Last Game
Aaron Harang had another less-than-stellar start, although he has improved greatly from the beginning of the season. Remember when he was the best starter on the team? There are definitely things to like about him being the worst. The offense even came back to tie the game with the Braves in the 9th, but were unable to get across the go-ahead run. Thankfully, the St. Louis Cardinals lost, so the Reds are still in first.

Next Game
It’s an afternoon game as this second 2-game series in a row wraps up. Mike Leake will go against Tommy Hanson at 1:05pm EDT. The game is televised on the MLB Network, although Fox Ohio lied about it being a radio-only game last night.

Battle of Young Studs
Today’s game against the Atlanta Braves features two young pitchers who have shown great promise in their young careers. Leake, who has no prior professional baseball experience before this year, we know. Tommy Hanson, we don’t.

Hanson, 23, is in his second season in the majors. He’s 14-7 with a 2.89 ERA in 29 starts on his career. This year, his ERA is about the same, and he’s struck out 56 in 50 innings over 8 starts. He is coming off a rough last start, though, when the Diamondbacks scored 5 off him. Still, it will be a challenge for the Reds. Can they manage to take some non-strike pitches?

What to Say to Sound Smart at the Water Cooler
After 40 games, the Reds are 23-17, which is the exact same record they were at in 2006 when they finished the year in 3rd place at 80-82.