Gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooool.

Golaso. Goooooooooooooooooooooool.   Gol. Gol. Gol.  Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol.Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol. Gol.  Goooooooooool.

Turkey 1, Germany 0.

An attempt at starting an open thread.

I have been in the Cincinnati for a few weeks now and the weather here has been incredible.  I have enjoyed seeing the family, and friends, and have spent many evenings playing soccer late into the night with random folks at UC.

In other big new for me, I just had the letter I wrote to Naomi Klein published in online journal.  I spoke a bit about this in one of our earlier conversations about sabremetrics and the global economy.  You can find the letter here, with an introduction from the Director of the  Peace Education Center at Columbia University, Betty Reardon,  here.

Not to steal the Turtle's thunder about big news from the Dominican Republic, but I saw this in Hoy online this morning.  We are getting to a point with Volquez , knock on madero, where this is not a stretch at all:

Vólquez en ruta para el Cy Young

El dominicano es favorito. El abridor de los Rojos de Cincinnati, Edinson Vólquez ha tenido un gran desempeño en la temporada del 2008 y es el principal candidato al premio Cy Young

Escrito por: DIONISIO SOLDEVILA

d.soldevila@hoy.com.do
Llegando ya casi a la mitad de la temporada del 2008, podría comenzarse a hablar de proyecciones.

Y no solo de lo que serían números individuales sino también para los posibles premios a repartirse en las diferentes ligas.

Y para el Cy Young de la Liga Nacional aparece el nombre de un hombre que hasta el momento ha logrado asombrar por la perfección que ha registrado en el montículo jornada tras jornada.

Ese es el derecho dominicano Edinson Vólquez, quien lanzando con los Rojos de Cincinnati ha presentado unas credenciales de un peso específico tal que ha llenado los ojos de todo el mundo del béisbol.

 Y lo más grande de todo es que en la actualidad, domina dos de las tres categorías que son tomadas en consideración para la Triple Corona de pitcheo.

Con una efectividad de 1.71 carreras limpias por cada nueve entradas, Vólquez supera por casi una carrera completa (0.83) a su más cercano rival en dicho encasillado, que es Tim Lincecum, de los Gigantes de San Francisco.

Igualmente, Vólquez encabeza la Liga Nacional en hombres abanicados, con 110, también superando a Lincecum, siete ponches.

Su labor con los decepcionantes Rojos de Cincinnati ha sido uno de los pocos puntos luminosos que ha tenido la organización de la División Central en el viejo circuito del béisbol de las mayores.

De hecho, cabe señalar que de los 35 triunfos que han conseguido los Rojos este año, 10 de ellos han sido conseguidos por el lanzador que lleva el apodo de “Pequeño Pedro” por el aprecio que profesa hacia el tres veces ganador del premio Cy Young, Pedro Martínez, hoy de los Mets de Nueva York.

Y aunque tiene rivales con nombres de mucho peso como el ya ganador del Cy Young, Brandon Webb, el caso del mismo Lincecum y también del venezolano Johan Santana, Vólquez tiene buenas probabilidades de unirse a su ídolo y compatriota Martínez como los únicos quisqueyanos en toda la historia en conquistar un premio Cy Young, algo que no es nada fácil y muy valioso.

Las claves

1. Mejor efectividad

Edinson Vólquez encabeza la Liga Nacional en efectividad con un promedio de 1.71.

2. Mejor en ponches

  Con 110 rivales abanicados, Vólquez encabeza el viejo circuito en esta categoría de poder.

3. Duro en victorias

 Solo Brandon Webb (11) supera en triunfos en lo que va del año al dominicano Vólquez, quien tiene posibilidades de repuntar.

4. Rivales fuertes

 Vólquez tiene rivales de calidad en la competencia por el premio, pero a pesar de ello sus números se imponen hasta el momento.

5. Salidas de calidad

 Vólquez ha sido el  abridor que más aperturas de calidad ha registrado en la temporada. De hecho, todas sus salidas lo han sido.

Brandon Webb

El abridor de los Diamondbacks es líder de triunfos, con 11.

Tim Lincecum

Segundo en efectividad (2.54) y ponches (103) en la Nacional.

Johan Santana

Tiene 7-5 y 3.04 de efectividad, pero ha sido sólido.

Ryan Dempster

Tiene 9-2 y 2.63 de efectividad y sus Cubs están en la cima.

Ben Sheets

Apenas una derrota, con ocho triunfos y 2.74 de efectividad.

Carlos Zambrano

Suma 8-3 y 3.13 con los líderes de la División Central.

Tim Hudson

Acumula 8-5 y 2.96 de efectividad en lo que va de año.

 

Now the English:

Vólquez en route for Cy Young

The Dominican is the favorite.  The Reds’ starter, Edinson Vólquez has performed very well in the 2008 season and is the principal candidate for the Cy Young award.

Written by: Dionisio Soldevila d.soldevila@hoy.com.do

Arriving at almost the halfway point of the 2008 season, we can begin to speak about projections.

And not just about individual numbers but also about the possible awards that are given in the different leagues.

With regards to the Cy Young award in the National League, a person's name pops up whose perfection on the mound start after start has been amazing.

He is the right handed Dominican, Edinson Vólquez, who, pitching with the Cincinnati Reds, has presented credentials so weighty that he has caught the attention of the entire baseball world.

Most importantly, he currently leads two of the three categories that of the pitching Triple Crown.

With and ERA of 1.71 for every nine innings, Vólquez leads his closest rival, Tim Lincecum of the San Francisco Giants, by almost an entire earned run (.81)

Similarly, Vólquez leads the National League in strike outs with 110, also better than Lincecum by seven.

His work with the disappointing Reds has been one of the few bright spots that this organization in the Central Division has had this major league season.

In fact, it should be a sign that of the 35 wins the Reds have this year, 10 have been made by the pitcher who goes by the name “Little Pedro” due to his admiration for the 3 time Cy Young award winner, Pedro Martínez, who now plays for the New York Mets.

And even though he has rivals with bigger names than him like the Cy Young winner, Brandon Webb, or Lincecum, or the Venezuelan Johan Santana, he has a good chance of uniting with his idol and fellow countryman, Martínez, as the only Dominicans in all of history to win a Cy Young, something not easy and very valiant.

Key Points

1. Lowest ERA

Vólquez leads the National league with an ERA of 1.71.

2. Most Strike Outs

  With 110 punch outs, Vólquez leads the major leagues.

3. Strong In Games Won

Only Brandon Webb (11) is better in number of wins, but the way the year is going, Vólquez has a shot at passing him

4. Strong Competition

 Vólquez is competing with quality rivals for the award, but up to now his overall numbers are better than them all.

5. Quality Starts

 Vólquez has been the starter with the most quality starts this season.  In fact, all of his starts have been quality starts.

Brandon Webb

The Diamondbacks starter is the leader in wins with 11.

Tim Lincecum

Second in ERA (2.54) and strikeouts (103) in the National League.

Johan Santana

7-5 with a 3.04 ERA, but has been solid.

Ryan Dempster

Is 9-2 with a 2.63 ERA and his Cubs are in first place.

Ben Sheets

Just one loss with eight victories and a 2.74 ERA.

Carlos Zambrano

8-3 record and a 3.13 ERA with the division leading cubs.

Tim Hudson

8-5 on the year with a 2.96 ERA.

 

From Enrique Rojas of ESPN:

ORLANDO, Fla. -- The Texas Rangers and Cincinnati Reds have joined the Oakland Athletics in a bidding feud for the services of Dominican pitching prospect Michael Inoa, the crown jewel of the pool of Latin American players who will be available to be signed July 2, a source has told ESPNdeportes.com.

"Oakland has led the pack of teams interested in Inoa, but both Cincinnati and Texas have surged in the past few days, and it is now a three-horse race of big favorites to grab this kid," the source said.

"Some teams have offered him a major league contract in order to make the offer even more attractive, but Inoa's team is not interested in that. The battle may be fought until the last minutes," the source added.

July 2 marks the beginning of the eligibility period for players who turn 17 years old after Sept. 6, though they won't be able to play until next year. Players 17 or older may sign anytime.

Inoa, 16, at 6 feet 7 and 210 pounds, is a right-hander with a repertoire consisting of a 93-mph fastball, a changeup and a curveball.

The young prospect has been evaluated by every major league organization. General manager Billy Beane and a group of Oakland executives even traveled to Dominican Republic to evaluate Inoa.

According to data obtained by ESPNdeportes.com, at least seven teams were ready to give Inoa a bonus of more than $3 million, but many of them, including the New York Yankees, pulled out of the race as the price for the young ace went up.

Juan Duran and now this. It looks as if the Reds are serious in becoming players on the international market. Here is what I know about Inoa:

He throws a low-90s fastball that has touched 94. More velocity is expected. He throws an ordinary curve and a slightly below average change, as well as a splitter he rarely uses. All three pitches have potential.

Inoa is 6-7, 205 and very athletic. One scout said the kid would be a point guard in basketball. Another scout called him a "once-a-decade" kind of pitching prospect. His mom played softball and his dad played baseball in the Dominican.

Inoa reportedly has a fluid, smooth delivery. At age 13 he was 6-4, 180 and was hitting 84 mph. He repeats his delivery well and locates his pitches very well.

His signing bonus could break the record of $2.44 million set in 1999 by none other than Wily Mo Pena, then of the New York Yankees.

I've been a really big fan of Adam Dunn ever since he was in Dayton. he's my grandson's favorite player and my 98 year old Mother thinks he's sexy. As we know this guy has gotten very little love from Cincinnati. Now Mr. Bacardi, GM from the Toronto Jays has been dissing him...(Someone asked Dunn if he would give Ricciardi a hug on the field if he saw him."A bear hug," Dunn joked. "I have other things to worry about than that dude.")

Dunn is in a horrible slump: Over his past 17 games, Dunn was batting .111 (6-for-54), while his overall batting average dipped from .254 to .220. He has an over .800 OPS but has been so inconsistent that I think that he should actually be dropped in the line up to 7th. Although his BA is only.188 his OPS is over 1.000 when batting 7th (5 games, small sample size).  This is an option year  and Dunn should be having a career year, and well I guess actually he is...what I'm suggesting is that we stop looking at Adam as 'The Man' and just let him play. We can get more productivity from Votto and EdE by moving themup in the order. I'd love to see a line up something like this:

Kepp SS                                                                                                                                     Bruce CF                                                                                                                                    EdE  3b                                                                                                                                   Votto 1B                                                                                                                                     BP 2B                                                                                                                                              GriffeyRF                                                                                                                                                       Dunn LF                                                                                                                                     weak hitting catcher                                                                                                               Pitcher

I would like to see the young guys getting more PAs as this year is over as far as play off contention is concerned. Dunn is going be good for 40 dingers and 90 RBIs no matter where he is in the line up.Let Dunn and Old Man Griffey bring up the rear and see if the young guys can manufacturer some runs.

AND if the Reds are set on letting these younger players build a nucleus  for 2009, maybe, (just maybe) it is time to think about letting Dunn go. That is if anyone wants a guy who has no passion for the game, is lazy and strikes out a lot.

From the Bats Game Notes:

HERR TRADED TO LOUISVILLE: IF Aaron Herr was traded by the Cleveland Indians to the Reds and assigned to
Louisville today. In 65 games with the Bisons, Herr is batting .245 with nine home runs and 32 RBI. He spent all of
last season with Louisville where he was named the IL’s post-season utility player of the year; he hit .274 with 19
homers and 83 RBI in 132 games for the 2007 Bats.

FOGG TO START THURSDAY: RHP Josh Fogg is scheduled to start for the Bats on Thursday on Major League
rehab. He has been on Cincinnati’s DL since June 1 with lumbar back spasms. With Cincinnati, he is 1-2 with a

Yeah, I guess I haven't been paying attention, since I didn't notice that the Reds play the Blue Jays next. This is about as close as they're going to get to here.

But since it's an off-day and we seem to have lost the short-lived tradition of team previews, I figure that we could use a thread for that.  The projected starters:

Tuesday, 7:07 EDT: B. Arroyo vs. A. Burnett

Wednesday, 7:07 EDT: A. Harang vs. R. Halladay

Thursday, 7:07 EDT: E. Vólquez vs. J. Litsch

I like our chances here, if we can see good Brandon and good Aaron.  Oh, and is it time for a Canadian music-themed night?  Rush and Guess Who, anybody?

