Trade Deadline: What The Reds Need To Do

By:  Coop


The Reds are 6.5 games back in the standings and 4 games under .500, yet this team believes they have a shot at winning the NL Central Division for the 2nd strait year.  Do I?  No.  At least not with what they have now. 


They need to put Arroyo on the DL for fatigue, or even trade him, he is just not getting the job done.  The Reds could trade Edinson Volquez and Bronson Arroyo for a pitcher like Baltimore's Guthrie.  They need someone in the starting rotation to help them out.  Maybe it is Travis Wood, but his stats in AAA are not all that great. If they get someone to replace Arroyo, they could have very good rotation.  Cueto is Cy Young-like, Leake will give you a quality start 9-out-of-10-times, Willis is a very good pitcher and a hard worker, Bailey is starting to look better, even with some rough starts, then add Guthrie.  That is good.


They could use someone in the bullpen as well, probably a closer.  I'm sorry but Francisco Cordero is way too inconsistent for me.  We need to get some prospects or draft picks and trade them for the Padres closer, Heath Bell.


And then we could use a new bat in the lineup.  Perhaps trade Fred Lewis and a minor-leaguer of two for Houston's Micheal Bourn.  Then, send Stubbs to AAA, Heisey will start in left, Bourn in center, and Bruce in right, then Alonso can come in when he needs to.


Bell, Bourn, and Guthrie is what they Reds need.

BREAKING NEWS: CHAD NO LONGER A BENGAL

By:  Coop

We have breaking news, WR Chad Ochocinco is no longer a Cincinnati Bengal.  Chad was reportedly spotted at the Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky Airport on a plane to Boston.

He is now reportedly in New England signing a contract.

We will keep you up-to-date on this.

Bengals Sign Bruce Gradkowski

By:  Coop


The Cincinnati Bengals are no doubt moving on without Carson Palmer, who is just about retired.  The team has found someone to take the roster spot of Carson, that person being former Oakland Raiders QB, Bruce Gradkowski. 


Last season with Oakland, Gradkowski played in 6 games, went 83/157, for 1059 yards, 5 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions.


Bruce does know Gruden's system, that is one reason why the Bengals may have made this move.


This is a 2-year-deal but will not be official until Friday at 6 PM ET, that is when they can officialy announce free-agent signings.

Thank You, Jonny Gomes

Gomes Traded To Nats, Alonso Up

By:  Coop


The Reds have made their 1st deal of the 2011 season, sending fan-loved OF, Jonny Gomes, to the Washington Nations in return for a 22-year-old minor league left-handed Class A pitcher, and a 26-year-old AA OF.  Also, the Reds have called up LF and highly-touted minor leaguer, Yonder Alonso.


Jonny Gomes is a career .244 hitter, and has 115 home runs.  This year, Gomes got off to a hot start, but then slowed down.  His 2011 stats are as followed: a .211 batting average, 11 homers, and 31 RBI's.  I wish nothing but success to Gomes.


Chris Manno, the left-handed reliever, has a 1-3 record this season, along with 12 saves, and a nice 1.04 ERA for Hangerstown. 


The 26-year-old OF, Bill Rhinehart, is hitting .283, has 21 homers, and 59 RBI's in nearly 90 games for Harrisburg.


As for Yonder Alonso, in AAA Louisville this season, he was hitting .296, had 40 extra-base hits, along with 56 RBI's.  Alonso can play 1B or LF.

Bengals Refuse To Trade Palmer

By:  Coop

The Cincinnati Bengals are refusing to trade QB Carson Palmer.  Palmer said he would retire if the Bengals did not trade.

Hated Bengals Owner, Mike Brown, said "he made a commitment" by signing a contract and added the team "will not reward him" for not keeping his promise.

Brown also said the team will probably move on with rookie QB Andy Dalton.

Former TCU WR Joins Bengals

By:  Coop


Former TCU wide receiver, Bart Johnson, will join former Horned Frog teammate, Andy Dalton, as a member of the Cincinnati Bengals.  


In 2010 Johnson had 31 receptions, good for 419 yards, and 4 touchdowns.  The most yards he had in a game was 59, against BYU.


This is a good move by finding a WR Andy Dalton will be comfortable around, but you have to wonder if Bart is the best pick.  His stats are not that impressive.  I think the Bengals would have been better getting someone like Dane Sanzenbacher. 

