letabrotherspeak

Wait til the Bengals get rolling in July and football starts around the corner...

Impressive? They have lost 16 times more than they have won? Doesn't matter the margin, they are 16 under in a BAD division where only one team is above .500? If you are 16 under in that division you must really be bad. That is a teeball mentality. After the game Coach Jerry addressed the Reds in the dugout...guys we played them close...we lost again and we are 16 under .500 but we played them close. Be ready to go tomorrow, Birdie Griffey you have snacks after tomorrow's game...on three...1-2-3...Go Reds....and with that Junior and Dunn sprint to the Coca-Cola stand and jockey for position to see who will be the first person to order a Coke, mixed with Sprite and Cream Soda..aka the Suicide. Impressive. But all is well with management.

Here's the kicker...management tells us that things are going to be OK...long season, a lot of confidence in the players, so forth and so on. Krivsky saying, " I know we are a better ballclub than we are showing." Really? Don't take a leak down my back and tell me it is raining. They are blind. Castelenni said if the fans are unhappy then management is unhappy...the fans are not happy but management seems in denial. I don't know about blowing it up, but what they have is not working...16 under on June 6th, everyone sees it but management. Apathy.....

Arroyo's starts since SD start. 5/21--- 2 innings, 6 hits, 6 runs, 3 bb, 2 k, 1 home run, 62 pitches (32 strikes, 30 balls) 5/26--- 4 innings, 7 hits, 6 runs, 4 bb, 0 k, 1 home run, 94 pitches (60 strikes, 34 balls) 5/31--- 5 innings, 11 hits, 8 runs, 0 bb, 2 k, 1 home run, 83 pitches (59 strikes, 24 balls) Tonight--- 6.2 innings, 9 hits, 6 runs, 1 bb, 5 k, 2 home runs, 119 pitches (77 strikes, 42 balls), 5.70 DIPS ERA The ugly totals--- 17.2 innings, 33 hits, 26 runs, 8 bb, 9 k, 5 home runs, ERA of 13.25

He was hanging them in the 5th and then in the 7th...get'm out. Since his long start versus San Diego, his ERA is over 16. McBeth goes 3 up and 3 down...ridiculous.

I think though you need to be somewhat concerned that Narron has burned Arroyo up. 3 straight starts in May, with pitch counts of 117, 120 and 129. Since those three, he has been not so good.

Where does the blame lay for that predicament?

Spin? 4 straight subpar starts....labored through middle innings..lost bite on the deuce...119 pitches... Guess you have to leave him out there because the pen sucks, but Arroyo is really laboring...pretty easy to see, if you ask me. He should have been on a very short leash...heading out into the 7th...when Ludwick goes deep that should be a sign.

Power hitting Ryan Ludwick goes large...tie game. NEWMAN! Another hit...phone ringing in dugout?

Fall back Big Dawg... Will we see McBeth tonight? 1-2-3 inning would be nice....his spot is coming up in the bottom, isn't it?

Arroyo wiggles off the hook. He is over 100 pitches...does he come out for the 7th?

Good job by Castro...got into a hitters count. Arroyo has long inning on mound...they come in, and Hamilton goes hacking on first pitch...then Ross on first pitch. 2 pitches 2 outs. Some of these guys approach to hitting is mind-boggling.

http://cincinnati.reds.mlb.com/cin/fan_forum/owner_letter.jsp Courtesy of Lance McAlister, here is Castelleni's letter to fans after taking over. 500+ days on the job...are the Reds fans happy?

Freel is overrated...bats leadoff but has a terrible OBP, plus he is a threat to get thrown out stealing or picked off.

So could they target a booster(s)?

No it would not be easy to prove, but it would force a long court battle. I seriously doubt either party wants that, but the Magic have been wronged and you cant fault them for wanting someone's hide.

Gotcha... You may think it is stupid, but if it were me, in that situation you have to make Wellmeyer throw you a strike, and the chances were in your favor he wasn't at the rate he was going..and I still would have put the take on. Id take my chances on taking ball four in that situation than have Harang already made up his mind he was going to swing. When it rains it pours...we can talk about luck and lack there of it, and finding ways to lose close games...but this team is 15 games below .500 in the first week of June and it is flat out pathetic. They don't have enough pitching, their bullpen is ugly, they bring up guys to pitch in the pen and they sit. They hit long balls, but they don't get on base enough. When on base they get thrown out stealing or getting picked off or they are left stranded. This is a poorly constructed team. But we can hope they get hot and somehow get within shouting distance of .500 at the All-Star Break, because this is a BAD division. I just hope to goodness they hold Bailey to a strict pitch count and take him out when he gets it, no matter how good he is doing. If not, then it certainly qualifies as a firable offense.

...and it almost hit him in the neck. He had a far better chance at that point of getting a walk than putting a ball in play. You think the Reds have a strong philosphical approach to hitting this year?

Not taking any stand...throwing it out there. So if Harang would have taken strike three looking, people would have been talking about it? Probably, but when you look at the fact that the pitcher was wild, he had walked the bases loaded and was wild with Castro, and had gone full with the pitcher...you can buy that. So how do people view his swing on a pitch that almost hit him in the neck? Exactly...he should have been taking all the way. Did this maneuver cost them the game? No, but it is a microcosm of many of their approaches at the plate, and the free swingers they have.

With Harang batting and the pitcher throwing it all over the park. Absolutely I give him the take. This is one place you throw the book away. Heard this stat....going into tonight when the Reds were tied in the 7th inning, their record was 1-9...now it is 1-10.

Do the Reds have a take sign in their repotoire? How they ever allowed Harang to swing period when the guy was walking everyone is beyond me.

There was a comment made that people were "tugging" at Billy once he left for Orlando. From what I understand, maybe Hearsay can shed some light, intentional interference with business relations and contractual relations are both actionable torts which can include compensatory and punitive damages. Obviously, both sides have gathered their legal teams...UF isn't chirping as much as they were before. Foley, Meachum and other boosters could be pulled into this. Possibly the boosters could be the one to foot the bill. Not saying this is taking place but obviously the Magic are not going to lay down and I wouldn't if I were them...because they are the ones with the most to lose.

For some reason I am remembering Synchronicity by the Police...but that may have been later. It may have been a Journey one. I can recall buying 45's with the little yellow disk adapter you needed. Bought it at Meijer in Latonia before they closed for a long time and reemerged in Florence. I remembering having an orange 45, of the song...American Band.

Three Dog Night is coming for a post game concert after the Florence Freedom game...I think it is this weekend...not sure of the exact date.

What's interesting as both sides seem to have moved on with their counsel. Could Jeremy Foley be guilty of tampering in a legal sense? Donovan signed his deal on Friday...correct? Over the weekend he and Foley have a little pillow talk about coming back. Donovan is property of the Magic...is Foley guilty of tampering, because all we are getting now out of the Florida camp is no comment. Has too much been said already? It may have something to do with what is in that fine print at the back of the contract.