Game Notes:

Reds, Diamondbacks Complete Trade
Today the Reds acquired from the Diamondbacks RHP Micah Owings (#56) to complete the 8/11 trade that sent OF
Adam Dunn and cash to Ari for RHP Dallas Buck and 2 players to be named later...on 8/14 the Reds received C/IF/
OF Wilkin Castillo...Owings, 25, this season went 6-9, 5.93 in 18 starts and 4 relief apps for the D'Backs...to make
room on the 40-man roster, 2B Brandon Phillips (broken right index finger) went on the 60-day disabled list.

http://cincinnati.reds.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080825&content_id=3365312&vkey=news_cin&fext=.jsp&c_id=cin:

Reds right-hander Johnny Cueto will miss his next start, scheduled for Saturday against San Francisco, after being examined by team physician Dr. Timothy Kremchek on Monday.

The examination revealed a posterior strain of his right elbow, possibly due to hyperextension of that elbow.

Cueto, who left Sunday's start at Colorado after three innings, will be re-examined Friday.

Right-hander Homer Bailey was also examined Monday in Cincinnati by Kremchek. Tests revealed a mild sprain of the medial collateral ligament of his right knee.

Bailey will miss his next start for Triple-A Louisville, scheduled for Thursday, and will be evaluated again by Kremchek at the end of the week.

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The two options for the spot start are Daryl Thompson, and Ramon Ramirez. Both will pitch tonight. Keep an eye on the Louisville(Ramirez starting) and Sarasota(Thompson starting) box scores tonight. Thompson has a 5.91 era in his last two starts in Sarasota, and  from From July 6-Aug.15, Ramon had a 1.74 era with 7 of his  8 starts quality. Ramon gave up 4 runs in 6.1 innings his last start in Louisville. I'm hoping the Reds will be sensible and promote Ramirez to ML and Thompson to AAA, and if Cueto misses another turn, see is Thompson is ready then. Don't rush him.

From the bats game notes:

• MALONEY TO BE ACTIVATED FRIDAY: LHP Matt Maloney is scheduled to be activated and start Friday, August 8 for
the Bats. Maloney has been on the disabled list since July 18 with a right oblique strain. The southpaw made a rehab start with
the GCL Reds (Rookie) on July 24 and earned the win (5.2ip, 1h, 9k).'

• HOW WAS KOREA?: RHP Justin Lehr signed a contract with the Reds today and will be assigned to Louisville when he
gains medical clearance. Lehr began the season with the Bats and in eight starts, went 4-2 with a 2.41 ERA; he made his last
start for Louisville May 14 (vs. SWB) before he was released from his contract to sign with a Korean team May 23 (Doosan
Bears). Lehr was named the IL Pitcher of the Week to start the season (4/3-4/13); he was the first of two Bats pitchers to leave
for Korea (RHP Tom Shearn was transferred to Single-A Billings May 26 and signed with the Samsung Lions in late May: 0-5,
8.34 ERA).

Ok, so I have seen people say that Chris Dickerson should be promoted to replace Corey Patterson, so, as a Louisville Bats fan, I thought I would share my thoughts and analysis of Dickerson.

Defense: Dickerson is defensively ready for the majors. Last night he ended the game with an amazing catch, and two nights before that, he finished the 1st inning with two consecutive amazing catches.

Offense: If batting average was all that counted, Dickerson would be ready. After a bad start to the year, Dickerson has hit .310 since the start of June. However, with the current outfield, the batting average is not all that counts. Dickerson would be primarily used as a defensive replacement and pinch hitter. Dickerson's downfall is the strike out, which is exactly what you <em>don't</em> want in a pinch hitter. Let's compare Dickerson's batting average and strikeout average:

April: .241 BAVG, .313 SOAVG, 83 AB
May: .234 BAVG, .250 SOAVG, 64 AB
June: .301 BAVG, .273 SOAVG, 73 AB
July: .319 BAVG, .319 SOAVG,  69 AB so far

By looking at that, it seems that while he has been working on his hitting, he has been striking out more and more since May. But how much more? Lets see what percent of his outs are strikeouts:

April: .412
May: .326
June: .392
July: .468

Looking at these numbers makes me think that his batting average increase is caused not by improving his swing, and his eye for the ball, but by swinging a lot more. Of course, he has been walking a lot more, which might contradict this, but I think that he needs to develop a better eye for the ball while at the plate, before he can succeed at the MLB level.

