5fouls

Yeah, not sure how the rest of the Big Ten will compete against this.

Heard this song on the car radio about an hour ago. I still remember the first time I heard it. It was the early 90's and I was driving home very late at night after visiting a friend in Bowling Green, Kentucky. If you've never driven the stretch of I-65 between Bowling Green and Louisville, its about as boring as it can get. At 1 A.M., it's a downright lonely stretch of road. I remember the song, because I was super focused on the radio in an effort to keep me awake, and when the song came on, it literally gave me the chills. Don't know if it was the whistling, the song's message, or just a perfect storm of everything at that moment to create an emotional response that would stick with me forever. But, it did.

My pet peeve is when people disagree with my pet peeve.

If Purdue is involved, it's a skid mark.

It will be interesting to see if Coach Cal makes any 'Best Dressed Coaches' lists this year.

ESPN Power rankings for this week. Holding strong with the narrative that actual standings are not as important as pre-season predictions.

Do my receipts fit in a standard file cabinet, or did you have to break down and rent a storage unit?

Likely in OF because it's a lefty on the mound, which diminishes the productivity of Benson, Fraley, and Friedl.

Does it give a reason why he isn't playing? And, yes, I agree. The series has ran its course and needs to be replaced with something else. I used to go to the games years ago. Packed houses every time. It's a shell of its former self.

Yeah, it's a shame Barrero had to bat with the bases loaded.

Back when I was a lad, pitchers would throw 700 pitch 19 inning complete games.

If the young guys are healthy and producing, Votto is going to be DH 2-3 times a week and that's it, unless he starts going off at the plate himself. Stephenson could be losing some of his DH at bats.

Might have to when Wil Myers comes back off the IL.

There is no real issue. People are just stirring the pot or over-thinking it. The trio of McLain, India, and De La Cruz will be playing 2B, SS, and 3B in some combination. ELDC can play SS or 3B. India can play 2B or 3B. McLain can play all 3. Steer will play 1B. Encarnacion-Strand will DH. Senzel will move to the OF as a platoon player, but will also be used in the IF at either 2B or 3B when one of the 3 regular starters listed above need a rest. Friedl, Fraley, and Fairchild will join Senzel as the core 4 in the outfield. Myers will be traded or released. Stephenson is the one that could be the odd man out with Steer performing well at 1st and if Encarnacion-Strand hits well enough to take over DH. I dont think the Reds want to use Stephenson at catcher any more than they have to because he is so bad behind the plate. All that said, who knows with the Reds management.

The final red flag does not happen if it's not a Penske car sitting in 2nd. That's what I dont like about it. And, I have all the respect in the world for the man and what he's done for racing. But, things should not be handled differently just because he's involved.

If a buy named Harry Peter, or one of his 3 dozen friends, reaches out to you regarding an airline deal, be sure to click the link. Don't pass up the opportunity.

Wil Myers is the missing piece for the Cubs. Trust me on that. If you have any influence over the Cubs front office, you need to convince them to look into it. 2-3 solid prospects and he's yours.

I suppose it could have been worse. Coach Shep could have been reinstated.

This crap burns my ass. Are we not ahead of the Cards and Cubs? Did we just not sweep the Cubs in Wrigley? Do we not have the same record as the Padres, who are much further out of the division race than we are?

Benson is the first to go. Myers needs to be traded for a bucket of balls before he comes off the IL. Unfortunately, that's only one spot when it comes down to it. In my mind it comes down to the 3rd catcher or Barrero/Newman for the 2nd spot. I vote 3rd catcher for the time being. Barrero is versatile enough to play outfield and Newman is suddenly productive. Newman could potentially bring back a reliever or something as we get closer to the trade deadline. Might be too early for that though, which is why I say drop a catcher.

No. The whole board has been spammed all morning. Mods are cleaning up what they can, but the bots just keep a coming. They need to find a way to block new joiners until they can fix the issue. New ones are joining immediately after the existing ones are cleared.

That tire situation was scary. No way that has a happy ending if it lands in the grandstand.

Mets, Phillies, and Padres are all evidence that throwing a bunch of money around does not always work in baseball. As a fan of the game, I love to see success from teams such as the Rays and Braves that are successful because of player development. I see the young core the Reds have and can't help but hope they can't build something similar to what Atlanta has over the next 3-4 years.