According to the blog of Marc Lancaster, the Florida house passed a bill last week to help fund improvements to spring training facilities.

The Reds have been looking to build a new spring training complex in Sarasota, and early reports even had them partnering with Pittsburgh Pirates, who train in nearby Bradenton, but there's been no mention of that plan for quite a while.

Mr. Lancaster also wrote a story about the bill for the Cincinnati Post. This part of the story turned out to have a lot more validity than the part immediately following about Griffey coming off the DL the first day he was eligible.

Chris and George were making it sound like we might be seeing Griffey again as soon as Tuesday when the Reds head back home for a series against the Nationals. No kidding, as long as he's been out, he ought to have a rehab assignment. That would be the best-attended Lookouts game ever.

There's a story on the official site addressing how the return of The Kid will affect Ryan Freel's playing time. With center field no longer available, Freel will have to look for playing time at second and third, and he's hardly been swinging a hotter bat than Brandon Phillips or Edwin Encarnación lately.

Yesterday Freel got the day off while Quinton McCracken took over in center field. McCracken performed admirably, but it begs the questions: why did this team bring up Chris Denorfia?

In other DL news, Paul Wilson has been recalled from his rehab assignment due to “shoulder fatigue.” Cody Ross began a rehab assignment with the Bats on Friday, so we'll be seeing him soon.

Also, the Reds are trying to send Jung Keun Bong home to Korea at his request. His father is apparently ill and our young pitcher wants to spend time with him. Best of luck to him.

The Reds needed every one of their nine runs to take the final game of the three-game series against the Diamondbacks and avoid the sweep last night with a final score of 9-8.

Dave Williams took the mound, which always makes for a scary time for Reds fans and tonight was no exception. Williams lasted five innings, allowing five runs (earned) on six hits and two walks to get the win. Just two days before, Elizardo Ramirez allowed just one earned run in four innings for the loss.

Rick White took over for Williams in the sixth and pitched two-thirds of an inning, allowing two runs (earned) on two hits.

Brian Shackelford, Todd Coffey, and Kent Mercker each put in hitless relief appearances. They worked two-thirds, one and one-third, and one-third of an inning respectively. Coffey's ERA is 0.49; Shackelford's is 0.00.

David Weathers made it terrifying in the ninth, giving up a run on three hits and a walk to get the save. It took a ball smoked directly at Scott Hatteberg for a 3U double-play to end the inning and the game.

Quinton McCracken had a heck of a game today, going 2-for-4 with a walk and contributing a couple great plays in center field. Felipe Lopez had not such a great day, being caught stealing in the first inning for the first time in 2006 and contributing two throwing errors.

Adam Dunn went 2-for-4 with a walk to bring in five of the Reds' nine runs. After the game, Dunn had some not-so-nice things to say about the quality of the team's play during the road-trip. Hopefully he also has a plan for leading the turn-around.

In fact, Dunn came through with a clutch, bases-loaded double to bring in three runs, and a home run in the third to bring in the other two. Scott Hatteberg, Austin Kearns, and Edwin Encarnación also hit home runs.

The win brings the Reds' record to 21-11, a game up on the Cardinals in first place of the NLC. They have today off and host the Washington Nationals on Tuesday at 7:10 p.m. Brandon Claussen takes on Tony Armas.

ARGH!

Baseball 101 is on Tuesday, and though my credit card has been charged $55 for my entrance, I haven't received a receipt, any idea of where to go, or even a ticket. And good luck finding any contact information on Reds.com. Hell, it took me 10 minutes of poking around to even find the page about Baseball 101.

Furthermore, the Reds can't just score. No, they have to give back every damn run they score. “Love” Shackelford is making me feel a little less enraged.

And am I the only one who is just getting sick of Bronson Arroyo? I know I was the first one on his bandwagon, but I might just be the first one falling off.

Deep breath. Off-day tomorrow, which means off-day fun here at RHM. Finally we'll establish once and for all who is the Reds' number one fan.

The Reds lost their second game in a row to an Arizona team who realized they didn't need seven runs to beat the Reds. The score was 1-3.

Bronson Arroyo took the mound and lasted six innings. He gave up three runs (earned) on 11 hits and a walk to get the loss. Brian “Love” Shackelford and Kent Mercker each contributed a scoreless inning of relief.

The Reds scored their single run in the first inning on a stunning inside-the-park home run by Felipe Lopez. If only he'd managed to do that three more time in the game, the Reds would have had a win to go along with his fantastic play.

The loss brings gives the Reds only their second lost series of the season and brings their record to 20-11. The team remains in first place in the NLC, but the comparisons of this season to 1999 have suddenly stopped. The Reds try to avoid the sweep this afternoon at 4:40 p.m. Dave Williams faces off against Orlando Hernandez.