Well, I was wrong that it would either be Micah Owings or Matt Maloney that would take Homer Bailey's spot in the rotation.

The Reds have decided to call up Sam LeCure who will make his Major League debut on Friday against the Astros.

LeCure, 26, was very impressive at Louisville this season, going 5-2 with a 2.55 ERA in nine starts. In 60 innings, LeCure had 51 strikeouts, while giving up just 15 walks and 57 hits. He was the Reds' fourth-round draft pick in 2005 out of Texas. (Yes, it seems half of the roster is from the state of Texas.)

LeCure has earned the right to make his big league debut and it will be interesting to see how he performs tomorrow. And even though I thought Owings would move to the rotation, I like this idea. Owings has been good in the bullpen and the Reds need as many solid bullpen arms as they can get right now.

Anyway, who honestly cares, right? The bottom line is the Reds got the steal of the 2009 draft when they nabbed Mike Leake with the eighth overall pick and he's already become the ace of the staff. Who knows if that will continue all year or if he will eventually hit a wall, but right now, you would have to give him the nod over Johnny Cueto (4-1, 3.60) and Bronson Arroyo (5-2, 4.30). Cueto will look to continue his recent stretch of strong pitching when he faces the Pirates tonight as the Reds look to win the four-game series.

Anyway, I know everyone is enamored with the impending arrival of Stephen Strasburg (and Arolids Chapman to some degree) but Leake deserves a lot of praise for the way he's performed. He is mature beyond his years, comes right at hitters, has excellent command and has a wide variety of pitches.

Who will take Homer Bailey's spot in the rotation? It will either be Micah Owings or Matt Maloney (4-1, 2.72 ERA in 8 starts at Triple-A Louisville) and I'm putting my money on Owings. The problem is that he's been very good out of the bullpen (3-0, 3.43 in 21 innings) and the Reds need extra arms in their ‘pen, they certainly don't need to be taking good ones away.

However, with the call-up of 24-year-old rookie Enerio Del Rosario who was excellent this season at Louisville (1-1, 1.46, 3 saves, 24.2 innings pitched, 20 hits, 17 strikeouts, 4 walks), I think Owings will move to the rotation until Bailey is able to return from shoulder inflammation. And Bailey shouldn't be out for too long - he thinks he only needed to miss one start at most. But the team is being careful with him and you can't blame them.

And adding Owings to the rotation will allow the Reds to get his bat in the lineup every fifth day. Sounds funny to say that about a pitcher, but it's true: Owings is a good power hitter and he wasn't getting many at-bats as a reliever (just 9 all season thus far). Dusty Baker didn't want to use him as a pinch hitter in case he was needed later in the game to pitch.

Stubbs or Heisey? I don't know why Baker doesn't just give Chris Heisey a chance to show what he can do on a consistent basis. Even after playing well when given a spot start, Heisey is right back on the bench the following game. He is clearly a better hitter than Drew Stubbs and the Reds don't lose too much defensively with Heisey in CF (Stubbs is definitely better defensively, but there's not as big of a gap as there is compared to Heisey vs. Stubbs as a hitter). I would like to see Heisey as the everyday CF and to see Stubbs sent down to Louisville to see how he performs. You know a guy isn't very good at the plate when fans say things like "He's really starting to come on" despite the fact that he is batting .222 with a .689 OPS after 153 at-bats. Yes, Stubbs has been better of late, but he's simply not a good hitter and that is not going to change. And if you have a guy like Heisey who can give you good defense and solid hitting, why not give him a shot? If he fizzles (like Stubbs has so far) you can always go back to Stubbs or give someone else a shot (like Chris Dickerson) or make a trade (which is what many Reds fans are hoping will happen before the deadline).

Lights-out Rhodes: Set-up man Arthur Rhodes is almost too good to be true. At the age of 40, the lefty is 1-1 with a 0.47 ERA. He has given up just eight hits in 19.1 innings of action. He's also struck out 19 and walked just four. Those are staggering statistics and the Reds are fortunate to have him. He's in the final year of his two-year contract and hopefully the Reds will re-sign him, even at his age. He will want a multiple-year deal, but he deserves it. Closer Coco Cordero is usually an adventure when on the mound, but Rhodes is as good as they come in baseball as a set-up man.

