So, uh, anyone else see that Mets/Cubs game?
HOLY ****!

I decided to watch the game because, well, frankly, it was on, and I wasn't working. I was interested to see how the Mets are looking right now as they'll be in town for a three-game set starting on Tuesday. As El Duque started to get hit early and often, I kept thinking "Awesome, get into the bullpen, tire it out." Of course, there's an off day tomorrow, so it won't make that much of a difference, but hey, it's worth a shot. And then the Mets started hitting Sean Marshall hard, and a couple of Cub errors did nothing to help. All of a sudden, the hapless Cubbies went from a 5-0 lead to a 6-5 deficit. Oh, but it wasn't over there. 6-5 became 7-5, and then all of a sudden, it was 13-5. 17... 17! batters came to the plate for the Mets in a 41-minute, 11-run (2 grand slams!) top of the 6th.

The entire time this was going on, I was still hanging out in today's game thread at redreporter.com, amazed at what I was witnessing, and relaying it for the benefit of those who missed it. I have never seen anything like what I saw today, and I am serious when I say that I fully expect to see someone fired directly because of this. I guess by "someone" I mean Dusty Baker. That has got to be one of if not The Most Embarassing Cubs Loss ever, and it was on ESPN. Ouch.

I wondered aloud if this was more a case of us witnessing how good the Mets are, or how awful the Cubs are... I have to go with the awful Cubs theory on this one. Multiple defensive miscues, missed scoring opportunities early, a couple of bad pitches... Yikes.

So does this mean the Mets have used up most of their offensive power for the next couple of games? Prolly not, but dammit if I'm not going to HOPE SO! :)

Final score: 13-7. Leave it to the Cubs to score a couple of meaningless runs late.

Short, simple, to the point, here are my thoughts on The Trade.

I like Felipe Lopez. I love Austin Kearns. We traded good, young talent away for decent middle relief that will help us right now and hopefully into the future. (I'm not hurt by the loss of Lopez. It felt like I was punched in the stomach when it comes to Kearns.) We overpaid for right now, but it might just be enough to keep us in contention. Fortunately we have Kearns-lite (or, heII, who knows? Kearns-equal, or Kearns-better?) in Deno, and Jay "Wunderkind" Bruce in the pipeline.

It's done, we can't take it back. Let's take Bray and Majewski and roll with it. (McClayton was a throw in as far as I'm concerned, and had better not be here past this season, so I'm not going to mention him as part of The Trade beyond this. And the other two, well, we'll see.)

Unfortunately for us, the fans, we have yet to see a FSN-televised game post-The Trade. I would love to have seen the scoreless inning Bray put up tonight against the Rockies, not to mention the starts by Harang and Arroyo, but I'll have to live with the snippets I'm getting from SportsCenter and the like. (I would have been the first one in the ballpark for any of these three games, but alas, I've worked the past three nights.) Majewski's performances, not so much, but he's gotta be pressing. ...let me rephrase that... He has got to be pressing, because if he isn't, and this is what we're going to see from him nightly, I'll lead the charge against Krivsky down Pete Rose Way.

So, I guess that wasn't "short, simple" or "to the point" at all, but what else do you expect from me? :)

I know my comments are, say, three days overdue and that most of the initial shock (and in the minds of some, horror) has worn off, but this is still constantly reverberating through my mind. Why else am I awake at 4:25 am, blogging about the Reds?

Let's face it. The Reds absolutely limped into the All-Star break, seemingly going 1-4,345. Since, we're 3-0. Not a huge sample size to draw from, but positively encouraging. There were 35,000 people at the ol' ballyard in sweltering heat last night, so that's saying something, right? I really have no idea what I'm getting at here... Just that the post-Kearns Reds don't seem as bad off as I originally thought.

Now, if Narron would only sit McClayton, get Aurilia out of the 4-spot, and *******' play Edwin, the team would look even better. Oh, yeah, Jerry, don't forget about Java... he's not gonna get over this whole "broken" thing by sitting on his *** in the bullpen. And Majewski, well, he's already pitched what could be a season's worth for some relief pitchers. Give him a night or two off, geez. (And do it fast before the boo birds greet him before he even throws a pitch.)

