Last game
The Reds snapped their 5-game losing streak last night against the Phillies when they won 2-4.

Bronson Arroyo put in a good long outing, going 8.0 innings and allowing 2 runs (earned) on 5 hits. Cliff Lee was nearly as efficient and put up 6 quick, scoreless innings before a Joey Votto single, Brandon Phillips double, and 10-pitch walk to Jay Bruce threw him off his game.

Phillips was the offensive star, with his 2-for-4 night and 2 RBI. Derrick Robinson also earned some of the limelight with his pinch-hit for Arroyo that eventually scored one of the runs. It didn’t hurt that he shares his name with the day we were celebrating, either.

Next game
Tonight the Reds try to start a winning streak to even out that losing streak they just broke. Homer Bailey (RHP, 1-1, 5.73 ERA) goes against Kyle Kendrick (RHP, 1-1, 5.40 ERA) for the Phillies tonight at 7:10 p.m. in Cincinnati.

Bobble your head if you think Phillips is pretty awesome
The Reds have their first bobblehead giveaway of the season this weekend. They’ll be handing out this bobbling version of Brandon Phillips to the first 30,000 tickets through the gates as they take on the Marlins at 1:10 p.m.

They’re also doing that 4 for $48 deal this weekend where you get 4 tickets and 4 orders of BW3 boneless wings for $48. Which raises many questions, such as: “Are the orders of wings really as good as they look in the picture?”, “If there aren’t bones, are they really wings?”, and “Don’t bobbleheads also seem to be kind of boneless?”

What to say to sound smart at the water cooler
In honor of Jackie Robinson Day, Harlem Globetrotter “Slick” Willie Shaw was the Reds’ honorary captain yesterday.

Last game
Can I just write *shakes head* here and be done with it?

The Reds were swept yesterday by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Friday they got a shaky start from Mike Leake, which maybe isn’t so surprising after all. Saturday they lost Johnny Cueto to what is still a mystery injury.

Yesterday it was another of those hit-the-wall kinds of games. Mat Latos was rocking a shut-out when he entered the seventh inning. Then Michael McKenry knocked a solo shot over the wall to lead off the inning. Two outs and two baserunners and another run later, Latos is out and it’s up to Logan Ondrusek. Ondrusek, though, couldn’t get out of the inning and his inherited runner to score, plus added one of his own. Not to worry! Manny Parra took over to allow the second generation of inherited runners to score.

And that was the prettier of the two innings. Jonathan Broxton…*shakes head*

The Reds have lost 5 in a row and have been outscored 14-34. Final score yesterday: 7-10. But don’t worry: I’m sure things will get easier when…

Next game
…The Reds return home to host the Phillies tonight. Bronson Arroyo (RHP, 1-1, 5.25 ERA) defends against some guy you’ve never heard of called Cliff Lee (LHP, 2-0, 1.08 ERA). First pitch at 7:10 p.m.

Extreme Yard Makeover
About now, it’s not looking like a big Reds banner in your front yard is enough to give it curb appeal. So, you might be interested in applying to be on a home make-over show on the DIY Network. I got an email from a producer of the show who says, “we’ve shot dozens of shows in Cincinnati and we’re planning to shoot more this summer if we can find enough homeowners. We’d love to feature a diehard Reds fan.”

If you are in the Cincinnati area and have serious yard issues, like broken concrete, a disintegrating porch, or horrible landscaping, your yard transformation can be televised. Go to www.jaytv.net and click on Desperate Landscapes to apply. You can read more about the show on DIY Network’s website.

What to say to sound smart at the water cooler
Before yesterday, the Pirates hadn’t swept the Reds in a 3-game series since April 2010.

Last game
The Reds had yesterday off. So far they’ve taken 2-of-3 from the Angels, 2-of-3 from the Nationals, and just 1-of-3 from the Cardinals. Even with the 13 runs they scored in the opener of that series with the Cards, they were still outscored over the three games, 14-19.

Next game
Breather over: the Reds are in Pittsburgh tonight to take on the Pirates. The Pirates are 3-6 so far, having lost 2-of-3 to the Cubs, being swept by the Dodgers, and winning 2-of-3 against the Diamondbacks.

Mike Leake (RHP, 0-0, 6.00 ERA) will represent the Reds against A.J. Burnett (RHP, 0-2, 3.27 ERA). Burnett has already struck out 19 this season (for comparison, Johnny Cueto leads the Reds with 15), so I hope the offense brings their contact-making abilities tonight.

42
42, the Jackie Robinson story, opens today. It’s only a few hours old, but the fans on Fandango are saying “Must See.”

What to say to sound smart at the water cooler
Today starts a streak of 20 days of Reds games in a row. I hope they enjoyed the time off while they had it.

