Let’s finish June in style! The Reds send Elizardo Ramirez to the mound against the Indians tonight, with an opportunity to tie the Cardinals atop the NL Central.

Discuss the game here.

From Lance McAlister’s blog: (and reported here in a comment)

Today the Reds designated for assignment LHP Chris Hammond and recalled from Louisville LHP Brian Shackelford.
Hammond went 1-1, 6.91 in 29 relief apps for the Reds.

Shackelford went 1-0-1, 2.04 in 18 relief apps at Louisville…he is in second stint with the Reds this season…from 4/20-5/30 he went 1-0, 7.71 in 14 relief apps for Cin.

Reds management again shows itself willing to eat a contract. There will be a buyout for the mutual option for next year, I would assume.

Rookie

Billings 2, Great Falls 0

20 year-old Maikol Mesa went 2 for 3 with a 2B and a R. For the season Mesa is hitting .316/.381/.368.

22 year-old Anthony Gressick pitched 6 innings allowing just 3 H, 0 BB, and 0 ER while striking out 5. Gressick, a 26th round pick in the 2006 Draft, in 11 IP this season has given up 6 H, 0 ER, and 0 BB.

GCL Red Sox 4, GCL Reds 3

22 year-old Chris Gruler was hammered in his 3 innings. The 1st round pick of the 2002 draft, now has a 5.40 ERA with 7 K, 4 BB, 5 H in 5 IP.

LOW A

Dayton 4, Cedar Rapids 3

22 year-old Robert Manuel pitched 5 Innings giving up just 3 H, 0 ER, and 0 BB while striking out 3. Manuel, the bag of balls recieved from the Mets for Dave Williams, now has a 2.73 ERA with 18 K, 1 BB, and 25 H with 26 IP.

HIGH A

Dunedin 5, Sarasota 3

25 year-old Jeramiah Piepkorn went 2 for 4 with a 2-run homer. Piepkorn, an undrafted free agent, is now hitting .257/.295/.443.

AA

Jacksonville 4, Chattanooga 1

22 year-old Joey Votto went 1 for 3 with a 2B, R and a BB. Votto, the 2nd round pick of the 2002 Draft is now hitting .314/.385/.562.

AAA

Louisville 3, Richmond 1

23 year-old Edwin Encarnacion went 1 for 2 with 2 R and 2 BB. The 9th Round pick of the Rangers in the 2000 Draft is hitting .333/.455/.333 after 3 games in his rehab assignment.

From this AM’s Enquirer:

The Reds have revised their catching rotation.

The basic model will be Jason LaRue catches Aaron Harang, David Ross catches Bronson Arroyo and Javier Valentin catches Elizardo Ramirez - if the opposition is throwing a right-hander.

Who catches Joe Mays and Eric Milton is subject to change, but based on recent results, Ross probably will be the guy.

Sounds logical so far, right?

LaRue is unhappy with his situation.

“I expect to play every day,” he said. “I signed as a starter. Everyone knows Jason LaRue is a slow starter. It’s a long season. You’re going to have your ups and downs.”

So, it doesn’t matter that you’re not performing, or more specifically that you’re being out-performed by two other players, because you were signed to a big money contract, you should be given the bulk of the playing time.

No ego involved here.

Jason, get a clue.

The Reds need to release David Weathers immediately. He’s absolutely terrible, and has no business being on the Reds’ active roster.

I’m thoroughly disgusted with him. GM Wayne Krivsky needs to do what he’s done with others who haven’t performed — get rid of them.

Weathers is the new Danny Graves, as far as I’m concerned. He’s just awful, and I don’t think I can bear to watch him any longer. Six blown saves in less than half a season…sheesh.

And here’s a picture of Weathers after he stole Bronson Arroyo’s tenth win tonight:

They need to toss ole Danny G. Weathers on the trash heap before I re-institute my Danny Graves policy of the last couple of years.

Boy, it would certainly be nice if the Reds could win this series tonight in honor of my birthday.