It's been a week full of surprises. I think we all suspected a trade was in the works, but who expected this? Three games, three wins out of the gate? Fantastic. 14 scoreless innings in two games from Harang and Arroyo, after a QS from Milton on Thursday? I'll take it! Elizardo today? I'll take it! Which reminds me, I'm enjoying this whole no-fifth-starter-needed thing a bit too much, and I'm not looking forward to the upcoming lack of days off that will require Claussen, Mays, Wilson, the guy sitting in Section 136, Row F, Seat 12... WHOMEVER to fill that fifth starter spot. (Jerry, if you're reading, Mays better not be it.) Wait, is he even still a Red? I'm hoping I missed something.

When the season began, I was hoping for .500. As April came and went, I started hoping for more. Now, I'm hoping for nothing less than the Wild Card because that's what The Trade is supposed to get us, right?

I can honestly say that I have no idea what is going to happen. I do know that whatever does happen, it certainly will be interesting to watch, and I'm glad to be along for the ride.

Go Redlegs.

Here be Part 4 of the Reds Bloggers Roundtable held this past Monday night. You know, a time before Krivsky was punched in the face by Jim Bowden. ::sigh::

Part #1 ... Shawn
Part #2 ... Sister Daedalus
Part #3 ... Doc Scott
Part #4 ... Ashlee (Me, of course!)
Part #5 ... JD
Part #6 ... Jacci
Part #7 ... JinAZ
Part #8 ... Red Hot Mama

_________________

Shawn: Queueing up question three......

Shawn: What is your prediction for the second half?

Daedalus: this team is too unpredictable!

JinAZ: I'd love to hope for more, but I think 0.500 is about what we're looking at unless some big-time bullpen help comes soon.

Ashlee: I agree... unless a move is made we're looking at .500

Jacci: I'm throwing reality to the winds and going with massive amounts of winning

Doc Scott: As much as I wish Arroyo and Phillips and Ross would keep pooing fluffy white clouds, I think we're looking at something within three or four games of .500, either way

JinAZ: And something has to be done about the #4 and #5 rotation slots.

Doc Scott: whether we make a move or not

Daedalus: the offense has been stagnant recently - i think they'll hit a hot spot and stay in contention for the remainder of the season

JD: I think it depends

JD: On the moves that are made in the next few weeks

Ashlee: Daedalus, was it you who said something to the effect of "We'll know after next week" ? I agree with that.

Shawn: I think fourth place is likely. I'm hoping for more, but I expect to get passed by the Astros and Brewers.

JinAZ: There's still a chance that we could make a run. But things are going to have to go our way.

Red Hot Mama: The NLC is looking like last year's NLW. The Reds could stay in this even at .500.

Daedalus: yes, I think the break will do them well.

Doc Scott: however, with what I said sitting there, I think if I

Doc Scott: am Wayne Krivsky, I pocket Bailey/Votto/Bruce and use anything else I've got to try and get some upgrades to the 25-man

Doc Scott: the Brewers are heavily dependent on Ben Sheets being a good, healthy pitcher when he comes back from rehab

Red Hot Mama: Dino would be a good chip, much as I'd hate to see him go

Shawn: Depends on what they get for him

Daedalus: I think Lopez is shopped

Shawn: If Denorfia brings a good starter who will be here for a while, not just this year, then I could see trading him

Doc Scott: the Astros... I sort of doubt

Red Hot Mama: Oh no! That would mean we'd lose JD!

JinAZ: I'm ok with Lopez going for good value.. Phillips can play short, and will be better defensively.

Shawn: Lopez shopped? Who replaces him?

Shawn: Then who replaces Phillips?

Red Hot Mama: Manos de Oro of course

Ashlee: I don't think I could handle that

Daedalus: phillips, freel, aurilia, castro - one thing we have is depth

Shawn: Oh, good, Castro at 2B. Whoopee.

Doc Scott: I don't like Freel, Aurilia, OR Castro as the full-time starting 2B

Shawn: Me either

Daedalus: none of them is a full time starter. platoon them

Doc Scott: I'd rather just flip-flop Phillips and Lopez and let it all be

Shawn: Platoon a bunch of righty hitters? Good trick

JinAZ: Aurilia would be our 2B for the season.

Red Hot Mama: That would just screw with their heads

Jacci: And it'd be funny to watch. In a sad sort of way

Daedalus: like Narron's five billion differnt lineups doesn't

JinAZ: The key is to get value for Lopez in return. And he should have good value.