Just A Reminder...

No recaps until the Reds are at .500

DatDudeBP Walks-Off To Start 2nd Half

By:  Coop

The Reds had a poor 1st half, but they were ready to put that behind them and start a new chapter in the season, and get back to playing winning baseball.  In order to finish this series with a winning record, they would need to take game 1.  At first it looked like they would, then maybe would, they would, then it didn't, and then they did! Brandon Phillips aka DatDudeBP hit a walk-off 2-run home run to give the Reds a 6-5 win.  Here is how.


Chris Heisey was getting an unfortunately rare start in center field, and he showed Dusty Baker why he should start more often.  In the top of the 1st Albert Pujols hit one to deep center, and Chris robbed Albert of a home run!


Now how many times do we see someone do something on defense and then do something on offense? Pretty often.  Chris Heisey did.  He lead off the 1st and went yard to left, Reds up 1-0.


Then in the 5th Heisey was at it again as he hit another solo home run to left, 2-0.


The Cardinals would get on the board when David Freese grounded out, a run would score though, 2-1, that was in the 7th by-the-way.  Next batter was Yadier Molina, and he hit an RBI ground-out to tie the game at 2.  Then Tony Cruz hit an RBI single to give St. Louis the lead.


But Cincinnati responded.


In the bottom of the 7th Zack Cozart hit an RBI single to short (he legged it out), Stubbs would score, the Reds tied it up. That was Zack's 1st big league RBI.  The next batter was Joey Votto, he hit a ground-rule double, the run would score, and the Reds had their lead back, 4-3.


That lead would not last though.


In the 8th inning Albert hit a 2-run jack to left, a long ball to give the Cards a 5-4 lead, poop.


Then we went into the 9th inning with Heisey leading it off.  Well he was fanned.  Then came Cozart, he hit a ground ball up the middle for a base hit.  Way to keep an inning alive.  Then Votto came up.  He flew out to right.  Then it was up to Brandon Phillips to keep the game alive.  The count was 1-0 and he hit one to deep left-center field.  It was going back....back....back....back....GONE, HOME RUN BRANDON PHILLIPS, REDS WIN! REDS WIN! Yup.  Final score, 6-5.


While Phillips was the "hero" of the game, Scott Rolen did something amazing.  He hit his 500th career double, congratulations to him.  


Johnny Cueto deserved to win, but got a no-decision.  Johnny went 7 innings, gave up 5 hits, 3 runs, 2 earned, walked 2, and struck-out 2.


The Reds are now 46-47 and 3 games behind Milwaukee, St. Louis, and Pittsburgh for 1st place.


Tomorrow Bronson Arroyo will take the hill for the Reds, while the hated Chris Carpenter will take the hill for the other team.  Game time is set for 7:10 PM ET and the game will be on FS Ohio. 

2nd Half Starts Today: Should We Just Give Up On the Reds?

By:  Coop


The Reds had a very mediocre 1st half, having a record of 45-47, 4 games behind St. Louis for 1st place, and in 4th place.  So should we give up on the Reds and start thinking about next season or looking forward to football season?  No we cannot.  


If we are 2 games under .500, and in 4th place, yet only 4 games back, that is some hope.  Usually if you are 2 under and in 4th, you would think you were a least 10 games back.  4 games isn't a whole lot, and if they win the series against the 1st place Cardinals, they could be looking at only being 1 game back.  Then if they win the series against Pittsburgh, they could be in 1st place.  If they are not in 1st place (only way they wouldn't be is if the Brewers did great and won as much as the Reds), they would still gain serious ground in the NL Central.  Let's just say they take 2-out-of-3 from the Cardinals and Pirates, then they have a record of 49-49.  Yes, that is only .500, but they could be in at least 2nd place.  Then as long as they win majority of the series they play for the rest of July, it should be smooth sailing from then on, as the Reds have a 2nd half schedule in their advantage.


What will it take for the Reds to win all of those games?  Well they need to make a division-changing trade. The Brewers got K-Rod, the Reds need to respond.  They could make a deal with San Diego and get Heath Bell, which they are interested in.  There have also been talks in trying to get Rockies' pitcher Ubaldo Jiminez. He has a poor record, but has many quality starts, just isn't getting enough run support, something he could get in Cincinnati.  But what I think the Reds really need to do is get Jose Reyes from the Mets.  Send Devin Mesoraco, Fred Lewis, Edgar Renteria or Paul Janish, and Matt Maloney to New York for Reyes and maybe a minor leaguer or two.  If Jose was a Red, I could promise you they would win the NL Central.


