The stat: Edinson Volquez is the first National League pitcher and the second in Major League history have one or fewer earned runs in the first eight starts of the season. Mike Norris of the A's had eight starts with one or zero earned runs in the first eight games of the 1980 season.
The play: In the second inning, Reds shortstop Jeff Keppinger fouled a ball off his knee. Keppinger stayed in the game and walked with the bases loaded in that at-bat to bring in the second run of the game. At the time it was his 21st RBI of the season, which led the team. Keppinger singled in the first inning, raising his average to team-leading .324. He stayed in the game until the fourth inning, when Jerry Hariston Jr. moved from right to shortstop and Corey Patterson entered the game in Keppinger's spot in the order. X-rays revealed Keppinger suffered a broken left patella and will likely miss an extended period of time. Class AAA shortstop Paul Janish was pulled from the Bats' game in the eighth inning. Janish is hitting .293 in Louisville.
The lesson: Expect the worst? As bad as things have been going for the Reds, they got worse with the loss of the team's starting shortstop and most consistent hitter.
Dusty said: "Someone has to step up. That's what good teams do. You step up until your big guys get back. He's been our best hitter, our most productive hitter and played a heck of a shortstop, that's why you want depth on your team and depth in your organization."
Next: The Reds go for the series win against the Marlins as Bronson Arroyo (2-4, 7.14 ERA) takes the mound on three days rest against righ-hander Ricky Nolasco (2-3, 5.35).
Reds shortstop Jeff Keppinger left Tuesday night's game in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Keppinger hit the ball off his left knee in the second inning of the game. Keppinger walked in a run on that at-bat to give the Reds a 2-0 lead. He singled in the first.
Corey Patterson replaced Keppinger in the lineup in the bottom of the fourth inning. Jerry Hairston Jr. moved from right field to shortstop, Ryan Freel moved to right and Patterson took over in center.
Keppinger has been diagnosed with a fractured patella of his left knee. He has been X-rayed tonight and will get an MRI tomorrow.
* Top 1: My buddy Josh is in the house, rocking his red Edinson Volquez jersey. The other day I was in the press box and saw a Johnny Cueto jersey and thought it was nuts. I get out my binoculars and see it's Josh. He also has a Jay Bruce home white jersey that he wore to Louisville not too long ago. He said Jay got a kick out of it. A walk, but that's it for Volquez in Josh's jersey debut (it just came in this week). Redlegs 0, Teallegs 0
* Bottom 1: Ryan Freel pops out on the first pitch. I'm sure that's in the Ryan Freel drinking game somewhere. Perhaps that will be tonight's theme -- the Cincinnati Reds drinking game. Every time you go, 'Man, Kepp just rakes.' Drink. Redlegs 0, Teallegs 0
* Top 2: This one's important, because if you don't read the rule, well, you could be trashed pretty quickly -- drink just once (not every time) you think, good God, how stupid is Dallas Morning News columnist Jean-Jacques Taylor, who referred to Volquez as 'a box fo Cocoa Puffs' in this column in February. Dan Uggla and Wes Helms would have to drink after their Ks against Volquez. What the **** do French people knw about baseball anyway? A gritty, gutty Ryan Freel play -- like his catch off of Luis Gonzalez's liner to center, drink. Redlegs 0, Teallegs 0
* Bottom 2: Joey Votto walks. Drink. Every time the fans think a routine fly ball is a home run, drink. When you're kind of shocked that David Ross is still with the team, drink. Every time the Reds don't get a RISP home, drink. (Oh, you're gonna be really drunk). Gritty, gutty Ryan Freel. An infield single with the bases loaded, busting his **** down the line. Nice play by Wes Helms to make the stop, but Hendrickson can't get there in time. Freel slides head first into first base, which is never a good idea. Seriously, sliding into first is bad unless there's a tag play. There wasn't there. So, needless dive by gritty, gutty Ryan Feel, two drinks. A Reds batter visably disagrees with an umipre's call? Drink. Keppinger didn't like the 3-1 call on him, and he was right. Anytime you say, man, Keppinger is just good up there at the plate. He walks. Hey, why not get a drink when the REds actually have a lead. You'd think that'd be safe, but not so much tonight. Redlegs 2, Teallegs 0
* Top 3: Matt Treanor struck out, but at least he gets to go home to this. It hasn't been updated in a while, but I do love this blog. Every time some drunk guy boos, drink. Jeff Keppinger boots a ball on a grounder by Hendrickson -- somehow it's not ruled an error and some idiot boos. Drink. Then, however, they rightly boo the official scorer, who gives Hendrickson a hit. Edinson Volquez thought he had Jeremy Hermida struck out on an 0-2 pitch and started walking to the dugout. Drink. Every time you say, 'I thought Joey Votto's defense was supposed to be a question mark.' Drink. Votto makes a nice play on a hard-hit ball by Hermida. Redlegs 2, Teallegs 0
* Bottom 3: Notice how it seems more bats break than ever? As Jeff Passan over at Yahoo! sports pointed out, it's not that more bats are being broken, it's that the maple bats that are used tend to shatter, while ash ones crack. So you can see that bats break more often, not that they actually do. Perhaps it's time to crack down on them -- maybe the first step is to limit the use of them to just Canadian players, like Joey Votto. Because, you know, they're from Canadian maple trees. The shift there worked to the Reds advantage. With Uggla playing in right field, he was able to get Dunn at first, but had no shot at Encarnacion at the plate. RBI for Dunn. Runner left on third, drink. But a run. Redlegs 3, Teallegs 0
* Top 4: Great play by Edwin Encarnacion? Drink. He makes, it seems, a diving play at third every couple of days. He gets Hanley Ramirez with one to his left. He just misses another on Jorge Cantu's grounder. Lamenting a player that was in a Reds uniform but isn't any more? Drink. Redlegs 3, Teallegs 0
* Bottom 4: If you think 'how can this get any worse?' Drink. Jeff Keppinger leaves the game. Patterson replaces him, goes to center, Freel to right and Hairston to short. GIDP by Phillips? Drink. Redlegs 3, Teallegs 0
* Top 5: An opposing pitcher gets a base hit? Drink twice. Hendrickson singled again, so that's four drinks just from Hendrickson alone tonight. That's three straight singles, with Ramirez up and the bases loaded. Not good. But, you do get a Dick Pole visit, and that's enough for Amy's rule of finsihing the drink with a Dick Pole reference. Sac fly for Ramirez, Voltron's ERA just skyrcoketed. Cantu walks. Luckily for the Reds, the "RBI Machine" doesn't come through. He does walk, loading them for a guy hitting .293 with 12 homers, which, well, would make most Reds fans want to drink. And, wow. Cocoa Puff Ks Uggla one his 95th pitch of the night. Redlegs 3, Teallegs 1
* Bottom 5: Adam Dunn doesn't make an out and people complain. Drink. Seriously, when David Ross gets a bunt single (and an RBI with it), go ahead and finish the drink. When someone complains about Dusty Baker "ruining" pitchers, drink. Volquez stays in the game, Ks. Redlegs 4, Teallegs 1
* Top 6: Volquez gives up a hit and that's it. Should be it for the night with 110 pitches. Redlegs 4, Teallegs 1
* Bottom 6: Doug Waechter in for the Marlins. What's gotten in to Corey Patterson? 2-for-2 tonight. And a stolen base. Redlegs 4, Teallegs 1
* Top 7: So, young Nick Brunker is here tonight sitting next to me. He said something about Encarnacion's improved defensive play. You might remember, Nick went on for like two weeks about how the Reds should just get rid of EE and he's a waste and all this other stuff. I told him he's nuts. After one of his nice plays, he said, 'You hate to tell me 'I told you so'?' I said, 'No. I'm fine with telling you once again.' Burton in. He gives up a bunt single to Amezaga, and EE nearly got him on what would have been a great play. But Amezaga is pretty darn speedy. My buddy Tom just sent me a text (sarcastically) blaming Dusty for Keppinger's injury. You can blame home plate umpire Mike DiMuro who missed a ball call that would have put Keppinger on earlier and he wouldn't have fouled the ball of his knee. Walk to Ramirez, brings up the RBI Machine. The machine is broken, he strikes out looking. Dan Uggla's just hitting .233 with RISP, but has 17 RBI with RISP. Bray finishes up the inning. Redlegs 4, Teallegs 2
* Bottom 7: Oppo homer for Votto. Drink. Jerry Hairston Jr., for coming from a baseball family has an extremely low baseball IQ. You're the only shortstop healthy and he's complaining abotu a called third strike and coulda been tossed pretty easily. Seriously, just from the baseball smarts angle, I wouldn't want him as the everyday ss, even with Keppinger out. Janish should get lots of time. Every time Adam Dunn is booed, drink. Redlegs 5, Teallegs 2
* Top 8: Weathers in. Two Ks and a HR. Redlegs 5, Teallegs 3
* Bottom 8: Matt Linndstrom in for the Marlins. Bako's robbed, he hit for Ross and will stay in the game to catch Cordero. Redlegs 5, Teallegs 3
* Top 9: After a walk and a wild pitch, EE made two really nice plays and a K of Uggla ends it.. And this one belongs to the Reds -- finish the drink.
* Ken Griffey Jr. joked about his day off -- "It's not a day off. It's a good, solid benching. I dropped a ball and bobbled a ball. It's a good, solid benching."
Actually, Griffey said Dusty Baker told him a couple of days ago that he'd get today off.
"Now I've just got to make sure I get tossed in the first inning so it's a real day off," Griffey joked.
He said he's seen Lou Piniella accomplish the feat, as well as Ozzie Guillen. Griffey said he's been thrown out of a spring training game, and not on purpose, which is pretty impressive.
Still, today's day of rest was Baker's idea.
"From Feb. 14 to about Oct. 20, I don't plan anything. I don't want a day off until the parade is done, I'm going home and still sweating out chapagne. That's a good time for a day off."
When first asked about it, Grifey joked that he was going to talk to Baker about it.
"I will have my protesting t-shirt on," he said. "I might run out to the outfield anyway, there's nothing he could do."
About the drop, Griffey said, "I was trying to protect myself. I saw him go down and I flinched. I thought I was going ot have to jump over him. You had two guys running full speed."
And on the bobble, "As soon as it hit my glove, I said, 'Fu....'" He said he had time to finish the word by the time he caught it.
* Dusty Baker was talking about the ability to raise an average quickly this early in the season, and how Adam Dunn could get there pretty quickly if he got hot, noting Lance Berkman was hitting under .300 when the Astros were here last.
"The cure for most ills is two hits a day for a week," Baker said. "That's my prescription as a doctor... The hitting doctor. I just wish I could write that prescription every day and have it filled."
The Bengals held their first organized team activity on Tuesday, and it was mostly like a passing camp, with the linemen getting the day off. The linemen that were there weren't in helmets or jerseys.
"They’d get bored," Lewis said of playing without the linemen. "Our goal is to start this way this year, because our line is somewhat experienced and you run out of things you can do by pushing each other around without pads."
Chris Perry was out there practicing and looked healthy.
"Any time you’ve missed as much time as I have, you want to get back out there the first day and see what you’ve got," Perry said. "Hopefully this will be a stepping stone to getting a lot better."
Perry missed all of last season and hasn't played a full season since 2005. Tuesday was his first practice since breaking his right ankle on Nov. 26, 2006 at Cleveland. The first-round pick in 2004 said he's feeling good.
"I feel good," Perry said. "I'm not going to put a percentage on it, because you can always get better."
Perry said the biggest thing on Tuesday was remembering the plays.
But that's small compared to getting back on the field. I asked Perry what he's missed the most in his time away.
"Playing football. That’s it," Perry said. "That’s what I do, that’s what I love. Playing football, being out there with the guys, the camraderie of the whole team. When you’re hurt, you’re isolated from the whole team, you don’t practice with them, you don’t travel with them, you don’t play with them. You’re a member of the team in name only."
Quarterback Carson Palmer said he's excited to get Perry back.
"He looked as full speed as it gets," Palmer said. "That's good for the offense, good for the team and good for Chris, because he's worked hard."
Rudi Johnson, who showed up in phenomenal shape, said it's a boon to have Perry back.
"That's great for us, we’ve got a great group of backs and a lot of chemistry," Johnson said. "A lot of the success I've had here in the past have come from Chris Perry."
Johnson said he wasn't fully healthy at all last season and he's worked hard in the offseason to be ready for a heavy workload.
"I was nagging and struggling all year," Johnson said. "I'm just glad it's behind me. Last year was last year and I never got over the injury thing last year."
Johnson looked noticeably different, with a more stout upper body. He said he wants to play this season at about 225 pounds, about 10 pounds more than last season.
"I feel good, going back to the basics and going back to work," Johnson said. "I've been working different muscles I haven't worked in my career. I'm with the strength and condtioning coaches every day. It's time for it. I've been successful. Last year when I got hurt, it was a devastating blow for me"
Johnson said it is important to him to come back and be a player the Bengals can count on.
"When there are yards to be made, 32 is here to make them," Johnson said. "I mean that. I’m working hard, making sure that I’m in tip-top shape."
Both Perry and Johnson said they were unfazed by reports the Bengals are interested in bringing in free agent running back Shaun Alexander.
"It's cool with me," Johnson said. "That's nothing new to me. I've been doing the same thing my whole career, going out and fighting."
Said Perry: "If they want to bring him in there, they should bring him in here."
Alexander isn't in Cincinnati yet, and neither are Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Former draft pick Bennie Brazell was at Paul Brown Stadium. Brazell isn't under contract and was not resigned after being on the practice squad last season, but Palmer said the four receivers at the OTA -- Glenn Holt, Antonio Chatman, Marcus Maxwell and Doug Gabriel -- were getting tired running all the seven-on-seven drills with little to no break.
Asked if he was frustrated by the absence of Johnson and Houshmandzadeh, Palmer said no.
"I'm a zero right now, I'm not frustrated right now," Palmer said. "I'm happy and excited to be back on the field whether they're here or not. I'm excited to be back on the field with these guys."
Despite that, their absence isn't good for the team, he said.
"We're definitely missing valuable time," Palmer said. "We'll get to work whenever they get here. Timing and rhythm is something you build over time with repetition and we have built it in year's past, but we're losing time right now. The guys that are here are getting work in and it's giving them a chance to develop and get experience."