What the hell is up with Masset? Nick Masset was supposed to be the right-handed version of Rhodes this year, instead he's pitched like a guy that the Reds got in exchange for a washed-up Ken Griffey Jr. In 21 innings, Masset is 3-3 with a 7.29 ERA and 28 hits allowed. He does have 32 strikeouts, but if he doesn't start getting outs, he's going to be pitching for Louisville soon.

As for why Baker keeps turning to him, it's called lack of options and past performance. The Reds are simply short on good bullpen arms and Masset was very solid the last two years. Baker is hoping Masset finds his old form and the rest of Reds country is too.

Summer Gomes: It's still amazing to me that no one wanted energetic power-hitting outfielder Jonny Gomes this offseason and the Reds got him back for dirt cheap (barely above the vet minimum at $1.2 million). Gomes is batting .285 (with an OPS of .831) and has six home runs and 27 RBIs. He has locked down the starting left field job and while I expect his batting average to drop, I think he's going to be productive all season.

It's still early in the season, but there sure seems to be something special about the 2010 Cincinnati Reds.

Thrilling comeback wins? Check.

Amazing team chemistry where guys genuinely seem to like each other and are bent on winning? Check.

The best pitching most of us have seen from the club in our collective lifetimes? Check.

The finest defense we've seen from the Reds in several years? Check.

Better-than-expected offensive production thanks to contributions from Jonny Gomes and others? Check.

Add it all up and you have a team that is seven games over .500 at 23-16 and is the hottest team in baseball after a 16-5 stretch. Yes, the Reds were 7-11 at one point, which is a bit hard to believe now. They are still in first place in the National League Central and it sure looks like it's going to be a two-team race between the Reds and Cardinals all year.

So, forgive me if I am far too excited about this team even though it's only May and there are still 123 games left in the season. As my old high school baseball coach used to say while discussing the pro game: "You don't win a pennant in May." True, but you can sure lose one.

Speaking of losing, the Reds are consistently finding ways to avoid it. Gomes led a 6-3 comeback win over the Brewers on Monday with a three-run homer. The Reds were struggling early against Milwaukee starter Yovani Gallardo, but former Red and current Brewer reliever Todd Coffey finally did something to help the Reds as Gomes teed off on him.

Then Tuesday's afternoon delight just looked like it wasn't going to be the Reds' day. The Brewers - one of the worst-pitching teams in baseball - received unexpected solid performances from starter Manny Parra (4 innings) and rookie reliever Marco Estrada (4 innings). The Brewers led 4-2 heading to the bottom of the ninth and called on closer Trevor "I held on one year too long" Hoffman. A pitch-hit home run from Scott Rolen tied it and a Joey Votto double won it for the Reds. It's the type of win that usually happens once or twice a year and it's already become commonplace for the Reds this season.

Honestly, it's been staggering how this team has been able to win close games and emerge victorious in comeback fashion. It likely won't last - how could it - but it's been an exhilarating start to the season and they've put themselves in very good position to have a big year.

So, sit back and enjoy the ride, Reds fans. This team isn't going anywhere. They have a lot of pieces in place and I think owner Bob Castellini will allow GM Walt Jocketty to go out and get a player or two before the trading deadline if the team is still in the thick of the race like I think they will be. They could use another bullpen arm and an outfielder with a decent stick. Other than that, this team is built for the playoffs and it's going to be a lot of fun seeing if they can get there for the first time in 15 years. (They did have the one-game "playoff" with the Mets in 1999 to decide the NL wildcard, but that's not technically considered making the playoffs. Although, the '99 Reds will always have a special place in our hearts given that they won 96 games - keep in mind the 1990 World Series champs won just 91 games during the regular season despite going wire-to-wire - and were such a fun team to watch.)

It's also time to give manager Dusty Baker some credit. A lot of it. He's been widely bashed by fans during his 2-plus-year tenure with the club. However, Dusty is pushing the right buttons thus far this year and his guys want to win for him. We can make fun of the "players manager" moniker all we want, but it's working with this Reds team.

UPDATE (Wednesday, 7:35 p.m.): I meant to say there's something special about these Reds ... when Aaron Harang isn't pitching. Without a doubt the weakest link of the starting rotation.

I'm not quite ready to say it's time to party like it's 1990, but the Cincinnati Reds are surging and it's definitely a good time to be a fan of the team. How often could we say something like that during the last decade? Exactly ... not very often.

