that goal was met, the offense didn't know what to do with itself. After Arroyo led the charge with a bomb on Thursday to secure a win against the Dodger, that didn't translate to Seattle where, as stated, one run was scored the entire weekend. So, the Reds have fallen from first place and begin their interleague trip with an 0-3. Hopefully the A's will be a little bit more understanding about the Reds preference to playing at home. But we'll just have to wait and see. Come on boys, it's too early for a meltdown. Dusty's going to have to organize another pre-game strategy session to get things moving in the right direction. The Reds Rocket is confident that he can do so.

Los Dodger Hand Leake His First Loss, Dodgers 6-2

In his post game interview, Leake expressed some relief over the loss. He was happy to get it out of the way but at the same time also disappointed that the Reds all of a sudden struggle at home. It may have something to do with the quality of the opposition, excepting the Royals, but that leaves the Reds at 3-5 on the current homestand, their longest of the season.

The team did appear to be sabotaged by the officials, exemplified by both Dusty and Rolen getting tossed. But seriously, the pitch to Rolen was about an inch and a half off the ground. And when you're being mistreated by the umps, so might as well phone in the rest of the evening, as they did. Yesterday, my apologies for the belated comment, they looked awful, so the 6-2 loss looks a little better. At least they put two runs on the board and gave up fewer than 12. Owings seems interested in being non-tendered as rumors are that the Reds, for some reason, seek to supplement their poor bullpen. Maybe they should see if Jesse Orosco is interested in coming out of retirement, as old left-handed pitchers appear to be the only reliable option out of the pen. They did make a move, bringing up Jordan Smith to potentially get a few outs. He did that in clean-up duty yesterday, recording three outs which is certainly something. I think he will remember that 2 and half hour rain delay positively.

Reds bounce back tomorrow before hitting the road to beat on some American League teams on the west coast. On an aside, I was able to catch Jonny Gomes on the Jim Rome Show today. Boom, you're gone! Nice job Jonny and also a shout-out to the Clones.

Reds Drop Series to Team No One Cares About

The Reds spent the weekend with a team from Kansas City who apparently has a lion for a mascot. His name is Slugger and has a crown-shaped tumor growing out of his skull. Don't worry, it's benign. At least the deformity doesn't look like its cut into his ability to make it to the gym. That lion is in peak physical condition.

Arroyo, presented with a 4 run lead on Friday, couldn't hold it and the Reds left runners all over the bases losing in extra innings. At least the Reds were prepared for the loss, as Micah Owings was in the game. That's not the way to win a game. Saturday, things were better. Jonny Gomes went wild, hitting two three-run jobbers, allowing Cueto to give up 5 runs in a single inning and still pick up the win. 6-1 is a very attractive record, nice job Johnny. However, Sunday, with the exception of Votto, the offense didn't have much interest in hammering Greinke. He does have that anxiety issue, which Votto of all people, should understand. The Royals jumped on the bullpen and wrapped up another loss for LeCure. Tough break guys but at least the Cardinals dropped two of three to the Snakes, which can't feel good. Reds retain a game and a half lead at 8 games over .500.

The Reds start up again tomorrow with three-games with the Dodgers. Harang is on the hill and his uncontrollable anger has re-manifested itself. Hopefully it carries over. For a while it looked as if he was going to be hitchhiking out of town with his bindle over his shoulder, David Banner style. He's simply misunderstood.

Reds Lay One on Giants' Collective Faces, Reds 7-6

Exciting game today between the Redlegs and the Giants, after a little push and pull, the Reds wrapped things up in a nice little package and evened up the season series with the San Franciscans. As it was Cabrera's day off, due to general oldness, Yanish-Janish got to show off his fancy pants glove and Phillips got bumped up into the leadoff spot and excelled. Four hits, two scored and the tying margin knocked in in the 8th off Guillermo Moto. I'm pretty sure he knew that ball was fair down the right field line but still took a couple of congratulatory steps out of the batter's box. Looking sharp B. Phill, especially when you're knocking in two with a triple. His average topped .300 for the first time this year and was generally impressive in all facets of the game. And less we forget, he's a fine dresser and has the manners of royalty. Yes'm.

