Trade Alonzo for WHO??

I don't report on a lot of rumors that I read online because most of them are just bull. Did you see the rumors today that the Reds were looking to deal with Toronto...one rumor had the Reds trading Yonder Alonzo for yes, you guessed it, Scott Rolen!

Please, Walt, tell me this is just a terribly ugly rumor!

UPDATE> The Reds did in fact trade for Scott Rolen today. They traded Zach Stewart, Josh Roenicke and Edwin Encarnacion. I was a supporter of Edwin's for a long time, but backed off of that just this year. He has not realized his full potential and could use the change of scenery. Rolen doesn't have a big power bat any more and has some health concerns, but when he can stay in the lineup he is still a nice right handed bat, hits for a nice average. He is also a really good third basemen...not quite the arm he once had but he can certainly pick it over at third. I am okay with the deal now.

2010 Nominees for the Reds Hall of Fame

The ballot for the Cincinnati Reds HOF 2010 class is:

Contributions while playing for the Reds
Bret Boone (1 AS, 1 GG) - decent numbers but not hall worthy, blossomed in Seattle.
Jeff Brantley - had a couple solid seasons as the closer in the mid-90's.
Norm Charlton (1 AS) - posted good numbers with the Reds, ERA under three for 4/5 years.
John Franco (3 AS) - career 2.76 ERA with the Reds, 1.57 ERA with 39 saves in 1988.
Danny Graves (2 AS) - Graves still has left a bitter taste in my mouth upon his couple horrific years near the end of his days with the Reds.
Kevin Mitchell - put up a 30 HR year but I'll always remember him as a Giant.
Hal Morris - never an all-star but a solid player. Batted over the .300 mark five of his years with the Reds.
Paul O'Neill (1 AS) - a solid year in 1991 but he's a Yank.
Chris Sabo (3 AS) - over 20 dingers in three of his years. The eyeware alone gets him in.
Scott Sullivan - seriously!

Barry Larkin was the lone recipient last year as the Reds only allowed one player to win the honor for the Class of 2009. This year three players will be selected. My votes go toward John Franco, Chris Sabo, and Norm Charlton. Although Franco will be remembered by many as a Met he was really good with the Reds.

Your Thoughts on who you think should be voted?

Reds make a trade with Seattle

The Cincinnati Reds have traded right-handed pitcher Robert Manuel to the Seattle Mariners for outfielder Wladimir Balentien.

Balentien, who made is MLB debut in 2007, has only played in 130 career games in three seasons. During that span he has hit .209 with 12 HR and 41 RBI. Balentien is a right handed bat and has played a number of games at each position in the outfield.

Manuel made his MLB debut this July for the Reds and in three games and 4.1 innings pitched Manuel gave up five hits, no runs, walked one and struck out two. Not really sure the thinking behind this deal. Balentien has shown some inconsistencies at the plate, but he is only 25. Waldimir was designated for assignment by the Mariners on July 25th. This season he has dealt with some wrist injury issues. He has mainly been labeled as a disappointment in Seattle, as he was one of their highly touted prospects.

Yan Moukoury Transfers to NKU

Yan Moukory, a soon to be junior formerly with the D-1 Houston Cougars, has transferred to Northern Kentucky University.

Moukory played limited minutes as a reserve during his first two years at Houston and will be eligible for the Norse this upcoming season. Moukory was highly recruited out of high school where he led Christian Life Academy to the championship his senior year averaging 17 points, seven rebounds and seven assists a contest.

Anytime you get a D-1 transfer to NKU you have to consider it to be a good pickup. It will be interesting to see where Dave Bezold plays Moukory as the Cougars played him at guard where the Norse are lacking bodies inside.

Florence Freedom No Hitter

On Sunday, Preston Vancil (2-0) of the Florence Freedom pitched the first no-hitter in team history. In a 149 pitch outing, Vancil walked seven and hit a batter but did not give up a hit while striking out eight. The no-hitter came on only the second professional start of his career. Vancil is yet to give up a run in two appearances for the Freedom. The win propelled the local Frontier League team to a 28-29 record.

Preston Vancil's no hitter is the first in Florence Freedom team history and only the 13th no hitter in the history of the Frontier League.

Adreian Payne Narrows List to 5 - Kentucky Among Them

Adreian Payne, one of the top centers in the class of 2010, has narrwed his list to five schools. The 6'10, top 20 prospect out of Dayton, Ohio is now choosing between powerhouses Kentucky, Arizona, Kansas, Michigan State and West Virginia. Schools such as Dayton, Xavier and Cincinnati were in the mix prior to Payne narrowing his choices.

It seems Kentucky's incoming class has upped the interest for Payne and it's also interesting how Arizona is now in the mix with Sean Miller landing in the desert.

Selig Considering Rose Reinstatement?

According to the New York Daily News Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig is considering lifting the lifetime ban of Pete Rose, making him eligible for the Hall of Fame.

Cincinnati Reds News and Notes

* The Reds are now 9 games under .500, their lowest point the season. Mired in a 6 game losing streak Cincinnati is now 7.5 games out of first place also their lowest part of the season. The Reds started the season decent going 26-23 in April and May but have seriously tailed off in June and July with an abysmal 18-30 record.

* Not only did the Reds get swept by the Cubs this weekend in Chicago they also suffered the loss of Chris Dickerson, Jared Burton, and Micah Owings. Owings left the game with tightness in his shoulder, Dickerson also injured his shoulder after a fall in the outfield, and Burton has been dealing with issues such as fatigue and shortness of breath.

* The Reds starting pitchers are now 2-13 over their last 18 games.

* Where is the offensive firepower? The Reds have only scored in double digit runs twice, both were against the Diamondbacks. 13-5 W on May 11th, and 10-3 win on May 13th. On the flip side, the Reds have allowed double digit runs on 8 occasions. (One of which was 22 runs, a franchise record)

Matt Holliday to the Cardinals

The NL Central just got stronger. The Reds are now closer to the basement dwelling Pirates than they are the NL Central leading Cardinals, and the Cardinals just got a little better. Holliday's numbers have suffered in Oakland this year but he has historically shown that he has some pop in his bat. St. Louis will more than likely solidify themselves as top of the NL Central once again. The Reds are rebuilding but it is tough to match up with the Cards with Pujols, Holliday, Carpenter, and Ludwick.

Where Are They Now? Akili Smith

I'm sure everyone remembers the #3 pick from the 1999 NFL Draft, Akili Smith, and the great numbers he put up during his NFL career..... just to think the Bengals passed on Donovan McNabb and payed Smith a 10.8 million signing bonus to be the franchise of the Bengals for years to come. Unfortunately that didn't work out and Smith's life has taken him elsewhere, away from the field.

A recent report from SI stated that during his playing career Smith was prone to jetting back to San Diego [his hometown] and partied. He constantly got calls from multiple women, his boys, club promoters ... and he gave in to temptation. In his own words, "I was a complete embarrassment off the field."

After he retired from football in 2007, he returned to San Diego to take on a QB coaching job at Grossmont Junior College. He's also working towards his masters in theology and divinity. You may ask, why is Smith working towards a masters in divinity? Reason is he's following in the footsteps of his father, Ray, who's a pastor at the United Missionary Baptist Church, where Akili is already a deacon. He's also quarterbacking the church's flag football team named God's house.

From Top 5 draft pick to a deacon and flag football starting QB in less than 10 years..... how time flies.

NKU Mens Basketball Opens Season Against D2 Runner-Up

The Northern Kentucky University mens basketball team will open up their 2009-10 season on Nov. 15th against Grand Valley State University (GVSU). The Lakers finished last year as the NCAA Division 2 Runner-up after a loss in the finals to the University of Findlay. If you recall, GVSU beat Michigan State in an exhibition game a few years back and finished the season with a 21-10 record last year.

Video: Jordan Crawford Dunks on Lebron James

Click the title for the video

*From eBaumnation.com
Personally, I think the dunk was way to hyped up in the first place and I'm not all that impressed. It looks like Lebron comes over to play help defense on Crawford as he's dunking.

California Dreaming?

July 28, 2005, does that date mean anything to you? This was the last time that the Reds have defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in Chavez Ravine. 2005 (In case you didn't know that was also the year the Bengals won the AFC North Division!) So far this season the Reds are 0-5 against California. (0-3 against San Diego, 0-2 against the Dodgers so far)

Houshmandzadeh giving up Madden

The ever humble TJ Houshmanzadeh has announced that he will no longer be playing the Madden video game series and personally boycotting Madden '10 which will be released next month. Why?

"Man, they don't get my rating right," Houshmandzadeh said while appearing on Colin Cowherd's ESPN Radio show Monday. "I just looked at the game and they have this wrong and that wrong. And I understand I averaged 10 yards a catch (in 2008), but it's the offense, man, not me."

"I'm not playing Madden no more, until they get my rating right," Houshmandzadeh said. "It might be a little pouting, too. It might be. But, you know, I used to be the best in the world at Madden, so I'm going to miss not playing it. But until they do me right, I'm not playing it no more."

But what I find interesting is the fact they have TJ ranked as the sixth highest ranked receiver behind Larry Fitzgerald, Steve Smith, Anquan Boldin, Roddy White, and Calvin Johnson. So this means that Madden has TJ ranked higher than receivers like Andre Johnson, Brandon Marshall, Reggie Wayne, Terrell Ownes, Hines Ward, and Randy Moss just to name a few. I don't think TJ should be mad about that, I think they overestimated TJ. Furthermore, TJ proclaims that he used to be the best in the world at Madden, but I haven't seen him on the bus. The more I hear this man speak (and butcher the English language in the process) the more I dislike him.