The Reds have won five straight games, are four games over .500 at 19-15 and are just 1 ½ games back of the St. Louis Cardinals for first place in the National League Central. (The Cardinals will play the Houston Astros tonight.) Oh yeah, and the Reds just so happen to host the Cardinals for a three-game series this weekend.

Everything seems to be coming together for Cincinnati. The bats are warming up and the pitching has been lights-out good of late.

How good?

Well, Johnny Cueto (1-hitter) and Homer Bailey (5-hitter) just pitched back-to-back complete game shutouts. Not that it's that big of a deal or anything. Happens once every 21 years or so ... if you're lucky. The last time it occurred for the Reds was in 1989 when Jose Rijo and Tom Browning pulled off the feat against the Dodgers.

This came on the heels of Bronson Arroyo limiting the Pirates to just one run on Monday. And Aaron Harang finally seems to be getting more aggressive with his fastball (and not throwing his weak-ass curve ball as much) and appears to be finally reverting back to his old ways. We can only hope.

Mike Leake has been solid all season and there's no reason to think that will change. And Aroldis Chapman is ready to come up if any of them falter or get hurt.

So, does the starting rotation look good? Is Tiger Woods the most-famous member of the Buddhist Sex Rehab community?

Now, this complete slurping of the Reds does come with one warning: The five-game winning streak came against the Cubs (who suck) and the Pirates (who really, really suck, even though they swept the Reds last month). We'll see what the Reds are really made of when the Cardinals come to town on Friday. The Redlegs are 2-4 against the Cards thus far this year, and they need to prove they can beat them if they really want to be contenders and not pretenders when August and September roll around. If the Reds can stay hot right now, look out. I don't see a big weakness on this team. Offense is probably still going to be somewhat of a weakness, but it's not a big weakness. Moving Orlando Cabrera to the leadoff spot was long overdue, but at least Dusty Baker finally did it. I think for all his faults, Dusty is doing a fine job with this club.

How could you think otherwise at this point? The Reds are playing winning baseball and just came off of one of the most-dominating pitching performances in a series in team history. On the post-game show today on the Reds Radio Network, I heard Marty Brennaman say it was only the third time in the history of the club that the Reds limited the opposing team to just one run in a three-game series. And the Reds are the oldest professional baseball team, so that's saying a lot.

And the fact that it was accomplished by Cueto and Bailey - two pitchers that almost every Reds fan was concerned about - makes it that much better.

As for the offense, Joey Votto is undoubtedly the straw that stirs the drink and that is not going to change. He's batting .309 with eight home runs and 24 RBIs and is exactly what the Reds need in the third spot in the order. But Scott Rolen has also provided punch in the cleanup spot and that's been huge. Everyone knew he was going to bring an excellent glove ... and he has. But it's his offense that has me excited because I really wasn't expecting much. I know he got off to a really hot start in Toronto last year, but I thought it might have been an aberration. And while Rolen is not a great hitter by any means, he is the perfect cleanup hitter for the Reds right now because he gives some protection to Votto and enables Baker to not do two important things: bat Brandon Phillips cleanup and bat lefties back-to-back (Votto and Jay Bruce who has been on a tear lately). Rolen is batting .271 with six homers and 15 RBIs.

Jonny Gomes is getting most of the starts in left field and he's been very solid (.261, 3 HR, 19 RBIs). And the biggest pleasant surprise offensively has been catcher Ryan Hanigan who is batting a cool .380 with two home runs and 16 RBIs. Hanigan had 11 RBIs all of last season. He and Ramon Hernandez (.288, six RBIs) are a very solid catching tandem.

I go back-and-forth on the bullpen, but overall it's solid with closer Francisco Cordero, set-up man Arthur Rhodes, fellow lefty Danny Herrera, Micah Owings and Nick Masset (who appears to be rounding into form after a rough start). Still not a Mike Lincoln fan (how could you be?) and Carlos Fisher has been ineffective when given a chance after tearing it up at AAA Louisville earlier this year. But with Cordero, Rhodes, Herrera, Owings and Masset, the Reds have five reliable arms in the pen. It's a long way from perfect, but it certainly appears to be good enough to keep the Reds in the race. I don't think the bullpen is great, but it's not going to be the downfall of the team or anything.

Again, there just isn't a glaring weakness on this team and the starting pitching is the best it's been in my lifetime. So, enjoy it while it lasts, Reds fans. And hopefully "while it lasts" means all the way through the playoffs. Wouldn't it be fun to break out those old "Fear of a Reds October" T-shirts?