Today we were also witness to Mike Leake's first borderline poor major league start. He lasted 4 and a 1/3, so it wasn't awful, but he gave up a ton of hits, including several for extra bases to Aubrey Huff, and five runs over the short duration of his start. He should have probably only absorbed four of those runs, but that's what happens when you leave guys on for Del Rosario he unloads them. Though Enerio arguably did his job, inducing a ground ball to Rolen, which he didn't have any interest in fielding, he just loves pushing those so called ducks on the pond, off the pond. But, back to Leake, he's been quite good to this point in the season, so he was due a bad one. The bullpen, with the usual exception of Masset, was solid. Rhodes extended his scoreless streak. I think it's at 300 innings. Maybe we just need to wait for the rest of the bullpen to mature, like some sort of beer/wine combination, and by the time they're 41, they'll be lights out. But as stated, once the Reds caused the dominant Todd Wellemeyer to pull his quad, the offense was on their way and the performance of Leake was forgotten, at least once he was actually out of the game.

Tomorrow the Royals roll into town, looking forward to losing three games to the Central leading Reds. The Reds actually owe them a revenge beating based on the three-game sweep they, the Reds, endured last year. I, fortunately, appear to have suppressed that memory. Reds losses can be very hard on both the body and the soul. So, back on top and the Cardinals are losing like that's what they're paid to do. Nice work boys. Reds! Reds! Reds!

Reds Rebound, Masses Celebrate, Reds 6-3

Harang, responding to the polite request that he turn in a better pitching performance, complied. He went 7, allowed 5 hits and generally looked like a pitcher should against the Giants. He ran into some trouble in his last inning of work but was able to talk Freddy Sanchez into flying out to Bruce in right. That evens his record up at 5-5. Nice job Aaron. He's on his way to adequocity, as opposed to sub-adquate. The rest of the pitching staff was its usual underwhelming self, Herrera giving up a hard hit single before exiting and Coco allowing a garbage run in the 9th. It's probably not great that he appears to be so hittable.

The offense was powered by Scott Rolen, who has been on fire. Flaming, if you will. That average is above .300 and he added two more extra-base hits last night, driving in the first run of the game and the third run of the game. Stubbs went yard and Gomes had a big two-run double in the Reds side of the 6th. I just heard Jon Miller say that Gomes is 8th in the NL in RBIs. Not too bad for a pseudo-platoon player. Also, looking at the numbers, Stubbs' average is all the way up to .245. He really prefers that 7th spot in the order, for whatever reason.

So, the Reds finish things out again Todd Wellemeyer today. No reason not to pound him for 10 runs and even up the series. Reds! Reds! Reds!

Reds Lose Two In a Row? Giants 3-0

Matt Cain looked pretty impressive last night in shutting out the Reds. Typically he will throw the 1 or 2 hitter but still lose as the Giant offense isn't interested in producing many runs. Last night they again weren't really interested in producing any runs but that bomb by Uribe provided enough support (Masset was nice enough to give them a couple of insurance runs in the 8th - he's a giver). So, Reds drop the first two of the series with a team of a similar record. These are important series as the Reds move towards relevancy. A strong pitching performance by Harangutan tonight would be of quite a bit of help, at least more than 4 innings. He's thinking it over as we speak. He's had quite a bit of yard work to do at his palatial estate and his worn down.

Reds' Rally Followed By Reds Anti-Rally, Giants 6-5

This is one of my favorite pictures from the preseason photo session. Cairo looks both experienced and dignified. I'm pretty sure he could pick out a nice bottle of wine to go with your lamb chop. You've seen him in the dugout wearing his blazer with the gold buttons over the top of his uniform. Well, last night he got to take off the blazer for a little while and participate in the game. He doesn't get to see a ton of action when Votto is healthy. He came through, knocking Zito out the game and two runs across as the Reds took the lead in the 6th, 5-4. Nice job Miguel. But that wasn't enough. Cueto wasn't terribly sharp, giving up 4 to the Gigantes over 6 and Herrera was even less sharp. I hate to agree with Thom Brennamen but last night he stated when they brought Herrera in to start the 7th that they were using Herrera to rest Rhodes. But then old Dusty brought Rhodes in in the 8th. Now, again to preface this argument, I don't make any claims to have Dusty's level of intellect or embroidered wrist bands, but, if you're going to use Rhodes, why not use him in the 7th to go through the "heart" of the Giants lineup? Then you can use Masset, as he's been doing, in the 8th and Coco to close things out. It's a mystery which will likely never be resolved.

