Last Game
After a day off, the Reds opened their series in Miami against the second-worst team in the Majors in a big way. Brandon Phillips started the scoring in the first by singling in Joey Votto. Then in the second, the team exploded for a five-run inning–two of which came from bases loaded walks–to give starter Homer Bailey far more run support than he needed.

Bailey was strong during his start, allowing two runs on just six hits, while walking out none and striking out 10. He notched the team’s first complete game of the season and captured just his second win.

Next game
The Reds hope to continue their five game road winning streak against the Marlins when Mike Leake starts. Miami counters with Alex Sanabia. The first pitch is scheduled for 7:10pm.

Heisey further away from return after setback
Chris Heisey, along with Johnny Cueto and Manny Parra, was on a rehab assignment in the Reds’ minor leagues. Unfortunately, he re-injured the right hamstring that he’s on the disabled list for.

“They said he re-strained it,” Reds manager Dusty Baker said. “That’s something you’re always apprehensive about when they’re coming back. You never really know, because one wrong move could send them back to zero. We hoped that he would be back by Philly, but it looks like now he won’t be.”

The 28-year-old was playing center field and batting second for the Blue Wahoos, but he never stepped in the batter’s box. Pensacola manager Delino DeShields pinch-hit for Heisey in the bottom of the first. The outfielder was originally scheduled to play seven innings.

This means we’ll continue to see more of Xavier Paul and Donald Lutz in left field. Considering how much better than Heisey both have been performing, that’s probably a good thing.

What to say to sound smart at the water cooler
Seven Cy Young winners started Major League baseball games yesterday. Barry Zito, Bartolo Colon, CC Sabathia, Jake Peavy, Felix Hernandez, R. A. Dickey, and Clayton Kershaw all pitched, with Sabathia and Hernandez facing each other.

Last Game
Donald Lutz got his first big league home run with some style yesterday. His 3-run dinger in the second inning put the Reds on the path for a 1-5 win and a series sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers.

The win gave the Reds a 4-2 homestand and puts their record at 22-16. Even that is only good enough for second place in the NLC, though, where the Cardinals have 1 more win and 3 fewer losses. And it only puts the Reds half a game up on the Pirates.

We knew the Central was going to be tougher this year with the departure of the Astros, but this is more contentious than I anticipated.

Next game
The Reds have today off, which is good because they’ve still played more games than anyone else in the division. After today, though, the Cubs and Pirates should have caught up, while the Brewers and Cardinals will still have played a game fewer.

Tomorrow the Reds go to visit the downtrodden Miami Marlins. The Marlins have half as many wins so far this season as the Reds, so it may be a good opportunity to put some distance between the good guys and everyone else.

Cueto to pitch second rehab start
Johnny Cueto pitched his first rehab start with the class-A Dayton Dragons on Thursday. He went 3.0 innings, allowing 1 run on 4 hits and 0 walks. He struck out 4.

Now, you’d think an ace like Cueto wouldn’t be allowing runs to single-Aers, but I suppose that’s not really the point of a rehab start. He felt good enough that they’ve scheduled him a second trip to the mound in Dayton. Tomorrow he’ll again face West Michigan with the Dragons.

As of this writing, there were 12 seats still available to choose through the Dragons’ website, so if you want to go, act fast.

What to say to sound smart at the water cooler
The Reds lead all of baseball in home wins. They are 16-6 when they play at home.