Last game
The Reds were unable to take the series from the Cardinals, losing 10-0 in what was an embarrassing outing all around. The offense managed 5 hits and no runs, and the pitching was something you hope to never see again. Homer Bailey was solid through the first four innings, but fell apart and was knocked out of the game in the 5th when he allowed 4 runs. Both John Jay and Carlos Beltran hit homers off him in that inning. The bullpen arrived to throw gasoline on the fire and turn the game into the Reds’ first shutout of the season.

Next game
The Reds have a day off today as they travel to Pittsburgh where they start a three game series with the Pirates on Friday. Mike Leake will start against AJ Burnett tomorrow at 7:05 pm.

Marshall disabled and Ondrusek called up
Despite his lone appearance being a 1-2-3 inning, Sean Marshall will be making a trip to the disabled list. Logan Ondrusek fills his roster spot.

Marshall has had a tired shoulder since the end of spring training.

“I felt great (Tuesday),” Marshall said. “I pitched Sunday. I didn’t feel great Monday. I like to bounce back well. We thought it was the best thing (to go on the DL). The bullpen has been working hard. To have somebody fresh who is able to pitch in consecutive days. … I was close to being able to do that. I understand we have an off day tomorrow.

“But it was in the best interest of myself and the rest of the guys to take this little DL stint and strengthen my shoulder and get it back to 100 percent, so I can pitch the rest of the year without problems.”

With as many innings as the bullpen has pitched, not having Marshall available has been painful. Hopefully, Marshall’s time on the DL will fully restore his shoulder so he’s dominating hitters later in the season.

What to say to sound smart at the water cooler
With Cesar Izturis’ start at shortstop yesterday, second-baseman Brandon Phillips has now played with 23 different shortstops during his Cincinnati tenure. In addition to Izturis, Phillips has played with Didi Gregorius, Wilson Valdez, Todd Frazier, Zack Cozart, Edgar Renteria, Orlando Cabrera, Miguel Cairo, Paul Janish, Drew Sutton, Chris Valaika, Alex Gonzalez, Jerry Hairston Jr., Adam Rosales, Jolbert Cabrera, Juan Castro, Jeff Keppinger, Enrique Cruz, Pedro Lopez, Rich Aurilia, Royce Clayton, Felipe Lopez, and last, but not least, Ray Olmedo.

Last game
Despite the offenseive show that the Reds have been putting on so far this season, last night’s game was a pitcher’s duel that the Cardinals won, 1-5. Bronson Arroyo had a perfect game going into the sixth, but suddenly he hit the wall and gave up 4 runs. Pinch hitter Matt Adams topped that scoring off with a home run. In the game wrap on Reds.com, Adams had this to say about Arroyo:

“He was throwing the majority of offspeed all game,” Adams said. “With the tying run at third base, I had a pretty good idea that I was going to get an offspeed pitch sometime during that at-bat.”

Am I to understand that the world now knows to expect off-speed stuff from Bronson Arroyo? With that secret out, we’ll never survive!

Next game
The rubber game happens this afternoon at 1:45 p.m. Homer Bailey (RHP, 1-0, 0.00 ERA) takes on Jake Westbrook (RHP, 0-1, 0.00 ERA).

Get me an autograph while you’re there, would ya?
Tonight at 7 p.m. Joel Luckhaupt, author of 100 Things Reds Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die, will be appearing at the Joseph Beth Booksellers in Cincinnati (Rookwood Pavilion, 2692 Madison Rd, Cincinnati, OH).

Here’s the book description according to Amazon.com (paragraph breaks added for readability):

In this ultimate resource guide for true fans of baseball’s first professional team, author Joel Luckhaupt has collected every essential piece of Cincinnati Reds trivia, as well as must-do activities, and ranked them from one to 100, providing an entertaining and easy-to-follow checklist for fans to complete in their lifetime.

Most Reds fans have taken in a game or two at the Great American Ball Park, have seen highlights of the Big Red Machine, and remember the team’s surprising triumph in the 1990 World Series. But only real fans know which 15-year-old took the mound for the Reds in 1944, can name the pitcher who gave up Pete Rose’s 4,192nd hit, or remember how many dogs owner Marge Schott owned.

100 Things Reds Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die is the perfect book for any fan of Reds baseball, whether a die-hard booster from the days of Ted Kluszewski or a new supporter of Joey Votto, Johnny Cueto, and Aroldis Chapman.

Luckhaupt is amassing quite a portfolio of Reds’ related literature. Make sure to pick up the whole set and get them signed now, before he goes the way of Pete Rose and it costs you 50 bucks for his John Hancock.

What to say to sound smart at the water cooler
The Reds haven’t won a series in St. Louis since September 2011. In fact, they’ve won only 3 series in St. Louis in the last 10 years.