So in conclusion, don't give up on the Reds yet.

Too Mad To Make Recaps

None until they are at least .500.

Okay I'm Tired Of This

By: Coop


What am I tired of?  The Reds.  I know there is still plenty of season to go, and are only 4 games back and can win the division, still.  But, I can promise you that the Reds will not win the NL Central in 2011 with the players they have now.  Let's go across the team, and I will tell you if they are good enough for my liking.


Let's start with pitching.
Bronson Arroyo:  This season Bronson is 7-7 and has an ERA of 5.49.  He could still win about 15 games this year, but the thing is, he has a lot of losses as well.  He has battled through illness, and has never missed a start, but he is going to have to miss some this season.  The Reds should put Bronson on the 15-day for fatigue. He can get his much-needed rest, and hopefully come back as a better pitcher.  We can bring up Dontrelle Willis to replace him, he is having a great year in AAA.
Edinson Volquez:  This guy has great stuff, but does not know how to use it.  He can be very good, and very bad. He is not nearly consistent enough.  The Reds should send Volquez back down to AAA so he can work on what he needs to, then bring up Travis Wood to replace him.  Wood has improved his game since he was sent down, and is back to the Travis Wood we all know and love.
Johnny Cueto:  Cueto is the best pitcher the Reds have, I have no negative things to say about him.  I mean the guy is 5-3 and has a 1.77 ERA.  Had he not of started the season on the DL, he would be the an All-Star.
Mike Leake:  Leake is 8-4 and has an ERA of 4.03.  That is good.  He has a lot of quality starts and every time you hand him the ball you know he is gonna give you a legit chance of winning the ball game.
Homer Bailey:  Homer is 3-3 and has an ERA of 3.64.  He started the season on the DL and ever since he has been healthy, he has been good.  He does get injured a lot, but as long as he stays healthy I think we can be a great pitcher for Cincinnati.
Bullpen:  The pen has Arredondo, Bray, Chapman, Cordero, LeCure, Masset, and Ondrusek.  Arredondo could be a little more less-wild, as could Chapman, just improve a little on location and they will be fine.  I will admit that every time Masset comes in to pitch I get nervous, but he usually gets the job done.  Ondrusek is great, have no complaints, LeCure is a great long man, hopefully we don't have to use him too much though. Bray should be an All-Star in my opinion, he is one of the best lefty relievers in the game.  Cordero has only blown 2 saves, and could really be an All-Star this season.  Overall, the bullpen is in good shape.


Now let's move on to position players.  We'll start with the catchers.
Ramon Hernandez:  Ramon has a .307 average, 8 homers, and has knocked in 20.  I can't really complain about his hitting at all.  I would like to see him throw more runners out though.
Ryan Hanigan: He is hitting .248, has 3 homers, and 19 RBI.  Pretty decent, but I would like to see that average higher.  I would like him to have at least a .260 batting average.  
Now to the infield.
Joey Votto:  Okay so how could anyone have any complaints about the reigning NL MVP, Joey Votto? We'll I have some.  He is hitting .318, had 12 homers, and 52 RBI's.  His average is fine, as is his RBI's, but 12 homers, come on.  He is on pace for 24 homers this year, last year he hit 37.  As my friend said "he set the bar too high if he can't hit that many every season".  I agree.  He is not getting much to hit, but he does eventually, and he just tries to hit singles.  He needs to be aggressive and try and go yard every once-in-a-while.  I know he doesn't consider himself a home run hitter, but we need him to be.
Brandon Phillips:  In my opinion DatDudeBP is the most exciting player to watch.  He scores a lot of runs, has a good average, a good amount of home runs and RBI's, and has the best defense in the world.  I have no complaints about him.
Paul Janish:  This is where it gets bad.  Janish is batting only .227 and has 19 RBI's, and no home runs.  Last year Paul hit 5 long ones.  He makes too many errors and does not know how to hit.  The Reds need to send him and some minor leaguers to New York in exchange for Jose Reyes.  Reyes would be a great fit for the Reds.  Jose plays in Citi Field, a huge ballpark, and hits a lot of triples there.  Those triples would be home runs in Cincinnati.  He has a high average, great speed, great defense, great everything.  The Reds must get Jose Reyes. Or, they could send Janish to Louisville and bring up Zach Cozart.  Cozy is tearing it up in AAA, and could be a very good MLB shortstop.  They need to bring him up before they get Reyes.  If he is good enough, don't get Reyes, if not, get him.
Edgar Renteria:  He is hitting .231, had 18 RBI's, and 1 home run.  That is okay since he has not got much playing time.  Too little if you ask me.  He is better than Janish.  We could really trade him if we wanted, but we don't really need to.
Scott Rolen: Scott is batting .256, had 3 homers, and 32 RBI.  I would like to see him hit more home runs, but we should defiantly keep him.  He is a leader, a good hitter, and a great defensive player.  
Miguel Cairo:  "The Super-Sub" has been great with the Reds the last 2 seasons.  He is batting .286, had 3 homers, and 15 RBI.  Pretty good for a guy who rarely starts.  
Now let's go to the outfield.
Jonny Gomes:  Gomes needs to be benched for a while so he can clear his mind.  He needs to be a bit more consistent. He is only batting .222, does have 11 homers and 31 RBI.  I like his home run total, but I would like him to get more RBI's and have a higher average.  I expected him to be hitting .280, have 15 homers, and 45 RBI's at the All-Star Break. Fred Lewis or someone else I will mention when I talk about Drew Stubbs can start in left.
Fred Lewis:  Freddy Lew has been good, he has a very hot bat, a good singles hitter, and can bat just about anywhere in the lineup.  I like him a lot.
Drew Stubbs:  Let me start out by saying Drew Stubbs needs to be sent down to AAA.  He is hitting .250, has 11 homers, and 32 RBI's.  A good amount of homers and RBI's, but that average is not that great.  He should be a stud.  He strikes-out way too much.  He is not getting the job done.  To make a point, he needs to be sent down to AAA.  In the mean time, we can bring up Yonder Alonso to play in the OF.  He can play in left, then Heisey can start in center.
Jay Bruce:  Bruce has a lot of homers and RBI's, but I would like him to be more consistent.  He is working on it though, and if he hits 18 homers in the 2nd half, and finishes the season with 36 homers and 102 RBI's, I will be very happy.


Okay, so that should do it.  If the Reds do what I think they should, I think they could win the division.

Cueto Handed Tough-Luck Loss

By:  Coop


Perhaps the biggest rivalry in baseball right now is the Reds vs. Cardinals.  Today the Reds were playing visitor to those Cards, hoping to gain ground in the NL Central.  The best-buddies were on the hill today, Johnny Cueto and Chris Carpenter, and by best-buddies I mean enemies.  Both pitchers were great, but Carpenter was just a little better.  The Cards won 1-0.


All it took was an 8th inning RBI single by Mark Hamilton.  


Carpenter went 8 innings, gave up 6 hits, no runs, walked 1, and fanned 3. 


Cueto pitched well enough to win, but had zero run support, which is an odd thing, usually the Reds give him tons of run support.  Johnny went 8 innings giving up just 1 run, off of 6 hits, and 3 walks.


The Reds are now 3 games back and St. Louis is in 1st place alone.  But, if the Reds win the next two games here in St. Louis, and win the series in Milwaukee they could actually be in 1st place at the break.


Tomorrow the Reds will send Edinson Volquez to the hill while Jamie Garcia will pitch for the little red birds. Game time is set for 8:15 PM ET and you can catch it on Fox Sports Ohio.

Reds Win Final Game Of Interleague Play

By:  Coop


The Reds were trying to avoid being swept by the Indians this season, and were also trying not to fall under .500.  In order to do so, Mike Leake would have to pitch well and help the Reds get the win.  Leake pitched very well, and the Reds won it 7-5.  Here is how.


In the 2nd inning, Shelly Duncan hit a 2-run jack to left, the Indians had an early 2-0 lead.  It would not last though.


In the Reds 2nd inning, Chris Heisey got things started with a solo home run.  His 9th long ball of the year, 2-1 the score.  Still in the 2nd, Miguel Cairo hit an RBI single to plate Edgar, tie game.  The Reds would take the lead when Freddy Lew hit an RBI single to plate Cairo, 3-2.