One thing I think we can all agree on is we need more people in the bullpen who can't get anyone out. I could 3 to 4, depending on which Masset we're seeing for the day. Reds get back on the horse today again Matt Cain. Hopefully this is the one game this year where he gets shelled.

Reds Draft Player Nobody Seems to Like

That's not to say that the Reds Rocket is displeased with the selection of Yasmani Grandal. He has an interesting name, swings it from both sides and is both a catcher and from the University of Miami, two things familiar from the drafts of the past three years. The Reds Rocket was just thinking that the system needed another underwhelming catcher slowly progressing through the system. Though, I have to temper my remarks about Mesoraco, as he's really been pretty good this year. At least in High A. He hasn't hit much in the 10 days following his promotion but we'll have to see. Maybe people from Punxutawnie aren't all bad.

But, back to Grandal, here are some highlights from his draft recap page.

• Hitting Ability: Strong and physical, Grandal has put up numbers this year, but his hitting overall does not grade out that well. He doesn't have great bat speed

• Running speed: He is a well below average runner.

• Arm strength: His pure grade would be just okay, and his release times aren't great, but he's fairly accurate.

• Fielding: He's been strong defensively in the past but doesn't always move his feet well.

• Range: He's not the most agile backstop; he's been seen doing better in the past.

• Physical Description: Grandal is a big, strong, physical backstop, kind of like a Damon Berryhill type.

Ooh, a Damon Berryhill comparison. I like the sound of that. It does say he has good power, not quite plus, but good. So, there's a solid positive for you. Doesn't like to move his feet, has a average arm, slow bat and only one season of adequate performance. Probably time, if you haven't already, to run out and get your Yasmani Grandal jerseys so you're ready for his arrival some time in 2013.

Reds Have No Respect for Nation's Capital, Take Series, Reds 5-4

The Reds rebounded nicely from a loss Friday night to take both the Saturday and Sunday opportunities presented by the Nationals. Today, they took the National's opportunity, doubled it, gave it back to them, then won in extra innings. Drew Stubbs, fortunately, made a very strange face and was able to propel the team to victory.

Friday, Harang wore himself out over 4 innings of mediocre work, turning things over to the cow pen. Owings wasn't awful, but made sure the Nats had plenty of baserunners and chances to score. They finally did when Gomes and Stubbs bumbled into one another allowing what turned out to be the difference score. 4-2, was the final and everyone was quite disappointed.

Saturday, fortunately, Leake hit the bump and was quite disrespectful to the Nationals' bats. He went 7, picked up two more hits and the offense waited around for a while but finally decided to get things going late. Phillips crushed the Nationals' catcher (that's right, I'm not even going to bother looking up his name, want to fight about it?) which was awesome. He was actually on 3rd thanks to a little baserunner interference courtesy of Ian Desmond. Miguel Bautista, opted to drill Phillips for adhering to the rules of baseball, leading off the 9th. He was repaid today, allowing to game loser for the Nats. Nice job Miguel, hit the showers.

Today, as mentioned, the Reds won in extras but not prior to Rolen hitting another late inning bomb. This one in the 9th, with a man aboard. It followed Stubbs' double, which preceded Gomes double. For those unaware, Rolen currently leads the NL in bombs and slugging percentage. I think it's being closer to the Rolen family which is making the difference. Right now, Jocketty is looking pretty smart for bring in the old guys currently occupying the infield. Back to the recap, after being provided with a two-run lead, Coco blew the big, fat save opportunity. He was thinking that he doesn't have an opportunity to pick up very many wins, just about the same time that Masset was thinking that he doesn't have the opportunity to pick up very many saves. Thanks to Drew Stubbs making weird faces and knocking the game winner in the 10th, every one was rewarded for their actions, including Coco and his poor closing.