OK, this isn't exactly about our Reds, but I'll make it up to y'all with a post about my weekend in NYC after this.

For those of us that care about soccer (Brendan, me, ???), the European Championships this year has been pretty much fascinating. Especially for me because I just got back from Turkey in January.

via image.guim.co.uk

Turkey lost their first match to Portugal, but then won their next two to get out of the groups. They just won on Friday on penalties. Out of these 4 games and 390 minutes of soccer, they've been in the lead for 3 minutes.

Their starting goalie was suspended at the end of their third match for a couple games. Due to injuries and suspensions, they are down to 12 field players and 2 goalies (for those that don't know the rules, you have 10 + a goalie on the field and are allowed 3 substitutions).

So this is all pretty exciting from a view of soccer alone. But the political/social/cultural aspects are insane. Turkey is (or perhaps isn't) on the verge of becoming part of the European Union and is seen by just about everyone in Europe as The Other. Plenty of kids are raised in Europe being told that if they don't do their homework, The Terrible Turk will come get them while they sleep. The whole Islam/Christianity split is its own other thing, too.

Turkey's next match to decide who goes on to the finals is with Germany. This match is a whole lot like if there was a Blacks vs. Whites baseball game in the 1930's US. I'll spare boring you all to tears without linking. 

So yeah, I realize that very few of us American folks like soccer, but if you're not up to much Wednesday at 230, it'd be worth checking out. This is the sort of fascinating, history-in-the-making sporting event that is a lot of fun to witness in person. Do yourself a favor and do so.

And knowing me, Germany will probably end up winning 4-0 or something. But I'm saying there's a chance...

I moved to New York about a year ago and walking around the city this weekend looking for people who I thought might know the score of the Yankees Reds games reminded me about a fun little adjustment I had to make after my move.  I live in a mostly black neighborhood in Brooklyn and I didn't know anyone at all when I moved here, so I  naturally tried to make some friends.  The first thing i noticed was an inordinate amount of people wearing Cincinnati Reds hats, and i thought "awesome a whole bunch of Reds fans, this is going to be great."  After about 3 weeks of walking up to people and asking "hey are you a Reds fan too? I just moved out from Cincinnati myself!" and getting some pretty strange glances I realized something was afoot.  Turns out one of the Subgroups of the Bloods hat of choice is the Reds cap with the black brim, also alot of dudes just wear it to match their outfit.  Safe to say I felt like an ass.  They seemed to be pretty entertained by my complete ignorance though.  On a pleasant side note it was nice to see Edinson Volquez, "the Red Baron" plastered all over the back pages of the newspapers this weekend, it made me wistful for the Nasty Natti.

People will argue that bringing him back will serve no real purpose. They will argue that he is past his prime. But in reality what is there to lose. If rumors are true and Votto is destined for a corner outfield slot then pull the trigger for Casey, it wouldn't cost much. I still resent Dan O for getting Dave Williams of all people for Casey. He undoubtedly would love to come home, and I for one would enjoy seeing him in a Reds uniform again. Not for the pennant, not for the World Series, just for the fans, just for him. The Reds stand no chance of winning, and I have no further reason to watch on a regular basis. Don't get me wrong, I like to watch Volquez, Bruce, Votto, Cueto but not on a regular basis especially if they are destined to lose. If Casey was to come back, it would at least give me a reason to watch, and to enjoy the team again.

Thompson

Via the Fay's iPhone:

The Reds are expected to recall from Class AAA Louisville RHP Daryl Thompson (#53) to start tomorrow's game...he will make his Major League debut. Thompson, 22, began the season in the minors and in 14 starts at Class AA Chattanooga and Class AAA Louisville combined to go 6-2 with a 2.22 ERA.

He replaces 22-year-old RHP Homer Bailey in the rotation.

Here's the reds.com version.

Thompson's only had one bad start in Louisville, when he allowed 8 hits and 8 runs in 5 innings against Indianapolis. In his other 3 starts, he's allowed just 2 runs, striking out 18 in 22.2 innings. He had a 1.76 ERA in Chattanooga, with 56K and 14BB in 61.1IP.

I'd also like to point out that Thompson's the last piece of The Trade to make it to the majors. So far neither team has gotten much production from the players in that trade. Maybe we can end up with a solid starter out of it.