Doc Scott: Aurilia's defense is pretty much limited to the infield corners. You'll notice the Reds have quit using him at SS.

Shawn: If Lopez was traded, we'd end up with Aurilia at 2B every day, and he can't hit a righty.

Doc Scott: ...or on the road.

JinAZ: Actually, he was better at 2B than at 3B last year. :)

Jacci: I thought he was just there a little while ago. But maybe I'm thinking of Castro

JinAZ: Freel can get time at 2B as well.

Ashlee: They have Castro to spell SS

Daedalus: ha

Doc Scott: Freel's infield defense isn't great either... it's okay on a utility basis. He's considerably better in the OF.

Shawn: My first choice for CF would be Denorfia. My second choice would be Freel.

Jacci: That he is.

JinAZ: From what I've seen, Freel's been outstanding defensively at most positions. Except for the occasional mental mistake.

Shawn: It gets tough switching around all the time

Doc Scott: he doesn't have good hands.

Daedalus: too many times hitting his head against the fence

JD: What do you think the Reds would get for Felipe?

Daedalus: a third starter

JinAZ: Fielding bible rated him very favorable everywhere.

As I write this, home runs are undoubtedly flying out of PNC Park in Pittsburgh by the dozens. Am I watching? Nope.

I've decided that I can no longer stand the Home Run Derby. Actaully, honestly, I couldn't stand it before, but now I'm finally admitting it. Chris Berman and his record-skipping "BackBackBackBackBack..." home run call make me cringe as if nails were streaking down a chalkboard, and cause me to long for the likes of George Grande and Chris Welsh. Yes, seriously. That being said, there is one thing that would make me watch: The inclusion of Adam Dunn and his bat in the festivities. I'd go and see that in person if I could. Batting practice fastballs trown right down the middle of the plate, thigh-high to that guy? That 535-foot shot into the Ohio River would be nothing compared to what we'd see off of his bat in that situation. Someday... someday.

And with that, or the avoidance of that, I begin my self-imposed two-day exile from baseball. No All-Star game for me, I'll be working. No webistes, no sports section in the newspaper, and no blogging about the Reds! Needless to say, it'll be at least Thursday before you hear from me again.

I vow to be more diligent with the writing, time allowing, when play resumes on Thursday. We can only hope that the Reds vow to be more diligent when it comes to winning when play resumes on Thursday...

As ever, go Redlegs!

Enjoy the "holiday!"

I have decided that being a Reds fan is dangerous to one's health. You're so high and giddy one moment and so down and depressed the next, that it just can't be healthy for one's psyche. Even the time in between sheer giddiness and the doldrums is spent developing ulcers thanks to a broken bullpen and shoddy defense.

Today is the perfect example. The Reds are down 6-4 in the top of the 9th against Milwaukee, and score three times to come back and take the lead thanks to clutch hits by Adam Dunn and Junior. Elation! Moments later, Todd Coffey has given up four consecutive hits without recording an out, and the game is over. Milwaukee wins, 8-7. Utter and absolute dejection.

After Friday night's improbable, amazing, beautifully fantastic come-from-behind win against the Indians, the Reds have turned around and dropped three straight. Not only do we suffer these incredible mood swings from inning to inning, we have to suffer through them game to game, day to day, as well.

Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade my fandom for anything - I've often called Cincinnati Reds baseball "the non-human love of my life" - but I think we are all just a little bit insane. (Ok, perhaps I more than most, but that's a discussion for another day...) Here we are, midway through the season, and the weaknesses we expected to find are plain for all to see - relief pitching, defense, relief pitching, defense (it's become something like a mantra). Still, somehow someway, here we are, second in the NL Central, 1 1/2 games back, and the NL Wild Card. I have no idea what is going to happen from here on out - it seems to me that the bullpen will probably remain much like it is right now, but at the same time, it looks like July is going to be a big offensive month. See: Adam Dunn. If Arroyo and Harang can continue to pitch well, and one or two of out other starters can pick up some slack...

So what do we do? I'm not giving up the Reds, and I'm not giving up on the Reds... I guess strained nerves, those **** ulcers, and extreme mood swings are just par for the course. We just have to get over the difficult losses as quickly as possible, and hope and pray that Krivsky can pull together something before the end of the season that will give us a better 'pen without sacrificing too much of a potentially bright future.

As ever, go Redlegs.