Johnny Cueto looked pretty mortal today as he suffered his first major league loss at the hands of Pirates.  The three game sweep turned a nice 6-4 record into a rather mediocre 6-7 record and the Reds sit just one game ahead of the last place Astros.  Still, they’re just three games out of first place and they can take care of one of those teams this week in the third place Cubs.

Adam Dunn was given the day off because Dusty Baker felt it might help him get his shit together.  Okay, he didn’t use those exact words, but Dunn’s off to a slow start, sort of.  He has a rather ugly .167 batting average but because of 13 walks, he has a .380 OBP.  Yeah, his slugging is .250, but how long is that going to last.  My bet is, his OPS is back up over .850 by mid-May.  We all know Baker has something against walks, so my feeling that Dunn’s days are numbered as a Red  have a ton of validation.

Next up are the Cubbies.  I like the Aaron Harang/Ryan Dempster matchup but Josh Fogg/Carlos Zambrano not so much.  I’d be happy if we walk away with the rubber game and get back to winning series instead of losing them.

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Aaron Harang showed his aceness today with his best start of the season in a 4-1 spanking over the Brewers.  He gave up just a single run on five hits with three strikeouts in eight solid frames.  Francisco Cordero did his thing in the ninth inning and just like that, the Reds had a series win over a former first place team.

Edwin Encarnacion had the big hit of the game with a two run poke that scored Adam Dunn.  And this is a great segue into last nights 12-4 pasting.  Here’s what’s messed up.  Future Hall of Famer Adam Dunn belted his first homerun of the season while Corey Patterson hit his fourth.  The big guy will heat up soon, I just know it.

The Reds head into their three game series with the Pirates at 6-4, which isn’t too shabby.  Edinson Volquez gets the start tomorrow and Pat Maholm throws for the Bucs.

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It was like the second coming of Eric Milton.  Bronson Arroyo gave up four homeruns as the Reds lost their series finale to the Phillies 5-3.  Arroyo gave up the five runs on nine hits with six strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings.  The pen did a nice job and three relievers combined to throw 2 2/3 innings of shutout ball to allow the team to come back.  Unfortunately, the offense never came.

The Reds managed just five hits against Cole Hamels and company.  Jeff Keppinger and Paul Bako each reached base twice with a hit and a walk while Adam Dunn had the tough luck game with three strikeouts. 

Next up are the division rival Brewers.  Milwaukee is tied atop the standings at 5-1 and they’ll send Jeff Suppan to the mound.  The Reds send Cy Young candidate Johnny Cueto who will try to follow up his exception debut with an equally exceptional second start of the season.

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Don’t look now, but the Reds have a winning streak. Jeff Keppinger and Ken Griffey, Jr. both went yard and they combined to drive in five of the Reds eight runs in 8-2 win. Brandon Phillips also chipped in with three hits while Corey Patterson went two for five with a run and an RBI.

Edison Volquez (not Arroyo like I originally though) had a nice start as he made his Reds debut. He gave up just a single run on five hits and two walks with eight strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings. Pretty good pitching all the way around in this one as the Phillies managed just seven hits.

The final game of the series is tomorrow afternoon. A three game winning streak sure would look nice and it’ll be Bronson Arroyo (for real this time) who gets the ball.

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This time it was Paul Bako with an assist from Corey Patterson.  The Reds were down 3-2 in the eighth when Patterson hit a solo jack to tie it.  Then in the ninth, Adam Dunn and Edwin Encarnacion drew back to back walks before Bako drove home Ryan Freel (running for Dunn) to win it.

Aaron Harang put together a nice solid start.  He gave up two runs on six hits and three walks with six strikeouts in seven frames.  Francisco Cordero picked up the win with a perfect ninth inning.

Bronson Arroyo will try to help the Reds make it two in a row.  Cole Hammels will be the starter for the Phillies in the afternoon contest.

