I'm sitting down in front of the Reds pre-game for the first time in days, and I'm really enjoying it. I had no idea I could miss Dan Hoard and Jim Day so much.

They were talking about what the Reds need to do to get things rolling again, and among the things on the list was “a return to form” for Bronson Arroyo. After a couple bad starts, they're apparently ready for him to go back to his super-hot start. I don't want to be the one to tell them that this is his return to form.

But that's OK. As a slightly-above-average pitcher, he's still better than most of what we've seen in this rotation for the last few years.

George Grande is interviewing Wayne Krivsky on the Reds pre-game. Things Kriv-dawg has said include:

• The team has lost several close ones where one hit or one play would have made a big difference, and the defense is “nowhere near where it needs to be.” Thank you, Mr. Obvious.
• He called Dave Williams a “major league pitcher,” seemingly answering the unasked question about why they wouldn't just send him down. He didn't rule out the possiblity of assigning him to Louisville if they can't work out a trade, though.

  Chris at Redleg Nation points to an ESPN article about the potential of trading him to the Mets. I hope they can work something out for the guy.

• George asked about Dunn's slump and the prospects of the offense. Kriv-dawg has faith in Dunn to come around. It's true that the Reds offense seems to live and die by Dunn. Freel could score a half dozen runs by himself, but without the power of Dunn we get…well, we get exactly what we've been getting lately.
• When asked about trades, he said that if he and his guys can put together a compelling argument, that Castellini will put money behind a deal that will help the team. So start putting your wish list together: personally, I think Dontrelle could really help this team.
• When asked about finding pitching help at home, Krivsky specifically mentioned that he couldn't imagine prospects jumping from AA straight to the majors. Instead, he'll count on some veterans in AAA to help “in a pinch.”
• He called Joe Mays a “low-risk, high-reward” signing and acknowledged that his numbers in KC were “ugly.” Hopefully “in a pinch” they'll be less ugly than the alternatives.

Hey, remember on May 4 when I told you that Rich Aurilia was on the DL and Ray Olmedo would take his place? And remember last Friday when Aurilia played? That was because he came off the disabled list. On Thursday, the Reds sent Ray Olmedo back to Louisville to make room on the roster.

Hardly breaking news, I know. I'm afraid there's going to be a lot of this kind of stuff today while I catch up.

Good morning!

I'm very proud of the fact that I'm up and out of bed early enough to say that and have it be correct in a technical sense. It was touch-and-go there for a while, but I committed myself, and got in the shower. Go me!

Wow, what a weekend. It was one of those affairs where you cram so much into two days that it feels like you were going for five. I'll write all about it tonight, but now I have to get myself to work to squeeze in a half day. I just wanted to check in, because I know how you guys worry.

Brewers tonight! I can hardly wait.

Go Reds!