I know, getting way ahead of myself, especially after insisting I wasn't going to suggest anyone party like it was 1990. What the hell, peg those jeans, have a Zima and get after it.

Well, since it's baseball season, let's go with the vantage point that batting .500 is pretty damn good.

The Bengals went 1-for-2 in defensive back signings on Monday, landing safety Gibril Wilson (which makes sense) and cornerback Pacman Jones (which makes about as much sense as most of Mike Brown's moves during his tenure).

The 6-foot, 205-pound Wilson has a chance at being the Bengals' starting free safety this season. The incumbent is Chris Crocker, but he is recovering from offseason ankle surgery. Worst case, it looks like Wilson, 28, will be the backup FS. He was one of the most-overpaid players in the NFL the last two seasons (which is saying quite a bit) with the Raiders in 2008 and Dolphins in 2009. But the Bengals got him cheap -- reportedly a little more than the veteran minimum with incentives -- albeit only for one year.

Wilson was a fifth-round pick by the Giants in 2004 out of the University of Tennessee and started 13 games in 2007 when New York won the Super Bowl championship. As usual, most free agent starters from Super Bowl teams get paid exorbitant amounts of money when they hit the open market and Wilson was no different. The Raiders inked him to a 6-year, $39 million deal, including $16 million guaranteed. They cut him after one season.

The Dolphins then signed Wilson to a 5-year, $27.5 million contract with $8 million guaranteed last year. He played in all 16 games with 14 starts, finished second on the team with 91 tackles and had eight passed defensed. However, Miami also released him just one year after giving him big cash.

So, this looks like a great bargain for the Bengals and it comes at a position where they desperately needed depth. And Wilson is young enough where he still has some game left. In fact, he's two years younger than the 30-year-old Crocker. The Bengals didn't draft a free safety last month - which surprised a lot of people including me - but now we might know why. Or maybe landing a talent like Wilson on the cheap was just dumb luck. OK, you're right, probably the latter.

In addition to Crocker and Wilson, the only veteran free safety on the roster is second-year pro Tom Nelson who made the team last year as an undrafted free agent. Unless something changes, Crocker, Nelson and Wilson will battle for the two FS spots on the roster.

As for the signing of Pacman, I've already made it crystal clear where I stand on the issue. (See below.) Just not needed for a variety of reasons. (And by the way, the fact that he doesn't want to be called Pacman any longer means I am only going to refer to him as Pacman and never as Adam from this point forward. Sorry, Pacman.)

I know there is no financial risk in the signing because they can just cut him if he "like-ed da scrip clubs" a little too much or someone in his entourage paralyzes another man. However, just not a fan of the signing at all. The team has plenty of depth at corner and Pacman is not a good football player. Just a minor little detail there. He sucks at football. Check the game film from 2008 - his last year in the NFL with the Cowboys - to see what I mean. His level of suckitude on a scale of JaMarcus Russell to Joe Montana is a Russell. (Or using a cornerback reference, on a scale of Artrell Hawkins to Darrelle Revis, he's a Hawkins.)

Jones (5-10, 186) is only 26 years old and is a former first-round pick, so it's easy to see why Mike Brown thought it was a good idea to go bargain hunting here. "Not being a good football player" has never stood in the way of Brown's decisions. Or maybe one of his scouts (either one of them) thought this was a good idea. However, there is much talk that there was dissention in the room when the topic of Pacman was broached. In other words, most of the people in the room didn't want anything to do with his sorry ass, but Brown overruled them with his clueless fist.

Oh well, at least they signed Wilson and were batting .500 by the end of the day. For baseball players - and definitely the Bengals - that's a hell of an average.

Glad to see the Reds finally taking my (and everyone's) advice to get Drew Stubbs out of the leadoff spot. I've wanted Orlando Cabrera there since the beginning of the season and Dusty finally made the move.

Curiously, he dropped Stubbs to seventh and not eighth though. If it finally became clear that Stubbs was the weak link in the entire order, why not drop him all the way to eighth? Let's say there is a nice rally forming and there are men on base and seventh hitter steps to the plate. Who would you rather that be? Ramon Hernandez/Ryan Hanigan, or Drew Stubbs? Yeah, I thought so. So, even when Dusty finally "gets it" he doesn't get it all the way.

Regardless, the good news here is Stubbs will no longer be batting leadoff (at least for now) which is a big step in the right direction.

