In case you missed it ...

CBS' Scott Miller wrote a piece about what a wonderful fit Adam Dunn is in Arizona.

It IS only 14 games. But so far he's walking more than he strikes out (which he never came close to doing as a Red) and his OBP is .484 (his best as a Red was .400 in 2002).

One other sort of interesting stat: He's already been walked intentionally three times in Arizona. In 114 games with the Reds before the trade, he only had six intentional walks.

Like I said, small sample size. Who knows if it means anything. I'd guess he'll show his ass there eventually.

Report: Red Sox sign Ross

FoxSports.Com is reporting that the Red Sox signed David Ross to a minor-league deal.

From the report:

Ross, 31, drew interest from the Red Sox and Phillies after getting released by the Reds. He will report to Class AAA and eventually become the Sox's third catcher behind Jason Varitek and Kevin Cash.

The Sox would need to promote Ross by Aug. 31 to make him eligible for their post-season roster. Ross also could be added for the playoffs if Varitek or Cash were injured.

Former Redz in the newz

Former Reds pitcher and current Cardinal Kyle Lohse got smacked with a five-game suspension after throwing at Johnny Cuteo last week. The suspension is being appealed, of course.

Also, Junior hit #609 today to tie Sammy Sosa for fifth on the all-time home run list. The crack staff here at OMGreds.com can't wait until Junior passes the former Chicago Chub. It will be a glorious day.

The rebuild

Got this in an email from the Reds today: An open letter to fans of the Cincinnati Reds from Bob and Walt...

Dear Fans,

Thank you for your loyalty and support of the Cincinnati Reds. You are extremely vital to the success of the Reds, and it is important we share with you the thinking behind our recent personnel decisions.

Since taking ownership of this franchise, we have aggressively tried to improve our Major League roster for the purpose of restoring championship baseball to Cincinnati. We have sought and signed proven players. We have extended the contracts of select current players. We added Dusty Baker, a proven winning manager. And, we have capitalized on our burgeoning younger players like Joey Votto, Jay Bruce and Johnny Cueto.

We had high expectations for the 2008 season. Unfortunately the team has not played up to our expectations and we have sustained injuries to key players within our starting lineup and rotation.

We opted to trade Ken Griffey Jr. and Adam Dunn at this time because we believe it provided the best outcome for the long-term success of the organization. By executing these inevitable changes now, we secured more players as part of our focus towards building a deeper, stronger inventory of young talent.

We are pleased that the trades allow Griffey and Dunn the opportunity to play for teams in tight division races. Both Ken and Adam made significant contributions to the Reds and we are extremely proud and grateful they wore the Reds uniform.

While the run production generated by these two veterans will not be quickly replaced, we chose to endure the short-term ramifications for the sake of building a strong, competitive team for 2009 and many seasons to come.

The vast majority of our 50 draft picks were signed, culminating last week with first-rounder Yonder Alonso and a pair of talented pitchers. Our expanded scouting operations also signed Juan Duran from the Dominican Republic and Yorman Rodriguez from Venezuela, who are arguably the best amateur free agent position players from their respective countries.

As we near September, we will continue to provide valuable playing time to our young players and new acquisitions who we feel can become significant contributors at the Major League level. We ask your continued trust and patience as we build the roster that will get us back on top. We appreciate your support and look forward to seeing you at the ballpark.

Sincerely,

Bob Castellini
President & CEO

Walt Jocketty
President of Baseball Operations & GM

Big blow to playoff hopes

(AP) - Cincinnati Reds right-hander Matt Belisle is done for the season after having surgery on his right knee.

Belisle had a torn ligament repaired on Tuesday, his second major injury of the season. Belisle competed for the final spot in the rotation during spring training, but developed a sore forearm that sidelined him until mid-April.

Belisle made six starts for the Reds and went 1-4 with a 7.28 earned run average. The Reds sent him to Triple-A Louisville in May to turn him back into a reliever, a role he had earlier in his career. He never made it back to the big leagues.

Scary

Mr. Cueto, your autograph is downright scary. That's like some serial killer shit right there. OMG still loves ya though.

Reds Rally Game: Near EPIC WIN!!1!

Finally, I won the damn Reds Rally game today. Everyone else in the ballpark did too. It must have been all that faith from Faith Day going around. So, no big prize for me, though. The 25 items they give away for the game were long gone by time BP hit the three-run jack to help me complete a row. So, I'm prizeless, but I feel good about winning. I really do.

It was a good day at the ballpark. Not only did I win the Rally Game, I also got my photo with Rosie and the Reds routed the Pouljos Nine. I had not been to a game in three weeks, and a lot has happened since then. Most notably: lots of losing. Seeing a big win was a treat. Oh - I also saw that big EE is getting some dental work. Lookin' good!

In the past, we've mentioned the baseball card deal they have at GABP - buy four packs of baseball cards and get two free Reds tickets. If you buy four now, there are actually three games you can choose from: September 2-4. That's a Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Thursday is a Business Man's special, of course. So, just a heads up on that deal. When I did the deal a few weeks ago we got decent seats in the View Level.

Reds sign Alonso

For once, some good news... The Reds ended up singing first round pick Yonder Alonso right before the deadline.


First baseman Yonder Alonso from Miami, the seventh overall pick in the amateur draft, agreed to a $4.55 million, five-year contract with the Cincinnati Reds shortly before baseball's midnight deadline on Friday.


Click here or here for more.

I'm not a fairweather Reds fan

But they've been testing me lately. I know I'm not alone.

The past two weeks have been miserable. Junior gone. Dunn gone. A ton of losses. 3 players suspended for using steroids. Former manager Dave Miley's son dies in a car crash. It's been a rough few weeks for the Reds and their fans. Hell, even now the folks in Sarasota are talking about putting up big bucks for the Reds Sox to move their spring training home there after snubbing the Reds for years. Amazing.

But, I'm sticking with them. I always have, I always will. I'll probably watch the Olympics instead of the Reds this week, but I'll be back. I'll probably still get to a few games before the end of the season too. Redsfest will be here before we know it and hope will once again abound. Lets hope these young guys take control of the team and get things going. Next year could be a lot of fun. Either way, I'll still be there, still a Reds fan.

Dunn to the Dbacks

According to ESPN, KTAR in Phoenix is reporting that Dunn has been traded to the Diamondbacks for three prospects, one of which is minor league pitcher Dallas Buck.

From ESPN:

In exchange for Dunn, Cincinnati will receive minor league pitcher Dallas Burk and two other players to be named later.

Buck was drafted by Arizona in the third round of the 2005 draft. Once a top-notch prospect, Buck's draft status fell after had an elbow injury revealed on the eve of the '05 draft that bumped him out of a likely first-round slot. He had Tommy John surgery last summer and had begun pitching in Single-A this summer.

Mr. Redlegs has some competition...

The new Rosie Red mascot was revealed to the Reds faithful during last night's thrashing by Oswalt and the Houston Astros. Hot! I feel...confused. Is that wrong? Looks like the fans in the stands that night had a similar reaction (check the dude in the yellow shirt...)

Out of uniform

How did Griffey in a White Sox uniform not make this list?

Top 25 Athletes In Bewildering Uniforms

In the comments of this story: Pete Rose in an Expos uniform. Couldn't agree more.