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So much for the Josh Fogg era.  The former Rockie was knocked around for six runs on eight hits and three walks with three strikeouts in just four innings.  Jared Burton was the star of the pitching staff although it didn’t matter too much. He threw two shutout innings and he struck out four in a nice outing.

Ken Griffey, Jr. brought the big bat.  He went two for four with a double, two RBIs and a run.  Brandon Phillips was the only other hitter with two hits.

Aaron Harang gets the ball this afternoon and he’ll be looking for his first win of the season.  Adam Eaton will start for the Phillies.

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Move over Reds starers, there’s a new man in town.  Johnny Cueto made his major league debut this afternoon in grand fashion with a ten strikeout, one hit performance over seven innings.  The lone hit was a solo blast off the bat of Justin Upton in the sixth inning.  Francisco Cordero did his job as well with a shutout ninth and he earned his first save as a Red.

Jeff Keppinger was the hitting star.  He went two for four with a solo homerun.  Adam Dunn walked three times and Ken Griffey, Jr. went one for two with two walks and a run.

Next up are the Phillies.  This is where the rotation begins to get dicey.  Josh Fogg makes his first start as a Red and he’ll go up against Kyle Kendrick.

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WALK OFF THREE RUN BLAST!!!  Yeah, baby.  Edwin Encarnacion came though in a huge way as the belted a three run walk off homerun to push the Reds to a 6-5 win.  Brandon Phillips and Adam Dunn led off the inning with back to back singles and with nobody out, E-squared went yard to win it for us.  Corey Patterson and Brandon Phillips belted solo shots while Jeff Keppinger had a team high three hits to go along with his one run.

Bronson Arroyo had a tough start but not tough enough.  He gave up four runs (two earned) on four hits and three walks with five strikeouts in five innings.  Jeremy Affeldt got into trouble in the ninth inning but he got out of it and he ended up with the win.

Johnny Cueto makes his major league debut tomorrow.  Doug Davis gets the nod for the Diamondbacks.  A series win sure would be a nice way to kick off the season.

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Yes, yes, yes, I know this is just one game.  Grrr, the problem is, this is how a lot of the Reds games went this year.  Two runs on three (cue Bob Uecker impersonation from Major League) freaking hits is all they can manage.  Thankfully Brandon Phillips actually got a hit for extra bases and he both drove in and scored via his triple in the fourth inning.  That just made it a close game though.

Aaron Harang was good but not great and in this one, he would have needed to be great.  Three runs (just two of those were earned) on three hits and two walks with six strikeouts in six innings.  The David Weathers/Francisco Cordero combo looked sharp though, it’s just a shame the hitters couldn’t use the shutdown to come back and win.

Adam Dunn had a productive game despite not getting a hit.  He did strikeout out but he drew a walk and drove in Phillips on a ground out in that two run fourth inning.  Take away the triple, and Phillips had a tough game with three strikeouts in other three at bats. 

The Reds have the day off tomorrow and then Bronson Arroyo makes his season debut.  Dan Haren will make his debut as a National League pitcher so hopefully our big bats (yes, they’re there) welcome him appropriately.

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Alright, Opening Day is tomorrow and don’t look now, but the Reds actually look like they might have a good team.  The problem is, some key players are either on the bench or in Louisville.  You’ve heard me go on about Jay Bruce and Homer Bailey but now Joey Votto has been relegated to the bench with Scott Hatteberg getting the starting nod at first base.  Vintage Dusty Baker so nobody should be too suprised.  The pen is better and the rotation is there.  Most important, the Reds play in a weak division and a trade deadline move could push them in either direction.  If they trade Adam Dunn for Eric Gagne though, it might be time to pick a new team.

The Reds doubled up the Rays in their final spring game.  A lot of guys played who will be playing down in the minors but that’s usually how those final spring training games go.  Johnny Cueto had a rough start but the pen did a nice job.

Public enemy number one are the Diamondbacks.  What’s up with the 2 pm start?  The Reds should be at least opening up the first big day but they’ve been relegated to a status like every other team.  Aaron Harang will go up against Brandon Webb.

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