In the 4th inning the Reds added 3 runs.  The 1st run was scored when Fred Lewis hit an RBI single to bring in Cairo...again, 4-2.  The 2nd run was scored when Joey Votto hit a sac fly, 5-2.  Then there was a play in which Ramon Hernandez hit a fly ball to left, the out was made, Lewis tried to tag up and score, and he did, but then Brandon Phillips was tagged out trying to get to 3rd.  The run did score, 6-2 after the inning was over.


Then in the 5th inning, something amazing happened.  Edgar Renteria hit a home run.  His 1st of the season, and the 1st homer a Reds shortstop has hit this season.  7-2 was the score.


In the 6th Grady Sizemore hit a 2 RBI single to make it 7-4.  Then in the 7th Travis Hafner hit an RBI single to bring in a run and make it 7-5.  The Indians were back in it.  But then the bullpen came in and did the job, helping Cincinnati get the win.


Mike Leake is the winning pitcher, as he went 6 innings, gave up just 4 hits, 4 runs, walked 2, and fanned 8.


So the Reds are now done with Interleague play, thank goodness.  Tomorrow they start a huge and very important road trip.  They will play 3 in St. Louis then 4 in Milwaukee.  Tomorrow it will be a good pitching match up, Cueto vs. Carpenter.  Game time is set for 6:15 PM ET and will be on FS Ohio.

Votto, Bruce, And Phillips Named All-Stars

By:  Coop


Last season Brandon Phillips, Arthur Rhodes, and Scott Rolen were named to the All-Star Team, while Joey Votto got in via Final Vote.  Today Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips, and Jay Bruce were named to the NL All-Star team.  All three players will be on the bench to start the game, but they will all probably get playing time in the 82nd All-Star Game.


Jay Bruce admitted he was "a little surprised" when he found out he had been named an All-Star.


Brandon Phillips said "it was an honor, especially getting voted in by the players, that right there was very unexpected".

The game is July 12th in Arizona.

Reds Still Winless Against Cleveland

By:  Coop


The Reds entered today 0-4 against the team from the Northeast part of the state.  Today they were trying to pick up their first win against the Indians.  Cincy sent Homer Bailey to the mound while Cleveland sent Carmona out to pitch.  Bailey did good, and Carmona, well, got hurt.  Talk more about that in a bit.  The Reds lost 3-1, here is how.


All 3 of Cleveland's runs came from one swing of the bat, which was a home run hit my Michael Brantley to right field.  That was in the 3rd inning.  But in that 3rd inning, something interesting happened.  With a runner on 1st, the pitcher, Fausto Carmona, tried to bunt the runner to 2nd.  Home Bailey fielded the ball, threw to 2nd, the umpire said Janish's foot did not touch the bag, so the runner was safe.  But while this was happening, Carmona was running to 1st, and stumbled and fell.  Okay, no biggy right?  Nope, he landed oddly on his pitching hand.  It hurt him so bad he had to be taken out of the game. He is fine though.  But that is one example of why the AL needs to get rid of DH's, so when pitchers run, they can actually make it 90 feet.


Anyways, 3-0 would be the score until the 8th.  In that 8th inning Joey Votto went yard to center field, and put the Reds on the board.  The only bad thing is, it was only a solo shot.  


That Votto home run would not be enough as the Reds lose it 3-1.


Homer Bailey pitched well, only made one mistake.  Homer went 7 innings of 3 run, 8 hit baseball, he also gave up 1 walk and fanned 7.


The Reds did not lose any ground, that is the only good thing from this game.  They remain 3 games back in the NL Central.


Tomorrow the Reds will try and salvage just one game from this Indians team and avoid the season sweep.  Game time is set for 1:10 PM ET and will be on Fox Sports Ohio.

Phillips 2 Homers Not Enough vs. Tribe

By:  Coop


The Reds were 0-3 this season against the Cleveland Indians, in order to keep the Ohio Cup in Cincy, the Reds would need to sweep the Indians.  Well they can't since they lost 8-2 today.  The 2 runs were scored on solo homers by Brandon Phillips.  His 2nd home run happened to be his 1000th career hit.  The Reds lose  a game in the division, and sit 3 games back.  Tomorrow they will be on FOX at 4:10 PM ET.