Reds get to go back home and beat on the Gigantes starting tomorrow. Zito is on the hill and, though he has been surprisingly decent this year, the Reds typically handle him pretty well. That and Lincecum pitched today. Hooray Reds! Reds! Reds!

Griffey Hoovers Off To Great Unknown - Mariners Front Office

Chris Carpenter's Soul Patch Beats Reds Again, Cardinals 4-1

For the third time this season, Carpenter beat the Reds. In my pre-series calculations, I thought that they were going to miss him this time around. Looks like I need to go back to calculations school. For the first time this year, in a non-Cubs series, the game was nationally televised on ESPN. And fortunately, apparently for everyone else, there was something else going on in baseball so the announcers didn't have to worry about actually calling the game. They were busy talking with Curt Schilling for some reason. Marty even got up in the booth and was able to mask his intense hatred for the Reds for at least a half inning. "This team, for my money, is the worst baseball team in the history of the game."

But, despite all of the distractions, the Reds didn't look awful on their nationally televised debut, with the exception of being able to not do anything against Carpenter. So, maybe I take that back, they were at least a little bit awful. The offense didn't do much and when they did, they just hit each other with line drives to kill rallies. The example being Bruce's shot that was heading near the first and second base hole when it hit Rolen in the leg. That's the second time in about a week that Rolen has been hit by a ball in play. Wasn't he watching Phillips on his preceding grounder? He just jumped right over the top.

Troy LeCure, who you might remember from such films as the Contrabulous Fabtraption of Horatio Hufnagel, wasn't bad, though, I hate to agree with Sutcliffe, stuck around for one inning two long. After struggling through the 5th, Sam ran back out there for the 6th, loaded the bases and allowed Enerio to unload a portion of them for him. So, his line looks worse then he actually was. Homeboy is supposed to be coming off the DL in time to belittle the coaching staff prior to his next start, so that might be about it for LeCure. Too bad, Sam. At least you got to face the Astros.

Reds get the day off today to think about how much they hate Chris Carpenter and his tiny hat. Then they get to go to Washington to unmercifully beat on the Nationals. In other news, a notable Reds alum was put out to stud yesterday. That's right, as many of you likely saw, Griffy hung up the spikes and his going to start selling his seed to mother's who'd like to have a future major leaguer. That's big business. The Reds Rocket, depending upon laziness, will write a proper tribute at some point, hopefully this evening. But we'll have to see, I am pretty lazy.

Scott Rolen Loves Taking Photos, Reds 10-9

The Reds went way up last night, gave back the full amount, then rallied late to beat the Cardinals and move back into sole possession of first place in the Central. Cueto was cruising along, up 7-3 in the 6th, then gave up 4 straight hits, was pulled, beat the shit out of the locker room, Enerio made sure that Cueto wasn't rewarded for his poor performance by allowing those last two runners to come across the plate. Though, that really was a ball that featured photograph Scott Rolen should have gloved. But when you're hitting bombs, as he was last night, two in all, you don't have to worry about making plays on hard hit balls to your right. And he didn't worry. When you're slugging at .600 and have hit more home runs through June 1 than you did the last three years you just tell the rest of the team that you let down to shove it. As it happened, the Reds had them right where they wanted them.

Nice to see Votto back in the lineup, though that means the banishment of everyone's favorite new Red, Miguel Cairo. You can only wear that new jersey you purchased about once every two weeks. Votto appeared anxious to get back in the lineup, hitting everything hard. He had a bomb, triple and two single and was just generally pretty good and is a big part of why the Reds won.

Aside from Cueto and Enerio, everyone else was pretty good. Arty put some runners on but, of course, did not allow any runs. Masset even retired his responsibilities. And Coco, through use of a double play and a sliding catch by Heisey finished things out for his 16th save of the year. Reds wrap things up with LeCure after win number two. Reds! Reds! Reds!