CINCINNATI, OH -- Last night the Reds pulled a hoax on starting pitcher Bronson Arroyo to help him gain confidence in his own abilities.

The Reds have carried three catchers this year, at least in part because of Arroyo's preference for David Ross. With the hot start that Ross has had, the Reds have had many sweet offers for him, but have been reticent to deal him lest Arroyo implode.

“We needed to make him understand that it was him providing the quality starts,” explained manager Jerry Narron. “It didn't matter who he was pitching to.”

So, at Great American Ball Park he secretly replaced catcher David Ross with Jason LaRue to see if Arroyo could tell the difference. The result: seven innings of one-run baseball.

“I guess I had it in me all the time,” said Arroyo. “No matter who my catcher is.”

Are there plans to cut off that insipid hair while he sleeps?

“Not saying,” said Narron, hiding a blond wig behind his back.

According to tonight's Chris' Clubhouse, the Fox Sports Net pre-game feature in which Chris Welch explains some aspect of the game, last night Adam Dunn walked on three balls when the umpire apparently lost count of the count.

If only somebody could have taught Tony Womack that trick.

It's nice that Chris had something to talk about. With the Reds' hot start and FSN picking up some extra games, he's been struggling for content. A couple weeks ago he spent a few consecutive Clubhouses talking about how the average height, weight, and age of players has changed over the years.

The Reds took out their losing-streak frustrations on the Brewers last night with a 15-5 win at Great American Ball Park.

Bronson Arroyo pitched the first seven innings of the game and allowed just one run (earned) on six hits and zero walks.

Working with a 14 run lead, the Reds sent in Mike Burns to test his mettle. He allowed three runs (earned) on two hits and a wild pitch in the eighth. Working with an 11 run lead, the Reds sent in Brian “Ram” Shackelford to test his mettle. He allowed one run (earned) on one hit in the ninth.

If I were in the possession of either mettle, I'd be dreading the return of Kent Mercker.

The Reds scored in four separate innings and kept piling on the runs long past the point it was becoming embarrassing. You can't blame them, though; we know from experience that no lead is insurmountable.

Ken Griffey Jr, Austin Kearns, and Adam Dunn each provided a home run and combined for eight RBI. David Ross went 2-for-5 and provided four RBI all by himself. Every non-pitching starter had a hit and they only left seven runners on.

Score > Team LOB = RHM 🙂

The win brings the Reds' record to 26-19. They continue the series with the Brewers tonight as Elizardo Ramirez faces off against Dana Eveland at 7:10 p.m.

This weekend I headed out to Washington D.C. to witness the graduation of my brother from The George Washington University.

On Sunday, I made it out to RFK Stadium to catch part of the game between the Nationals and the Orioles, but I'm afraid my game wrap is going to be sparse. We didn't get into the game until the sixth inning, and it was a win for the home team, so we saw all of about two innings of baseball.

Furthermore, my camera has officially bit the dust; I guess I dropped it one too many times. The good news is that it's a good excuse to buy a new camera. The bad news is that I don't have even any mediocre pictures to share with you of the stadium.

Still, I think I can give you a pretty decent visual. Envision yourself walking up the concourse in Riverfront at the very end of its life. Now, imagine it just a little dingier, a little older. Really make it feel like this place has been given up on more than once, but just won't die. And there you are at RFK.

We were sitting in the 500 level, so it was quite a hike up to our seats, but the view was lovely. The lowest level of seats is day-glo orange, which is odd. The middle level is pink (though I hear its supposed to be maroon or something) and the top level is yellow. The top of the top level is a wavy line, which is a cool effect. If they'd managed to work the wavy line into any of the other architectural elements of the stadium, it would have been pretty nifty.

Daedalus of Church of Baseball was seated in the very same section as us and identified my Crack Technical Staff by his Reds shirt as he walked by with a couple hot dogs. She told us about the new stadium that is supposed to be built for 2008, the lack of experience among baseball fans in D.C. (“they don't know when to cheer”), and shared her beer. I liked her very well. Check out her site often.

It was a great trip, but, like the Reds, I'm glad to be home again.

The Reds wasted a beautiful outing by Aaron Harang on Sunday to lose to the Tigers 0-1.

Harang pitched a complete eight-inning game, giving up just one run (earned) on five hits and one walk. He struck out nine.

Ken Griffey, Jr., Adam Dunn, and Edwin Encarnación each contributed a hit. Ryan Freel, Felipe Lopez (twice), Austin Kearns, and Brandon Phillips each walked. And that was the total of the Reds' baserunners, and all eight were stranded.

The loss brought the Reds' record to 25-19 and gave them their third consecutive lost series. They would bid a happy farewell to Detroit and the stupid American League when they returned home to face the Milwaukee Brewers. Bronson Arroyo would face Dave Bush.