As a final comment, compare Dickerson's and Patterson's SO/OUT avg for this year:

Dickerson: .290, 289 AB

Patterson: .154, 200 AB

The point: Patterson may not be able to hit the ball, but would Dickerson do any better against Major League pitching? At least Patterson does not strike out as much, which means more runners are advanced.

Rob "Mack-A-Whack" Mackowiak has been signed by the Reds, and will play in AAA Lousiville. From thebaseballcube.com :

Never the official starter at any position during his baseball career, Rob "Mack-A-Whack" Mackowiak has always been an aberration of the typical idea of a bench player, getting over 450 AB's in 2004 and 2005 as a "Super-Backup." Having logged time at each outfield position, as well as 1st, 2nd, and 3rd base*, Mackowiak's versatility made him a fan favorite in Pittsburgh.

Drafted in the 53rd round of the draft in 1996, Rob Mackowiak is the quintessential example of the utility man.

* He has also played SS and pitched in minor league ball.

From the Bats Game Notes:

HERR TRADED TO LOUISVILLE: IF Aaron Herr was traded by the Cleveland Indians to the Reds and assigned to
Louisville today. In 65 games with the Bisons, Herr is batting .245 with nine home runs and 32 RBI. He spent all of
last season with Louisville where he was named the IL’s post-season utility player of the year; he hit .274 with 19
homers and 83 RBI in 132 games for the 2007 Bats.

FOGG TO START THURSDAY: RHP Josh Fogg is scheduled to start for the Bats on Thursday on Major League
rehab. He has been on Cincinnati’s DL since June 1 with lumbar back spasms. With Cincinnati, he is 1-2 with a

Homer Bailey's stint in the fifth spot of the Reds' rotation proved to be only a cameo appearance, and a forgettable one at best.

As expected, Bailey was optioned to Triple-A Louisville on Wednesday. Cincinnati used the opening of the roster spot to activate outfielder Norris Hopper, who had been on the disabled list with nerve irritation in right elbow since April 23.

Bailey was 0-3 with an 8.76 ERA in his three starts. His last start was on Sunday vs. the Red Sox, in which he gave up five earned runs over 2 1/3 innings in a 9-0 loss. After that outing, manager Dusty Baker would not commit to giving the 22-year-old another start.

The Reds did not announce who would take Bailey's turn when the team faces the Yankees on Saturday in New York.

"We'll do something else for Saturday," Baker said of another pending roster move.

One leading candidate for a callup could be Louisville's Daryl Thompson, who has never pitched in the Majors and is scheduled to pitch for the Bats on Friday. Thompson faced the Yankees this year during Spring Training and struck out the side in a one-inning relief appearance.

A 22-year-old right-hander, Thompson is 6-2 with a 2.22 ERA, 18 walks and 78 strikeouts in 14 starts combined for Double-A Chattanooga and Louisville. He's 3-0 with a 3.25 ERA in his four starts since the promotion to Triple-A.

Another choice could be left-hander Adam Pettyjohn, who is 7-2 but has a lofty 4.84 ERA in his 14 starts for Louisville. Though Thompson is already on the 40-man roster, Pettyjohn is not.

Injured starter Josh Fogg, who was replaced by Bailey after going on the DL, is scheduled to make his third rehab outing for Class A Sarasota on Saturday.

The Reds have had zero stability with the fifth spot this season. Bailey, Fogg and Matt Belisle have combined to go 2-9 with an 8.74 ERA.