Red Reposter/Retweeter - Lou Gehrig: Still clutch

The Fay seems to be jumping out of socks with excitement over how well Brandon Phillips has done out of the lead-off spot
"There’s a fairly sure-fire solution to the Reds’ seemingly endless quest for a leadoff hitter. It would cost only $12 million for 2012, and the guy is a pretty good defender to boot. All the club has to do is exercise its option on Brandon Phillips and write his name at the top of the lineup card in permanent ink."

He cites BeeP's .474 OBP since moving to the lead-off spot last week as proof that the team's long and mostly fruitless search for a table setter is over. I wouldn't go that far just yet. Sure, he's on fire right now, but that doesn't change the fact that his career OBP is just .319. To his credit, Phillips says he's feels more like himself when hitting lead-off, and is not particularly fond of hitting clean-up. I don't mind him leading off, but I'm not willing to go so far as to say he's the perfect solution.

So yeah, it's folly to make any decisions based on 35 ABs. But it's still probably a good idea to exercise his option for next year at $12 mil. He's still a solidly above average player and there is little reason to think he won't be worth it for next year. The bigger question in my mind is whether or not to try to sign him beyond next year. The Reds have Henry Rodriguez hitting well in AA right now, and he looks like he might be major-league ready in 2013. That's good insurance, just in case a deal with Phillips doesn't happen.

Doug Gray at RedsMinorLeagues has some video from his trip to Carolina to see the Mudcats
This is a compilation of ABs from the aforementioned Hank-Rod. Take a look at the video and check out his swing. What do you think? Is this guy the future at 2B for the Reds?

Jerry Dowling and Mike Shannon
two authors known for their work on Reds-related topics, will be signing autographs at the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum before the games this weekend. Dowling was a cartoonist for the Enquirer, and will be signing collections of his work on Pete Rose and the Big Red Machine. Shannon and illustrator Scott Hannig wrote a graphic novel about Reds' great Fred Hutchinson.

Scientists have discovered the cause of Lou Gehrig's Disease
Apparently there is a particular protein that is common among all who suffer from the disease. This is a big deal, because knowing what causes it is half the battle to finding a cure. This may be only tangentially related to baseball, but it's still definitely something to keep an eye on moving forward.

TWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET:

@DSzymborski:
I appreciate Wily Mo Pena's valiant effort to end the season with some crazy 150/150/600 line.
As frustrating as it was having Wily Mo Pena on this team (did you know that was like six years ago?  Sheesh), he was and still is an endlessly fascinating baseball player.  I'd openly love it if Juan Francisco turns into a productive major leaguer for the Reds, but I'd secretly love it more if he put up a Pena-esque line like the one above.

@johnfayman:
We're underway. I say the crowd is between 100 and 200. #reds
Is anyone else worried that a shiny new ballpark in Miami is really to going to fix the Marlins' attendance problems?

@Manny_Navarro:
Yonder Alonso said entire #Reds bench flashed The U to him when he got back to the bench after his HR Tuesday #UM
If only O-Cab were on this team, then the dugout wouldn't be lifeless and disengaged.  /shrugs

@Sullivan_Smith:
People who refer to your town by its area code, please stop that. It's dumb.
@the614 tweets that you can #suckit.

@joe_sheehan:
Will the Mets really play their Sat. game if MTA shuts down? As is, they're an underdog to finish it (4 pm). FOX should cut it loose.
Find yourself a safe place, east coasters.  A hard rain's a-gonna fall.

@nycredsfan:
@themusketeer @jch24 That is awesome. @CharlieScrabbles is the best.
Ahhh, gee fellas.  I think you're the best, too!