Cincinnati Reds

Aroldis Chapman needs to be playoff eligible. And before anyone starts an inner dialogue—yes, the Reds will be in the playoffs.

Secret weapon. Remember those?

Being a former secret weapon myself, as a cannon-armed quarterback for my flag football team in college, I am fully aware of their value. I remember being down late in a game. I was brought in to start a monumental comeback against the TKE fraternity's team.

I was 3-for-3 with two touchdown passes.

Just a day after the latest Diamondbacks bullpen implosion, the team was back on the field trying to avoid being swept by the red hot Cincinnati Reds.

With the Diamondbacks facing a left-handed pitcher, everyone expected changes to Arizona’s line-up.

Left-handed hitting catcher Miguel Montero was replaced by the right-handed hitting John Hester.

Since the dreadful series against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Reds have reeled off six-straight wins, sweeping both the Florida Marlins and now the Arizona Diamondbacks.

In doing this, they have become the hottest team in the major leagues.

They are currently 19 games over .500 and have their biggest lead of the season in the National League's Central Division.

The Cincinnati Reds offense has been nothing short of spectacular this season. But it could be even better with one simple tweak.
 
The line-up has been excellent—first in the N.L. with 602 runs to be exact. It’s been a major factor in the Reds' '10 success.
 

What does a team do with so many talented starting pitchers? Uber-rookie Mike Leake has already been relegated to bullpen duty.

The Reds just plain have too many talented starting pitchers. And now this?

Paul Janish trying to Wall Pipp the shortstop position?

When Orlando Cabrera (The O.C.) landed on the DL on August 3rd with a strained oblique, Janish took his spot in the lineup as the everyday shortstop.

The Cincinnati Reds are 17 games over the .500 mark for the first time since 1999 and to their credit they are making moves that make sense rather than making snap judgements that may blow up in their face.

Rookie Mike Leake has been relegated to the bullpen effective immediately.

Leake came straight to the Reds from Arizona State University without stepping foot in a minor league dugout. He has been a pleasant surprise all year to a rotation that looks nothing like it did to start the season.

Much as been chronicled about innings pitched for the young right-hander. Obviously, baseball seasons at the college level are not nearly as long as in MLB.

The true test is here. The time to find out if the Cincinnati Reds are playoff material has arrived in the form of a nine-game West Coast pow-wow.
 
Recent history suggests the Reds are screwed. Over the last five seasons, the Reds have a 16-35 (.314) record on the Left Coast.
 
In ’06 they were tied for first before embarking on a 10-game stretch in the West Coast. A 2-8 trip later, they were six games behind and the season was essentially finished.
 

On Friday, St. Louis Cardinal pitcher, Chris Carpenter was asked by an Associated Press journalist to share his thoughts on the fine he was handed by the commissioner's office for Tuesday nights, now infamous, donnybrook in Cincinnati.

Proving Brandon Phillips' comments correct for at least one Cardinal player, instead of addressing the question he took the opportunity to whine more about Reds pitcher, Johnny Cueto.

Let’s take a look at some of the biggest stories from yesterday’s games:

American League: