The Reds have called up Kristopher Negron from AAA Louisville. To make room, they have optioned Mike Costanzo. The Reds point out that when Negron gets on the field, he will be the third Reds player this season to make his Major League debut, preceded by RHP J.J. Hoover and Costanzo himself.

Constanzo has not exactly torn it up with the Reds. He has hit just .056 in 18 ABs. Negron, on the other hand, has been hitting .212 for the Bats–better, but also not setting the world on fire. John Fay suggests that swapping Costanzo for Negron might be less about performance and more about flexibility: Costanzo is an infielder, but Negron is an IF/OF.

In related news, starting center fielder Drew Stubbs hurt himself when fouling off a ball in the seventh inning last night. It was bad enough that he left the game after the 8th and wasn’t immediately sure whether it would take him out of commission for any amount of time.

Here’s Jay Bruce, in the casual if futile attempt to catch the home run that Alex Presley of the Pittsburgh Pirates hit over the wall last night. This seems like a pretty unfortunate situation, but maybe if we look at it from a different perspective…

Ah yes! Bruce couldn’t catch the ball, but he did get some very heart-healthy wall climbing in for the day.

The Cincinnati Reds blog on Cincinnati.com is reporting that injured Reds are making progress in their recovery.

Right-handed pitcher Nick Masset is throwing 120 feet as part of his shoulder recovery and is reporting a pain-free experience. He’s been out with inflammation in the right shoulder. He’s still got some work to do before he’s game ready, though.

Left-handed pitcher Bill Bray is pitching in extended spring training and also reporting a pain-free experience. He’s been out with a strained left groin and an irritated disc in his back. Sounds like he’s closer to returning than Masset is, which could be interesting. With a left-handed reliever available out of the bullpen, the team’s view on Aroldis Chapman’s role could change.

The Reds third base All-Star candidate, Scott Rolen has started taking swings and grounders. He’s been out with a strained left shoulder. Rolen is a helluva guy, but I believe the Reds actually have a losing record when he starts. The value he adds doesn’t require him to be on the field, in my opinion. I wonder what’ll happen when he comes back. He’s likely to return later this month.

The Reds lost the first game of the three-game series to the Pirates last night, 8-4.

Homer Bailey started for the Reds, so it looked like it was going to be all him. After all, before last night, Bailey had never suffered a loss at the hands of the Pirates in 9 starts and he was rocking a 1.79 ERA. That’s why they play the game, though. Last night he worked just 3.0 innings, allowing 6 runs (earned) on 8 hits and two walks.

Alfredo “Saucy” Simon came on for an inning of scoreless relief, and in retrospect, maybe he should have stayed in longer. Baker hadn’t arranged for a double-switch though, so pitch him for him in the bottom of the inning and sent out J.J. “Too Easy” Hoover.

Hoover made things worse, allowing 2 runs (earned) on 2 hits in this 2.0 innings of work. Might not surprise you that those two hits were solo shots to McGehee and Presley.

Jose Arredondo came in for the next two innings of mop-up duty and performed admirably, allowing no runs on just 1 hit and striking out two. Sean Marshall came in to close it out in a cruel parody of his previous role, but he didn’t allow any runs either.

It probably goes without saying that Joey Votto tore it up for the offense. He was 2-for-4 with a walk last night and half of the team’s RBI. Unfortunately, his “protection”–Brandon Phillips–had a down game, going 0-for-5 with 4 strikeouts.

Zack Cozart went 3-for-5. Drew Stubbs, Jay Bruce, and Devin Mesoraco each walked twice. I won’t get in to the 23 left on base.

The Reds try again tonight at 7:10 p.m. in Great American Ball Park. Johnny Cueto (5-3, 2.54 ERA) takes on Brad Lincoln (3-0, 1.04 ERA).

The second day of the draft has less pomp and circumstance than the first, and a lot more picks as well. Still, you must memorize their names so that, in four or five years when one of them busts out, you can say you had a good feeling about them back when they were drafted.

2nd round – Tanner Rahier
Shortstop; bats left; throws left
Age:18 HT:6-2 WT:205
Palm Desert High School (Indian Wells, CA)

3rd round – Daniel Langfield
Right-handed pitcher
Age:21 HT:6-1 WT:210
University of Memphis

4th round – Jonathan Moscot
Right-handed pitcher
Age:20 HT:6-3 WT:205
Pepperdine University

5th round – Mason Felt
Left-handed pitcher
Age:18 HT:6-3 WT:185
Hebron Christian Academy

6th round – Joseph Hudson
Catcher; bats right; throws right
Age:21 HT:6-0 WT:205
University of Notre Dame

7th round – Beau Amaral
Center fielder; bats left; throws left
Age:20 HT:5-10 WT:180
UCLA

8th round – Seth Mejas-Bream
Third baseman; bats right; throws right
Age:21 HT:6-2 WT:210
University of Arizona

9th round – Daniel Pigott
Left fielder; bats right; throws right
Age:22 HT:6-2 WT:180
University of Florida

10th round – Jeremy Kivel
Right-handed pitcher
Age:18 HT:6-2 WT:205
Spring High School (Spring, TX)

11th round – Nolan Becker
Left-handed pitcher
Age:20 HT:6-6 WT:225
Yale University

12th round – Brent Peterson
Shortstop; bats right; throws right
Age:19 HT:6-0 WT:180
Bakersfield Junior College

13th round – Matthew Boyd
Left-handed pitcher
Age:21 HT:6-3 WT:225
Oregon State University

14th round – Luke Moran
Right-handed pitcher
Age:20 HT:6-1 WT:200
Grayson County Junior College

15th round – Bennett Klimesh
Right-handed pitcher
Age:21 HT:6-4 WT:220
Trinity University