What an exciting day today, huh?  I know, Wladimir Balentien isn't exactly the savior that the Reds need, but hey at least they made a deal.  We know it's possible now, right?  That should keep us on our toes for the next couple of days.

Twenty-one-year old Mat Latos was the Padres 11th round draft pick in 2006 and has made 2 starts in the big leagues since being called up directly from Double-A after putting up some impressive numbers in the minors.  In his minor league career, he struck out 10.5 batters per 9 IP while walking just 2.3 per 9, which led to an ERA of 2.49 and a WHIP of just 1.06.  Some impressive numbers, but he's still young.  Not that it matters much to this Reds team.

Latos and the Padres have to be favored to get the win today simply because they are facing Aaron Harang.  Oh sure, Harang may pitch a complete game and only give up 2 runs, but we all know that doesn't give him any real shot at getting the victory, does it?  Not that Harang has done much to keep himself in the game of late anyway, posting a 5.53 ERA over his last 7 starts, though he does have an awesome 40/10 K/BB ratio.  Frankly, at this point, until I see some evidence stating otherwise, I'm going to just go ahead and blame his teammates for all of his problems.  Harang doesn't deserve it.

Something new for tonight!

After tonight's game, I'm going to try something brand new: a post-game talk show!  That's right, my appearance on Mo Egger's show has gone to my head and thanks to the site TalkShoe, I'm hoping that I can pull off something resembling a post-game show immediately following the end of the game.  Currently, because I can't figure out how to do it otherwise, it is scheduled for 10pm, but in reality it will start shortly after the end of the game.  I'll post a notice on the site when it starts.  You will be able to call in to a toll free number and everything! Though that doesn't mean I will put you on the "air," but I'll try.  You can check out the site through the button below for all of the details on what you need to do to join the show.  It's probably going to be awkward and uncomfortable, so in other words, like just about every day on this site.

Oh yeah, I can't forget this: