Pelfrey has pitched more than 5.1 innings in just one start this year and he's given up 5 runs in each of his last two starts.  The big thing that sticks out about him is that  he has 3 more walks than strikeouts so far.  Also, he's given up 12.5 hits per nine innings this year.  Hopefully the Reds have the patience to wait for their pitch, because it looks like Pelfrey will give it to them.

Not that Belisle is much better, but at least he's avoided giving up a bunch of walks this year.  Unfortunately, he's been even more hittable than Pelfrey, surrendering over 15 hits per nine innings this season.  Suffice to say, this could turn into a barn burner very easily tonight.

And don't forget, andromache is on Jeopardy tonight!  Check local listings.

Question: Of the guys who were recently promoted, who excites you the most? Chris Valaika, Todd Frazier, Devin Mesoraco or even Logan Parker, who OPSed .949 in his rookie year? A month ago I would have said Frazier without thinking twice, but I've developed a grapefruit-sized manlove tumor for Valaika over the past month. He did not disappoint me last night...

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So I just came across this and it was presumably brought on by this blog post about Ken Griffey Jr. potentially leaving and all I could think was how utterly predictable it all was.

I'm not from Cincinnati, not even from a suburb. You could maybe call Hillsboro, Ohio an exurb, but I think even that would be stretching it, as it's about the same distance from Hillsboro to Columbus (and Dayton for that matter) as it is to Cincinnati. That being said, I always identified with Cincinnati growing up, I consumed the Cincinnati media, and pulled for the Cincinnati teams, but I never really understood the racial issues and general idiocy of so many people who live there.

I don't think its at all a stretch to say that it really is worse in Cincinnati than it is in most other cities. Cincinnati is still the most recent city in America to have race riots. The Ken Griffey Jr. saga has always had racist undertones. No matter what you might think about Chad Johnson (and I've certainly given up on him, but not until I felt it was justified which was this offseason) there were definitely racist things going on there as well when it came to fan response.

For some reason, Cincinnati has a particularly toxic climate when it comes to sports, and this is a big part of it. And if you disagree I challenge you to listen to Cincinnati talk radio or read the Cincinnati.com or MLB.com boards or look at the man love for every white guy who plays hard in this city and tell me you don't see what I'm talking about.

**Obvious disclaimer, most Cincinnatians aren't racist, etc. etc. etc. and so on, but this is a real issue there and it definitely pertains to quite a bit of Cincinnati sports discussion. Also I realize this is probably outside of the scope of Red Reporter's usual fare, but that Daugherty blog post really got to me for some reason. So here we are.

 Have you done your homework?  It's once again time for another periodic meeting of the Reporter Book Club.  This week, we'll discuss "Winter" (pp 27-51) and "Spring" (pp 55-103) from Joe Posnanski's The Soul of Baseball.

There's a lot of good stuff here.  Great stories and even better tall tales, Maddux vs Clemens , a plaintive afternoon with the greatest living ballplayer,  a shady Negro League busdriver, Sweet Swingin' Billy from Whistler, a big bag of Cracker Jack and seven dollar beers. There's even a Jerry Hairston, Jr. sighting!

Yowza!

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Question of the day: So what kind of expectations do you guys have for Devin Mesoraco? We selected him first in last year's draft, as a catcher out of Punxsutawney High School in Pennsylvania. He vaulted into the first round, and most people think he was drafted too high (out of our need for organizational depth at catcher.) He's said to be incredibly athletic, though he struggled in the Gulf Coast League last season with two bum thumbs. I expect a modest season for Devin in Dayton this year, OPSing about .750 with 8 or 9 homers in 300 ABs. He might not really flourish until next season.

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Wednesday afternoon Joey Votto became only the fifth player since 1956 to hit three home runs in one of his first 60 MLB games.  (Check the list.  Once BR.com adds Votto to the list, he'll be the only player since '56 to also draw a walk and steal a base in the same game as his three jacks.)

[Note: Had Adam Dunn been able to knock Votto in after he stole second base in the third inning, Votto would have tied Fred Lynn's much-heralded "total bases in a single game by a rookie" record.]

So, it's pretty clear that Joey Votto is going to be the greatest hitter since, well...ever.

Your thoughts?

Um, WTF Dusty?

Can't really see the reasoning behind that in a game the Reds were winning 9-0. And it's not like the bullpen needs resting the day before an off day.

Joey Votto to lead off the bottom of the eighth. He's got 3 homers so far.

The one where we hit 6 home runs and Volquez had 8 strikeouts going into the bottom of the sixth.