Here's a shot of the crowd at the Bronson Arroyo concert at Redsfest last month. Just look how much everyone is enjoying it. Bonus points if you can spot the Crack Technical Staff. Here's a hint: he's sitting right next to me.

Winning was practically old hat for the Reds by June. They continued to hold their own in the division, allowing the fanbase to comfortably gripe about the poor bullpen management and mystifying choices in pinch hitters. Good times.

June
This was the month that we learned the real meanings of the names of some of our favorite Cardinals players. “Honey, put out the traps! We've got an Eckstein!”

The Reds took sole possession of first place in the division on June 8. It would last all the way until June 9.

Wayne Krivsky traded for Juan Castro. It would be a move that would prove pivotal to the rest of the season. Oh wait, no it wouldn't. Thought Castro would be the first darn player re-signed at the end of the season.

The DFA-ing of Rick White probably had a bigger impact on the team than Castro did, but only because Narron insisted on sending White to the mound at every possible opportunity.

On the 28th of this month, the team was already renewing the contracts of Krivsky and Narron. Then, I thought it was “a bit premature,” and I think that opinion has held up nicely.

The Reds wrapped up June with a 44-36 record. Can you believe they were still doing so well so late in the season? They were tied for first place in the NLC. Hooty-hoo!

There's only one man to see when you want some super-positive, folksy-sounding, mildly-schmaltzy, Reds-related musical entertainment, and that's Ryan Parker. This time, his serenades honor one Mr. Ken Griffey, Jr.

May
Reds hitting coach Chris Chambliss got some attention from the local media thanks to the improvement of the offense under his tutelage. He would be fired a few months later, apparently as part of Wayne Krivsky's war on scoring runs.

The Reds went into this month close to the top of the division. They battled the Cardinals for the number 1 spot and got it. Gotta love beating the Cards.

Episode 11 of the podcast marked a change in format, as the Crack Technical Staff joined me for a weekly conversation about the team. You guys must like him, because this episode remains the single-most downloaded episode of them all.

Remember when Griffey went on the DL in the last month's recap? On May 11, he finally returned. In his first game back, he smacked a walk-off homer.

This was the month of Baseball 101, a special event for woman baseball fans, which does nothing to actually teach anything about baseball. It was only OK, but I got to meet a couple interesting people.

Tiny Casey was kidnapped! It didn't get the media coverage I thought it deserved.

The Reds designated Dave Williams for assignment, even though he had an option, thus making the trade of Sean Casey, in essence, a complete loss. The Reds traded Williams to the Mets where he would see the postseason, thus making the trade of himself, in essence, a complete win.

Certainly the best local car ad ever was created right here in Redsland.

The Reds ended the month of May with a 29-24 record, still second in the NLC and one of only two teams above .500 in the division. Really, the Ford Commercial was the best thing going on.

I was poking around AJC.com, looking for news on the long-rumored Laroche-for-Gonzo-for-Melky trade, and came across this:

At the risk of spoiling the New Year’s celebration for many of you, l’m going to cut to the chase and tell you that Chris Reitsma will not be returning to the Braves.

OK, stop the derisive applause.

This according to the beleaguered reliever’s agent, who told me Sunday that Atlanta wasn’t among the dozen teams that expressed interest in Reitsma after the Braves non-tendered him last month.

Agent Mike Paolercio said six teams have made “legitimate offers” for Reitsma, who posted an 8.68 ERA and .362 opponents’ average in 27 appearances before the All-Star break, then went on the DL and had season-ending elbow surgery.

One of those teams is the Reds:

He said he’s well into negotiations with “several teams” including Cincinnati, where Reitsma was a setup man, closer and fan favorite before being traded to Atlanta before the 2004 season.

(Yes, he was a seriously popular pitcher in Cincy, much as Dan Kolb was in Milwaukee and Bob Wickman in Cleveland. Hey, at least one of them didn’t see his career fall to pieces in Atlanta.)

The Reds' new closer?

Though he didn't pitch well in Atlanta, he seems to have made friends there nonetheless:

While most of you never met him, let me go on record as saying Reitsma was about as decent and good a dude as I’ve ever met in 12 years covering baseball. I know that probably doesn’t mean a lot to you, because, as I said, he did stink for most of his final 12 months here.

But next time he visits Turner Field, it really wouldn’t hurt to give him a little polite applause. Or at least quiet indifference. At least don’t roll down your window and yell obscenities at him. If you guys ever got to meet him and talk to him, you’d know what I mean. Good dude.

And in other news, Brendan Harris was dealt to Tampa, for a PTNL or cash. (The PTNL is probably not Josh Hamilton.)