Sitting at work, catching the game between updates from my phone and occasional glimpses at the Gameday. Loved the second inning. Hated the ninth.

Again the Braves grabbed victory in the bottom of the ninth inning, but this time, it was just moments before the Cardinals wrapped up their victory over the Marlins and retook first place in the NLC. There’s a certain justice to that. With four errors and the shittiest parade of late-inning pitching we’ve seen all season, it would have been hard to feel good about holding on to that title after such a performance.

But what now? Come back and get ’em tomorrow? Or (heart) broken for the season? If it depends on Dusty Baker’s fundamentals, motivation, or leadership…well, it was a hell of a run while it lasted, eh?

It is my unfortunate distinction to find myself with something in common with Paul Daugherty. Today, he is a columnist on SI.com, talking about how promising the Reds are:

SI.com contributing writer Paul Daugherty examines a team that, 39 games into the season, has shown some real promise for the future and the present. The Reds haven’t had a winning season since 2000 but Daugherty believes the key to the Reds’ recent success is largely due to veteran Scott Rolen. Reds owner Bob Castellini is quoted saying “We needed stabilization in the lineup and in the clubhouse. Rolen is a stable, no-nonsense guy. He has proven to be exactly who we knew we needed.” With a plethora of talented rookies, the have Reds lacked the focus and leadership they needed in previous years.

Clearly they had to quote Castellini rather than Daugherty himself so that you could understand what was being said.

Speaking of not understanding what was being said, I was also featured in an different forum than usual. I was a guest on the Astrocast a couple weeks ago, giving my commentary over the phone while I walked to a Dallas sushi restaurant with a group of strangers, which I’m sure had an interesting impact on the audio. The episode is now available for your listening enjoyment.

Boxscore

Wasn’t that an amazing game yesterday that the Cincinnati Reds had against the Milwaukee Brewers? It had everything. Good pitching, Joey Votto being awesome, and a late comeback.

It didn’t look at first that the Reds would sweep the Brewers. Homer Bailey threw 30+ pitches and allowed a couple runs in the first inning, but he rebounded. Over the course of the rest of his 7-inning outing, he returned to the pitch-efficient, effective ways of his previous start. In total, he went 7 innings, allowing 2 runs, 4 hits, 2 walks, and struck out 4.

The bullpen came in then, to make things even harder for the offense. It’s been hard to get the relievers work lately, what with 3 complete games in the last week. It’s a good problem to have, and I expect that if all the starters start averaging 7 innings a start that we’ll see a reduction in the bullpen staff. There’s no need for 7 relievers when only 2 innings are needed most nights.

Despite Mike Lincoln charging in with the white flag of surrender, his damage to the game was limited. And Joey Votto and Scott Rolen were having none of it. Votto hit a 460ft solo shot in the 8th–one that landed in the faux riverboat beyond center field. Then in the 9th, Paul Janish singled to get things started off Trevor Hoffman. Scott Rolen followed with a pinch-hit homer to tie it. This was no rally-killing home run, though, because Chris Heisey followed with a double. After a walk to Brandon Phillips, Votto stepped to the plate and I knew the game was over. He quickly drove in Heisey and another last-at-bat win was added to the Reds 2010 total. (It’s 10 now, I think.)

Sure, there are problems with the Reds, and it’s hard to ignore that niggling voice in the back of your head that says, “They’ve done this before. May isn’t the same as September.” But I urge you to squash that little voice and enjoy this moment. It hasn’t been often that we’ve gotten to see competent, enjoyable play out of the Reds, and it would be a shame to miss it.