Something else that probably needs to eventually happen on this team is Micah Owings moving to the rotation and Homer Bailey being demoted to the pen. I would give Bailey another start or two just to make sure, but the inconsistent, yet talented hurler is mired in a slump right now.

Looking at his long-term career, Bailey will still be a starter. However, this year, get Owings in there as a starter and use Bailey (and his good fastball) out of the pen. Plus, this would get Owings more at-bats. You could even pull a Tony LaRussa (no, not constructing an HGH lab in your basement) and bat Stubbs ninth on the days when Owings pitches. Owings could bat eighth or even higher. He's that good of a hitter. He's not just a "good hitter for a pitcher." He's a good hitter, period.

In addition, not only is he pitching better than Bailey right now, but Owings would get more at-bats as a starting pitcher than a reliever because he's bound to get three at-bats on average the games he pitches. As a reliever, he was hardly ever getting at-bats because they didn't want to use him as a pinch hitter and have him not be available to pitch since he's been so valuable to the bullpen.

And that would be the one problem with this move if they made it: Owings has been extremely solid in the bullpen and that's where I wanted him to be when the season began. But it's become obvious to me that Owings should be in the rotation and Bailey should be in the bullpen (or sent down to AAA). Starters pitch far more innings than relievers and if Owings is clearly pitching better than Bailey this year (and he is) soon it will be time to make the switch. Not just yet, but soon (if Bailey's swoon continues).

The good news is all of this will take care of itself when Aroldis Chapman is called up and makes his Major League debut. But we're probably a little less than a month away from that happening. The 22-year-old Cuban defector had a rough outing his last time taking the mound, but after five starts he is still 2-1 with a 3.12 ERA (was in the 1's before his last outing when he gave up six earned in five innings). The really good news is that he has 30 strikeouts to just 13 walks over 26 innings (23 hits-allowed).

Leake, Chapman, Volquez, Cueto, Bailey. How does that sound for the starting rotation for the next decade or so? Pretty damn good if you ask me.

Oh, the Bengals' front office. Continually contradicting itself and making boneheaded decisions.

The latest comedic act by Mike Brown and his legion of clowns is the apparent signing of cornerback/POS Pacman Jones. Now, if Jones wasn't a horrible football player, I would give the Bengals a pass here. He's probably willing to sign for the veteran minimum (given the fact that no one else in the NFL wants his broke ass) and it's usually worth taking a chance on a supreme talent who comes cheap. If he doesn't pan out, you can cut him with no negative affect on the team.

However, Jones is not even close to good. The guy couldn't cover anyone his last year in the NFL in 2008 with the Cowboys and no one would even be giving him a second look if he wasn't a former first-round draft pick.

The real amusing thing here is the Bengals claiming they are trying to clean up their image. Yeah, signing the biggest idiot associated with the NFL is a good way to do that.

To be clear, the Bengals haven't signed Jones yet. However, ProFootballTalk.com is reporting that Jones WILL sign with Cincinnati and you can pretty much take what PFT says to the bank. (Well, unless the subject is the death of Terry Bradshaw.) Bengals.com confirmed that Jones received an offer from the Bengals and is "mulling it." What? He didn't even sign with the Bengals when they offered? Jones is even dumber than I thought. Hopefully the Bengals wise up and pull the offer before he inks it.

And all of this is happening right on the heels of the Bengals passing on Dez Bryant in the first round of the draft (who was clearly the best player available in my opinion) because of character concerns (and because they chose to draft based on need). But then they are going to turn around a couple weeks later and sign Pacman? You can't make this stuff up.

And the Bengals aren't even in need of a cornerback for a change. They have two excellent starters in Johnathan Joseph and Leon Hall, and they just drafted Brandon Ghee in the third round and he's expected to be the team's No. 3 corner. The Bengals also have Morgan Trent and David Jones to add depth.

Again, this would be a completely different story if Pacman actually had some game. But he's a joke of a player and has no business being in the NFL. His skill-set is more suited for the CFL or the UFL.

Course, maybe the Bengals just want a proven veteran who can "make it rain." And certainly, no one on the planet "like-ed da scrip clubs" quite as much as Pacman.

The one bit of good news that came out of Bengals headquarters on Tuesday was that the team might sign free agent safety Gibril Wilson. In fact, PFT said its source says there is "better than a 50 percent chance" that Wilson will sign with Cincinnati. The Bengals clearly need depth at the safety position after not drafting one last month. The starters are set with FS Chris Crocker and SS Roy Williams, and top backup Chinedum Ndukwe also returns (and he started after Williams was injured last year). But the team needs a fourth safety and Wilson appears to be a good fit.

