Red Reposter - Snatching Extra Innings Victories from the Jaws of Regular Innings Victories

We're rolling out a new item in today's Reposter. It's a number, instead of our customary series of words. We're calling it the Red Reposter Indicator for now, but it needs a different name since that name is (1) dull and (2) ripped off of Planet Money. Suggest a better name in the thread if you want to.

Today's Red Reposter Indicator: .229 (The collective OBP for Jay Bruce, Drew Stubbs and Jonny Gomes entering last nights 10-run showing, in a combined 70 PAs).

Hal o' Famer Hal offers some trenchant observations from last night's 11 inning romp
He joins our own Brendannukah in extending props to Micah Owings for pitching scoreless 9th and 10th innings. He's also concerned with Stubbs' 12Ks in 30 ABs, asking "Anybody want to wager that Chris Dickerson is in center field tonight, batting leadoff?" I never take a bet with Dusty's lineup card as the arbiter, but the early struggles from Bruce and Stubbs have been painful to witness. I still take Stubbs in CF over Dickerson this early in the season, for his power, speed and defensive edge - and Dickerson has been swinging pretty free himself in the young season (5K, 0 BB in 14 PAs). At the risk of prompting another Paul Daugherty screed, I think both should be worked into the lineup against righties, given how OBP-starved this team has been.

Which brings us to:

Paul Daugherty complains about complaining, channels Andy Rooney again
Hat tip to Pops Daniels for posting this one. (All the most pointed and  relevant things that can be said are probably being said in his FanPost.) Without duplicating efforts  - and running afoul of double-meta-complaining -  Daugherty seems to be getting worked up these days, way out of proportion with the targets of his disdain. I agreed with him in large part when he took issue with lineup nitpicking in his "Morning Line": "The best any manager can do is create an atmosphere in  his clubhouse in which his players come to the park every day, wanting to play hard. Whether L. Nix starts for the 2nd time in 7 games means next to nothing."  Nix has only 10 PAs through today, the least of any Reds outfielder -- and creating a good environment for baseball is a more important function than making sure Laynce Nix never steps on the field, but this isn't the complete picture.  Lineup gripes may be a lot of noise, but picking up a couple of wins for free, when teams are buying them for several million dollars on the free agent market, seems like it should be an easy sell.

Jay Bruce had his second-inning "HR" called back last night
It was probably the right call, but Jay's sure having a wacky season so far.  His line drives have been refusing to find open ground and now the cameras have turned against him. I hope he doesn't turn goth and they find him yelling "What is reality?" in front of his shattered reflection in the clubhouse. Or worse, that he thinks he's trapped in some kind of cruel, baseball-based Truman Show. Someone should re-calibrate his star chart or something. I'm still hoping to welcome the dawn of the Age of Jayquarius.

Chapman Friday is just around the corner
Only Built 4 Cuban Linx (is this what we're calling him? help me out) has his Louisville Slugger Field debut this Friday at 7:05. L-ville is really quite close. In fact, I think it's about 2 and a half hours from any point in the United States.

You did already see this video of Aroldis Chapman pitching I hope?
A dugout interview, with cutaways to his AAA debut performance. Chapman looks pretty comfortable on the hill and says he's "eager to be called up by the Reds." I don't know about you, but I was all: whoa there, let's not get ahead of ourselves! You get in line behind Justin Lehr and work your way up the corporate ladder. Seniority still counts for something in this world. If Spring was any indication, the Reds are eager to have him up north, not the least because of the attendance boost. I hope they bring him up when he's ready, not a moment sooner or later.

Mets fans still think they're getting Aaron Harang, Mike Leake and Bronson Arroyo for Gary Matthews, Jr. and Some CitiGroup toxic assets
From a John Fay twitter post and a half-remembered dream, apparently Harang is being shopped. Ludicrous, wishful trade rumors have been circulating around the Mets for a while. Losing breeds delusion, and I'm sure we've all got a healthy dose of it still in our systems. Fay did speculate about Harang leaving town as Chapman ascends to the rotation. While I think it's close to even money Harang is gone before the deadline, it's entirely too early to speculate. There are a lot of open questions with the rotation, not the least of which is whether Mike Leake can stick.

Are you doing enough to worry that Orlando Cabrera's OBP is lower than his AVG?
The baseball reference posts on statistical oddities are a good nerd diversion, but I derive no pleasure from knowing the Reds' #2 hitter sports a .194 OBP.

Some former Reds and Blasts from the Past are playing in the indie Atlantic League this summer
Ryan Freel is noted here. Farney & His Host find themselves on the Somerset Patriots after being passed around to seemingly every baseball team, American Legion and Kiwanis Club in the country last season. Walt wins another trade for selling high and netting Ramon "Clutch Man Moaning" Hernandez. Feel has been one of the more colorful characters in recent Reds history and we wish him the best.

30 years of Fantasy Baseball stars revisitied
ESPN reminds us of what we shouldn't have cared about then and certainly don't now. Thinking about guys like Jose Offerman dislodges some sense memories from my younger days of baseball card scrounging.

Here's a Bleacher Report post that floats the phrase 'Cardiac Reds'
They've certainly earned the title, though may I suggest, for the sake of alliteration, "Respiratory Reds" or "Renal Reds?" No?