With Bronson Arroyo on the mound, I like our chances. Go get ‘em, 61!

Discuss the game here.

There is still time to enter the Redleg Nation giveaway contest to win the 1975 World Series DVD box set! Go here to enter.

I have watched the first five games of the Series so far, and let me assure you that you won’t be disappointed by this box set. If you are a Reds fan, you must own this set.

Win the contest, and you can have a DVD for free, courtesy of Redleg Nation!

Rookie

Billings 4, Missoula 3

21 year-old Drew Stubbs went 2 for 5 with a R, RBI, and 2 SB.  Stubbs, the first round pick of the 2006 Draft, is now hitting .265/.381/.441 with 3 SB and 0 CS. 

20 year-old Jordan Smith pitched 5 innings giving up just 1 H, 0 BB, and 0 ER.  Smith, the 6th round pick of the 2006 Draft struck out 5.  In two games this season he has a 3.00 ERA with 9 K, 2 BB, 5 H in 9 IP.

GCL Reds 7, GCL Twins 6

19 year-old Juan Francisco went 2 for 5 with 2 2B, 2 RBI, and  R.   For the season he is hitting .259/.286/.333

LOW A

Dayton 6, Southwest Michigan 4

I will never get tired of typing this.  19 year-old Jay Bruce went 3 for 3 with 2 2B, 2 RBI, and a R.  The first round pick of the 2005 Draft, is now hitting .305/.362/.551.

HIGH A

Dunedin 8, Sarasota 3

23 year-old Drew Anderson went 2 for 4 with a 2B.  Anderson, from the Ohio State, is now hitting .288/.344/.432.  

AA

Huntsville 5, Chattanooga 4

25 year-old Aaron Herr went 1 for 4 with a 2-run Homer.  Herr, the 1st round pick of the Braves in the 2000 Draft, now has 10 homers and is hitting .301/.346/.491.  Last year the third baseman hit .298/.336/.498 with 21 HR for AA Springfield in the Texas League.

AAA

Louisville 4, Richmond 2

30 year-old Earl Snyder went 3 for 4 with a 2B and 4 RBI.   For the season is now hitting .253/.316/.452

I just finished reading Fantasyland by Sam Walker and it was a pretty interesting read. It details the journey of Walker, a columnist for The Wall Street Journal, as he attempts to compete in an expert rotisserie baseball league known as Tout Wars in which other expert statisticians and fantasy experts supposedly compete.

The approach Walker uses to build his team is a mix of old school meets new school. Walker attempts to build his fantasy team around old school scouting methods mixed in with new age statistical scouting. The book goes through the 2004 season from winter meetings up through the end of the fantasy season.

This book offers no help for building a fantasy team. If you don’t like hearing or reading about other’s fantasy teams, this book isn’t for you. However, if you have ever struggled through the frustrations of building a fantasy team and trying to win a league, you can relate to this book.

If you’re not a rotisserie fan, the book does give you a behind the scenes look at how some players, GMs, and even the fraternity of baseball views rotisserie leagues and those who publish rotisserie and statistical advice. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants something interesting to read that is off the normal baseball route.

(There are no Reds mentioned in this book other than a brief blurb about Brandon Phillips when he was with Cleveland.)

Well, yesterday’s game was one we won’t soon forget, and I’m afraid that it’s one that will come back to haunt the Reds.  With an opportunity to close to within a half-game of the Cards in the division, Eric Milton and the jokers in the bullpen couldn’t hold a 5-1 lead on the team with the worst record in the Major Leagues.  Sheesh.  Yes, I know that Kansas City has played better of late, but still…this is the Royals we’re talking about.

Hopefully, Aaron Harang will be his usual stopper self tonight.  There’s no excuse not to win the next two games, with Harang and Bronson Arroyo pitching for the good guys.

First place is in sight.  Discuss the chase here!

From CincinnatiReds.com:

On Wednesday, Castellini announced that manager Jerry Narron received a two-year contract extension through the 2008 season, with a club option for 2009. General manager Wayne Krivsky’s option for 2008 was also picked up.

Terms of the deals were not immediately known.

Congratulations to Wayne Krivsky and Jerry Narron.

JD has the scoop. This is hilarious.

Rookie

Billings 6, Missoula 1

20 year-old Chris Valaika went 2 for 4 with a 3B, R, and an RBI.  For the season, the 3rd round pick of the 2006 Draft is now hitting .321/.394/.536.

21 year-old Misael DeJesus bounced back nicely from a rough game his first start going 5 innings giving up 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB while striking out 3.  After two games he has a 5.40 ERA with 10 K and 3 BB in 8 IP.

GCL Twins 3, GCL Reds 2

21 year-old Luis Montano pitched 5 innings gave up 2 H, 0 ER, and 2 BB while striking out 4.  For the season he has a 2.25 ERA with 7 K, 3 BB and 6 H in 8 IP.

LOW A

Dayton 8, Southwest Michigan 5

23 year-old B.J. Szymanski went 1 for 2 with a 2B, 2 R, and 2 BB.  B.J., the 2nd round pick of the 2004 Draft, is now hitting .234/.316/.448. 

23 year-old Carlos Fisher pitched 5.1 innings giving up 3 H, 0 ER, and 2 BB while striking out 4.  For the season, the 11th round pick of the 2005 Draft, now has a 3.22 ERA with 60 K, 22 BB, 75 H in 81 IP.

HIGH A

Lakeland 6, Sarasota 2

23 year-old Drew Anderson, who recently moved from 2B to LF, went 2 for 4 with a 3B and R.  The 13th round pick of the 2004 Draft, is now hitting .285/.342/.427. 

AA

Chattanooga 7, Huntsville 1

Some 20 year-old named Homer Bailey went 6 innings giving up 0 H, 0 ER, and 2 BB while striking out 6.  In his two games at Chattanooga, the 1st round pick of the 2004 Draft has a perfect 0.00 ERA with 13 K, 2 BB, 5 H, in 12 IP.  I think Dan might be working the fryer today, so you might have to go behind the counter at McDonalds to thank him.

AAA

Louisville 3, Richmond 0

25 year-old Chris Denorfia continues to mash the ball at Louisville, going 2 for 4 with a 2B and a R.  For the season the 19th round pick in the 2002 draft is hitting .349/.408/.448.

Nice profile of Reds prospect Joey Votto over at Reds.com:

Move ahead one more year, and Votto has returned to the prospect map with a vengeance. The left-handed 22-year old is back to his old form, terrorizing Southern League pitching with Double-A Chattanooga. Votto ranks in the league’s top three in each of the Triple Crown categories. While the reemergence may have surprised many scouts, Votto saw it coming all along.

“I was actually far more confident last year after the season than I was after the 2004 season,” said Votto. “Despite the numbers, I felt great and I was moving in the right direction.”

The Canada native will get a chance to showcase his talents, playing for the World Team at the 2006 XM Satellite-Radio All-Star Futures Game at PNC Park on July 9. Votto’s inclusion marks an important milestone in his climb up the prospect ranks.

“Of all the things I wanted to do this year, I really wanted to be a part of the Futures Game,” Votto said. “It was on my list of the three or four things I wanted to accomplish this season.”

Taking a more balanced approach and shortening his swing have been keys for Votto, who struggled against left-handed pitching last season.

I’m not going to lie; after last season, I was afraid that Votto would never be an everyday player in the major leagues. Frankly, that disappointed me, because I had high hopes for him.

Hopefully, Votto is ready to take a big step forward next season. If the Reds are insistent on leaving Adam Dunn in the outfield, Votto should have a place to play on the major league level eventually.

Redleg Nation would like to extend our condolences to Chris Welsh on the death of his father. In his recent interview with RN, Chris talked about how large an influence and supporter his dad had been on Chris’ career.

Redleg Nation offers our thoughts and prayers to the Welsh family at this difficult time.