Using a system that makes very close to no sense, the Reds were awarded the #5 pick in the compensation round after Round 1 of the June 2013 Draft (this will likely be somewhere in the mid-30s). This pick is eligible to be included in a trade during the regular season.

It's Hamilton, but closer than you'd think. From me at Baseball Nation, based on the YouTube video within.

Funny story about showing up to the all-star game without a ticket an hour after getting off a plane from the Dominican Republic. Worth your 5 minutes. Complete with a t-ball HR derby and David Freese eating a steak.

For whatever reason, the good and seemingly reasonable folks over at 1450 the Sports Buzz have again asked me to join them to talk a bit o' Reds. That's 1450 on your AM dial if you are in the Louisville area, or you can follow the link and stream it from their website. I'll be on at around 5:30.

Holy great analysis! I'm sure you guys have never seen this before.

An interesting look by an expert.

Imagine how awesome the Reds would be if they let Joey Votto pitch as well as hit? Well, as dominant as he would no doubt be, it turns out there are some very good safety reasons for not doing this.

Joey Votto will start at 1B. Chapman and Bruce also made it. Phillips and Cueto were snubbed. While the players get a cut at it before LaRussa, this doesn't seem like innocent oversight.

Obviously the big news since the last update was the return of Scott Rolen. Since returning on June 18, he's slashed .212/.257/.333. Slightly worse than his 2011 season, but an improvement on what he's done since July of last year up until this point. Man, a month or two of vintage 2010 Rolen could work some wonders for this team; I hope it's in there somewhere. Drew Stubbs returned from an oblique injury. Since his strain was only "slight," Stubbs sat out three weeks rather than the four which is shaping up to be the pattern for this injury. It's only been five games, but Stubbs' return so far has been triumphant, slashing .231/.444/.538. Yes please to a whole lot more of this at the top of the order. Chris Heisey returned to the playing field two days before Stubbs did, but only sat out four days with a groin injury. His return ended the Valdez/Negron experiment in CF. Bill Bray made his return to the Reds as well, after 65 days on the DL. This was after missing two weeks earlier in the year for the same injury, which he probably should not have been cleared to play through in the first place. I love the benefit of hindsight. Drew Cisco returned from Tommy John surgery on June 22 after missing about 13 months. He has started two games, going two innings in the first and three in the second as he stretches his arm back out with Reds Rookie League affiliate Billings Mustangs. Kanekoa Texeira returned to action in the Bats bullpen after missing two weeks with a shoulder injury. He recorded a save in his second appearance, bolstering the Reds' scarcely needed bullpen depth. Josh Judy also returned from the temporarily inactive list, sort of bolstering the Bats' much needed rotation of warm bodies for the pitching staff. Daryl Jones returned from eye surgery after 44 days on the DL. And Paul Janish picked up right where he left off before breaking his wrist. Janish has little regard for the common wisdom that this injury saps power - perhaps it applies to lesser hitters. He returned after missing a month and a half of action, which was right in line with (the long end of) his stated timetable of 4-6 weeks. I guess they don't always exaggerate, BF. Check the link on the left sidebar (or the title of this FanPost) for the state of Reds injuries current and past.