10:30 p.m. and I'm writing this almost in my sleep. If I can't get used to these central time zone night games, there's no way I'll survive when they play on the west coast. No matter what time zone, any game that sees a total 20 runs and almost 30 hits is going to be long, but tonight's game had so much going on, it barely felt like more than 2 3/4 hours.

What did we see?
- The funniest thing I ever heard Chris Welch say as Carlos Zambrano let loose a pitch that passed Adam Dunn behind the calves. “I don't know whether I read this from the scatter report, but I think that's a hard pitch to hit: low and behind you.” Nicely done, Chris. I approve.
- The first ejection from a Reds game of the season as Zambrano walloped the very next batter, Austin Kearns. It did appear to be intentional, but I'm clueless as to why. I apparently have much to learn about the subtle nuances of the beanball.
- Ugly, ugly ball handling. Rich Aurilia and Joe Randa each had a fumble, and Dunn let one go past him. Fortunately for the Reds, the Cubs were also handling the ball like a greased pig.
- Ken Griffey, Jr. might possibly be over the hump. Just the very thought makes me and cousin Larry do the dance of joy! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!
- The offense finally woke up, just in time for the pitching to roll over. Ryan Wagner allowed a hit in the 8th; clearly he's struggling. Danny Graves rolled his ankle and ended up on the dirt; apparently he felt he hadn't provided enough drama from his two-pitch first out.

Aaron Harang versus Ryan Dempster tomorrow. We all know first-hand what Dumpster has to offer, but we also know how the Reds like to give it up to their own former pitchers. Either way, I might get some sleep tomorrow.

I've got a question for all of you out there who have access to Fox Sports Net Ohio. After each televised game, they play the Gold Star Chili Reds Wrap. The intro to this segment is a montage of clips. The first clip is Sean Casey batting. The second is Jason LaRue tagging out a runner at home. The third clip is the one seen here:

The quality is horrible because our VCRs are on the fritz, and I'm going to try to get a clearer shot tonight, but this at least will give you an idea of what to look for.

The third clip is a shot of the short stop throwing out a runner at first. It's a shot from the back, but I'm confident that it is Barry Larkin. Seems reasonable enough. The weird thing is, if you watch closely, even though the film goes by fast, you can tell that his number has been digitally removed.

So here's the question: why would FSNO remove Larkin's number? And secondly, don't you think they should put it back?

“Smells like a hot dog” was a rather random comment that Chris Welch made during tonight's broadcast, but I think it fits. That game did smell, maybe like a hot dog. An evil, evil hot dog.

There were a few high points I could mention, but instead I want to take a quick moment to talk about the Cubs. They are, indeed, lovable losers, but they are officious, obnoxious winners. We saw it tonight when they actually booed when their own pitcher, Chad Fox, left the game, his arm practically dangling from a thread off his shoulder joint. And again when Wily Mo Peña was greeted with catcalls and jeers as came in as the last batter of the game to finally put the Reds out of their misery.

It reminded me of a time last season when my husband and I had gone to the last home series against the Cubs. By that point, the Reds had already spoilt the Cubs' hopes for the wildcard, but the stands were still disorientingly filled with blue. It was actually intimidating. When, during the seventh inning stretch, the line “root, root, root for the CUBBIES!” overwhelmed every other sound in a 3-mile radius, I felt like I'd slipped into an alternate dimension.

Anyway, though the Cubs won that game, the fans were not content to have totally overtaken Great American. The crowd outside bordered on hostile and as we walked through the throng back to our car, a group of rowdy (read: drunk) Cubs fans were announcing to anyone who would listen “Reds suck!”

And, that's when, showing way more courage than I had in such hostile territory, my husband Jon shouted back, “Yeah? Well Cubs suck historically!”

Little comfort now, I suppose, but at the time, it smelt like victory. Sure smelt better than this damn hot dog.

MIAMI, FL -- Ken Griffey, Jr. announced that he would be undergoing extensive preventive surgery to reinforce all of his major tendons' connection to their respective bones. The surgery will take place when the team returns to Cincinnati on May 2.

Griffey underwent such a surgery in August 2004 to use titanium screws to reattach his right hamstring tendon that had pulled free from the bone. Though experiemental, the procedure appears to have been successful, resulting in the longest injury-free span for Griffey since he came to play in Cincinnati in 2000.

“I'm getting tired of people asking me if I'm OK,” said Griffey, “You guys have nothing to worry about. Titanium doesn't rust.”

Unfortunately, though the surgery has stopped the constant flow of injuries, recovery from the surgery has left Griffey hitting just .203 with no homeruns in 2005.

“I don't have anything I can compare my last surgery to, and I think people have sort of forgotten that,” Griffey said, “This recovery is tough, and I don't ever want to have to do it again. If I just go ahead and have all the tendons bolted down now, I can recover from them all at once and get it over with.”

Questions remain about whether reinforcing tendons can really help Griffey acheive his previous levels of greatness. “I'm confident that the procedure will return Griffey to the condition of a 25-year old,” said Reds' Medical Director Dr. Tim Kremchek, “And in case it doesn't, we're already working on a device that most certainly will: a time machine.”

Barring complications, Griffey is expected to be ready to play again in August. “We'll miss him,” said Manager Dave Miley, “But at least we'll be able to get some at-bats for some of our guys who are actually hitting.”

This is what happens when Yoda joins the coaching staff.

It's time for Star Wars Celebration, so y'all might not hear from me for a while. I might pop in for a quick hit over the weekend, but I expect to be back in full effect on Monday.

Go Reds!