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Wow, I hadn't noticed it until today, but Edinson Volquez has 22 strikeouts and 20..twenty...TWENTY walks in 20.1 IP. HO-LY MOSES. (/tHom'd)
Again we get a match up of two pitchers who faced each other just 10 days ago. You might remember Felipe Paulino, the hard-throwing right-hander who made his first big league start in over year while the Reds were in Houston and promptly shut the Reds out on 3 hits over 6 innings. The Reds did go on to win that game 4-2 on a double by pinch hitter Micah Owings, but Paulino wasn't messing around with the weak-ass Reds lineup. Dusty's finally batting Joey Votto and Jay Bruce back-to-back in the lineup to try to remedy that. Hopefully that will get something going for the Redlegs.
We'll also get our first peek at the super-hot Adam Rosales playing 3B tonight. Rosales comes to the Reds after destroying the competition in Triple-A to the tune of a .431/.479/.754 batting line. It's funny to say this, but if he hits even half that good, he'll be an upgrade over what we've been getting from Edwin Encarnacion at third base. We'll also see Jerry Hairston Jr. playing 2B tonight as Brandon Phillips is getting the day off despite hitting a double and a home run last night. It's probably not a bad idea since Phillips doesn't exactly hit right-handed pitching all that well, but the timing does seem a bit odd.
I'd sure like to see Volquez maintain some control of the strike zone tonight. All of those walks can be hazardous to his health. And we especially don't need to see the bullpen in the 6th inning, if it can be avoided. How about a no doubt good outing just once, mkay Edinson? Thanks! Go Reds!