Check out the Fox News Story here

Random Thoughts

- I don't see the Reds making any moves at this trade deadline and that would not all together bother me. There is no reason to trade our young studs like Votto, Bruce, Volquez, Cueto. No one will want the overpaid veterans like Harang, Arroyo, and Taveras. The only player that I see that could bring some value would be Francisco Cordero. Cordero has a big contract but he is also a big arm. If a team that has some cash to spend and needs a closer for the stretch, don't be surprised if they deal Cordero. Outside of that I don't think the Reds will make any significant moves at the deadline.

- I was very excited about the Reds pitching this season and the last couple of months have been extremely disappointing. Homer Bailey was roughed up again last night in LA raising his ERA to over 7.00, Micah Owings has already racked up 10 losses this season, and so has Harang. The only bright spot has been Johnny Cueto. Cueto has shown some great stuff so far this season but he is not yet ready to be a number one. Who knows what will happen with Volquez when he returns.

- The Bengals have announced their inaugural class of the Bengals.com Virtual Hall of Fame. The inductees are Paul Brown, Anthony Munoz, Ken Anderson, Isaac Curtis, and Boomer Esiason. I love that someone is paying homage to the great Bengals of the past but the way that they are doing it is kind of ridiculous. Mike Brown has held on to this mantra of "lets focus on the players on the field" for a long time. This mindset, which I imagine comes from his father, has kept the Bengals from recognizing some of their best legends. I have news for Brown, with your track record you may not want people to focus on the players on the field.

- The Bengals signed their fourth round pick Center Jonathan Luigs this week. There are still four players that remain unsigned. Those players just happen to be the four top draft picks in Andre Smith, Rey Maualuga, Michael Johnson, and Chase Coffman. I worry about Smith and Maualuga. The Jets have signed Sanchez to a ridiculous deal and Smith with his carousel of agents will surely try to get Sanchez money for their guy. But O-lineman don't get QB money.

- Cincinnati is holding on as long as they can to that 2005 season, today the headline on Bengals.com: Bengals Rewind: Bengals magically close in on North. They are re-running the story when the Bengals beat the Steelers to set up a AFC North title. That was 4 years ago, I think it is time to let it go.

- I just can't get excited about College Football. I have tried very hard to be a fan but I just have never followed a program. I like watching Notre Dame on Saturdays, and will try to catch the Buckeyes, but early on in the season I just can't get into it. Once the player story lines develop and we become familiar with names I may try to watch some of the big matchups but I am just not a college football fan.

New Shaq TV Show

Shaq will be hitting our televisions soon with a new reality TV show on ABC Shaq vs. You can read the full article here on USA Today. The premise of the show will be Shaquille O'Neal taking on some of the worlds best athletes at their sport. The series will premier August 18th and will show Shaq competing with the likes of Michael Phelps, Ben Roethlisberger, Oscar De La Hoya, Serena Williams, and Albert Pujols among others.

Shaquille is one of the more entertaining athletes around. He will surely bring an element of humor to the show. I am interested to see how Shaq stacks up against the best at each competition but more excited for the humor.

Erin Andrews of ESPN - Victim

LOS ANGELES, July 17 /PRNewswire/ -- With respect to recent Internet postings of Erin Andrews, she has authorized her attorney, Marshall B. Grossman of Bingham McCutchen LLP, to issue the following statement:

"While alone in the privacy of her hotel room, Erin Andrews was surreptitiously videotaped without her knowledge or consent. She was the victim of a crime and is taking action to protect herself and help ensure that others are not similarly violated in the future. Although the perpetrator or perpetrators of this criminal act have not yet been identified, when they are identified she intends to bring both civil and criminal charges against them and against anyone who has published the material. We request respect of Erin's privacy at this time, while she and her representatives are working with the authorities."

NKY SportsWorld Stumper

Since 1960 there have been six Cincinnati Reds players who hit 40 or more home runs in a season. Who are they?

Ponder it this weekend. I will post the answer in the comments by Monday.

Last Night's Scoreboard Stumper

Since 1970, there have been five Cincinnati Reds players who have made the All-Star game with the last name starting with the letter "C." Who are they?

(Answer is in the comments section, we got 4-5)

Jamail Jones Takes 2nd Visit to Xavier

Jamail Jones, a 6'6 stud from Georgia, recently took his second visit to Xavier University with his parents this past week. Jones is the 64th ranked recruit for the 2010 class on Rivals. Jones has offers from Xavier and Cincinnati but also has offers from more than 10 other major D-1 programs. We could use a quality small forward so I wouldn't mind having him. And Kentucky... stay out of this, you already have enough top recruits on your team fighting for playing time!