The Reds reinstated LHP Eric Milton today from the 15-day DL. He'll be making his first start of the season in a few minutes against the Pirates' Opening Day starter, Zach Duke.

On the one hand, you've got the like the way that the Reds' offense has dealt with the Pirates' pitching so far this series, but on the other hand, Milton is a seriously unknown quantity. You know he's got it in him somewhere, but he's had a frighteningly bad streak lately. Similarly, the Reds have been facing the bottom of the Pirates' rotation, though I'm not convinced that there's really that much of a difference between the Pirates' #1 and #5. They're the strength of the team, for sure, I'm just saying that they seem to all have a similar skill level.

To make room for Milton on the 25-roster, the Reds put RHP Jared Burton on the 15-day DL with a strained left hamstring. I don't remember him getting hurt that game, but I do remember him walking three in his one-third of an inning. That's a sort of injury, I suppose. I do wonder whether the A's would have reason to call shenanigans, especially if Burton continues to come down with injuries whenever the Reds need a spot on the roster.

In any event, I'll miss the game this afternoon doing Easter things with the fam. But my thoughts will be with Milton. Go Reds!

The Reds' clinched the series and overtook first place in the division yesterday with a 5-7 win over the Pirates.

I missed this one entirely because I was out house-hunting. It's an exciting activity--especially when the key in the keybox doesn't actually open the door or when your realtor starts making comments like, “sometimes when you take a second look at a house you see different things” about the house you're thinking about making an offer on--but nothing compared to the excitement of a game.

However, from the box score I can see that Aaron Harang didn't have a great game, despite getting the win. Five earned runs on eight hits in five and two-thirds innings. I don't think it's terrifically important, especially since the offense stepped up, but one of the analysts on Baseball Tonight said that Carlos Zambrano's decent performance last night after his shelling on Opening Day was his “Most Important Thing” so apparently these second-showings are even more important than I thought. On the other hand, someone in that same show called Harang “Adam”, so there's also that.

Jon Coutlangus, whom the CTS was sure to get sent down to make room for Eric Milton today but didn't, didn't allow a hit in his two-thirds. Todd Coffey did give up a hit in his one third, but no runs. Rheal Cormier struck out a batter, which is always nice to see.

Kirk Saarloos and David Weathers finished out the parade of pitchers that we get to see every game thanks to the multitude of them that we have around. Weathers is already up to two saves, which is more than the number of wins the entire St. Louis team has this season.

On the offensive side, Xavier Nady helped Adam Dunn to come through with his third home run of the year when the ball bounced off of the palm of his glove and over the wall. And, if I'm reading this right, Dunn also stole two bases, while Edwin Encarnación and Ryan Freel also stole one apiece. Damn, I picked a bad game to miss, but I'm glad to know the guys are figuring out ways to stay warm.

The win brings the Reds' record to 4-1. They finish the series today at 1:05 p.m. when fresh-off-the-DL Eric Milton goes up against the Pirates' “number 1” Zach Duke.