First off, I'm gonna leave the All-Star snubbing alone. Too many people have already speculated enough about it, and there's nothing that can really be done about it now, except Johnny Cueto possibly bringing suit against the MLB and Tony Larussa. So we'll move on.
The Reds are 3-2 on the old West Coast Swing so far. So they're doing better than I expected. Still 6 to go. Unfortunately, the farther along they go, the more damaged they become. Scott Rolen is having back spasms again. Joey Votto twisted his knee on that slide on Friday, then re-aggravated it on Saturday and we haven't seen him since. Then, last night, Zack Cozart got popped in the head by a Chad Billingsley pitch that got a little loose on him. He has a mild concussion. He cracked Cozart's helmet. Phillips is back after getting punched in the face on a steal situation against Milwaukee.
Which all basically leads to, the All-Star Break can't get here fast enough. Now, Scott, Zack and Brandon (even though he shouldn't be) will all be getting rest during that Break, Joey Votto has to play in that all-important game next Tuesday. So the question is, does he go out there, possibly hurt, to play his guts out, knowing his team might need that home-field advantage because they could make it to the World Series? Or does he withdraw himself for a few extra days of rehab, so that he can actually play well in the second half of the season to make sure that his team actually DOES make it to the World Series?
Like I said, there are 6 games left on the road-trip. If I'm Joey, I'd want to play in at least half of them, and have productive starts, to convince myself I was in good enough shape to play. Any less than that, or any issues from being out there on the days I do play, and I get myself out of the game. No sense in risking long-term knee injury for the Mid-Summer Classic.
Meanwhile, the Reds refuse to put anyone on the Disabled List. And with Cozart's injury last night, they had to play Wilson Valdez, which literally left Ryan Ludwick, and Ryan Hanigan as the only available position players, and obviously certain pitchers, like Mike Leake to pinch-hit or run if needed. That's putting a lot of faith in the 8 guys backing up that pitcher.
I know that the options at Triple-A are pretty thin. (People are pestering John Fay as to why they don't call up Billy "100 Steals" Hamilton, even though they don't understand, he plays on a High-A team, far below major league standards). But if Rolen is gonna be out any significant amount of time, or if Cozart can't pass the concussion test, you've gotta get somebody on the short DL and get a player up here who can swing a bat. At some point in this series, Dusty is going to need a pinch-hitter and see an empty bench, or more likely, he's going to hold back on using a bench player in a pinch-hit situation, thinking he needs to save said player for a later instance in the game.
I'm just going to hope Votto is feeling better and Cozart's concussion is so mild it goes away in a day or two, because if not, things could get messy in the last few games before the All-Star Break.
SIDE NOTE: With all the hoopla of the All-Star Voting and snubbing, I find one more thing interesting. The Final Vote for the NL features a Cardinal that TLR couldn't fit on his regular squad in David Freese, the guy who should have gotten picked at 2nd if they really weren't gonna take Brandon Phillips but got screwed by the "every team must be represented rule" Aaron Hill, the freshman phenom, Bryce Harper, an exciting outfielder to watch in Michael Bourn, and.......Chipper Jones.
Yes that Chipper Jones. He of the 19-year, all in Atlanta career. The one that Georgia children who have dreamed of playing baseball since the mid-1990's have emulated. The man who selflessly moved to left field in 2002 and 2003 so that Vinny Castillo could play third. Remember him? He's retiring after this season. Mostly because he's only played 45 games out of 79 this season due to injury. So this may be his last harrah. And if baseball has anything to say about it, I think he'll get it. After a day of voting, MLB.com claims that Chipper is leading the 5 NL Final Voters. The only way I don't call the Final Vote a sham is if anyone but Chipper gets in. And I'm not saying that Chipper won't get in legitimately(even though I think the fix is in)-- a lot of nostalgic 30-somethings will think back to 1995 and Chipper and Bobby Cox-- but if this game "really matters" then don't you want a guy who's more likely to get a hit in the clutch, than a guy who's close to clutching his chest in pain?
Today's Twitter Bio: @MaskMetal
He's one of my newer follows, but definitely worth it. He's a big Reds and White Sox fan. And no matter what time of day you catch him, he always seems like he's got a positive vibe going. That could be, and don't hold it against him, because he's Canadian. I'm a big fan of his #3RedsPositives he does, where he asks fellow fans to tell him what went well about each game, win or loss. It's a great way to feel good about the team, instead of ragging on minor details.
MaskMetal (aka Johnny D) doesn't really need my help. He's already got over 500 followers, but if you follow me, and somehow don't follow him, and you like the Reds, you might be doing it wrong.
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