Aroldis Chapman is the Cuban defector that the Cincinnati Reds signed and no one else did.

Much has been written about him, as would be expected when you have a left-handed starter who routinely touches 100. The list of left-handers with that kind of speed pretty much starts and ends with Randy Johnson. There’s lots of buzz, but the Reds seem to be handling his promotion to the majors with due consideration.

Here are a couple videos from game 7 against the Dodgers. The first clip is a wide view, showing Chapman executing his fairly smooth delivery and delivering all the way to the plate.

One thing that I found most impressive about Chapman was how long his stride is. At 6 feet, 5 inches, I guess it shouldn’t be surprising that he’d have a long step from the rubber. But to see his foot reach all the way to the edge of the stepping spot was pretty awesome. Not as awesome as him mowing down Dodgers hitters, but close.

As much as I would love him to develop in the minors and became awesome for the Reds, I’m also terrified he’ll get injured before ever making it to the show. I’d hate to be the Reds brain trust for this decision.

I was idly Google Image searching Joey Votto just now (Why, you ask? Shut up, I say. It’s my lunch hour and I’ll can use it to Google-stalk research players if I want.) and I came upon a most wonderful resource: PerfectGame.org.

Not only did this site provide the Votto-too-tough-at-age-18-to-smile-for-a photo you see here, but also such gems as:

Votto made a name for himself at Tropicana. He is a good looking athlete with a strong baseball body and a nice arm. Most importantly he has a beautiful left-hand swing that projects to hit with plus power. The ball jumps off his bat and sounds a bit different than most wood bats.

Good looking? Beautiful? Strong body? Wood bats? This is a passionate report indeed. I may have missed my calling as a scout.

How does one become a baseball wife?

I imagine some women must stumble into it, entirely by chance, meeting their future hubby at a bar or night club or some other gathering place where they could have met anyone, in any profession. Others, I imagine, are AAA groupies, purposely positioning themselves for the life. Either way, I doubt the young bride is entirely prepared for the obstacles that she will face in her married life.

Including being required to name your son “Brady,” if the life stories of Rachel Dunn and Abby Kearns are any indication. Yesterday, the Washington Post printed a story that went into some depth on their experiences, as well as those of some of the other Nationals players’ wives.

Check it out. The story’s a bit wordy, but how can you encapsulate the personal lives of so many people in less? Besides, this is all the words these ladies are likely to get all season. Hopefully it distracts them from the Nats’ performance for a minute.

The Reds have reactivated 3B Edwin Encarnacion from the disabled list. He had been on the DL since April 28 due to a chip fracture in his left wrist. Encarnacion fills the roster spot opened when IF Danny Richar was placed on the 15-day DL with a torn labrum in his left shoulder.

Richar got hurt sliding head-first into home plate in the third inning of Wednesday’s 1-0 win against Arizona. That’s the same injury that ended Wilkin Castillo’s season last month, except Castillo got hurt sliding head-first into second base. This makes me wonder if somebody’s not teaching proper baserunning fundamentals to young players in the Reds’ farm system. With all due respect to Pete Rose, head-first is for diving back to the bag when you’re on base and they try to pick you off. If you’re at a dead run and you go head first, you’re begging for a lengthy stint on the DL.

Which is exactly what Castillo and Richar are getting for their efforts. If any of the Reds players are reading this, PLEASE get Billy Hatcher to show you the right way to slide, and don’t go head-first and get hurt!