So, hopefully Wilson signs with the Bengals and Pacman finds another sucker to ink him.

How's that for a quick turn of fortunes?

The Reds were recently 7-11 and some fans were already willing to give up on the season. However, Cincinnati has won four straight games - including a sweep on the road over the Houston Astros - to get back to a .500 mark.

And making it that much sweeter is that the Reds capped the sweep by beating long-time nemesis Roy Oswalt. He entered Thursday's game with an unbelievable 23-1 lifetime record against the Reds. Well, now you can make that 23-2.

There are still a lot of problems with this team. The offense is going to be inconsistent all year - although it's great to see Jay Bruce come on. That is going to be the biggest key for the offense: it needs production out of Bruce.

Also, the starting pitching rotation hasn't been nearly as good as I thought it would be, but it's still very early in the season. And Aroldis Chapman will be up by early June at the latest. If Aaron Harang and Bronson Arroyo can hold the fort down until then, I think the Reds will be fine because I have high hopes for Homer Bailey and Mike Leake. What a story Leake has been thus far. Not only is he the first pitcher in 16 years to go straight from college to the Major Leagues (Darren Dreifort with the Dodgers in 1994) but he's pitching very well. Leake, 22, is 2-0 with a 3.25 ERA through his first four starts. Now that is getting it done and Reds fans have to be extremely excited about this guy. His fastball has a little more pop that I expected (tops off at 93-94 MPH) but it's his wide-repertoire of pitches and his ability to spot them which really makes him special. He mixes up his pitches so well and just has a feel for how to pitch. He keeps hitters off balance, while still being aggressive and going right at them. What a find he was with the No. 8 overall pick of the 2009 draft.

And then that brings us to the wildcard of the starting staff - Johnny Cueto. I thought this would be his breakout year, but the truth of the matter is that Cueto hasn't shown any improvement from his rookie season of 2008. Hopefully that will change soon because the Reds need a solid year out of Cueto if they hope to stay in contention. Cueto is 0-1 with a 5.73 ERA in four starts this season. He gets the start tonight against the Cardinals in St. Louis and will face the hot Brad Penny who is 3-0 with a 0.94 ERA. Yes, Dave Duncan could even make you into a decent pitcher. Every season, he takes an average MLB pitcher and turns him into a Cy Young candidate. Well, Cy Young candidate is a bit much, but Duncan is clearly the best pitching coach in baseball. And it doesn't hurt that Tony LaRussa has an HGH lab in his basement and requires all Cardinal players to load up on HGH each week. We're only kidding of course. LaRussa only makes them do it every other week.

Anyway, just when you were ready to jump off the ledge and start looking ahead to football season, the Redlegs come storming back to .500 at 11-11. Now we'll see what they're made of when they take on the first-place Cardinals on the road in a three-game series. Winning this series could prove to be huge for the Reds. Not only would they keep their momentum going, they would knock off clearly the favorite to win the NL Central. In fact, right now, it's looks like the Cards are going to run away with the division if something doesn't change soon. They are 15-7, a full four games up on the second-place Reds. But even if St. Louis does have a great year, there is always the Wildcard out there as well.

However, the Reds just need to worry about trying to keep their heads above water and I think they'll be able to do that. This team is going to stay in the race this summer - I firmly believe that. I don't think they'll make the playoffs, but they'll keep things interesting for a while.

This is exactly what I feared about Drew Stubbs this year: Not only would he struggle big-time at the plate, but Dusty Baker would insist on batting him leadoff.

So, not only is Stubbs a black hole at the dish, he gets more at-bats during most games than any other player on the team. That's comedy gold! (Well, except none of us Reds fans are laughing.)

No one should be surprised that Stubbs is struggling. I think people were fooled by his impressive play during his call-up late last season. However, that was a cameo role during the meaningless portion of the Major League Baseball season. A better indicator of how Stubbs was going to hit this year was studying his minor league numbers and they were mediocre at best.

You don't all of a sudden come to the Big Leagues and become a good hitter after being so-so in the minors. Even players that tear it up in the minors often struggle when they get a chance to play at the highest level of baseball in the world.

Is Stubbs a lost cause? No, certainly not. He's too young to say something like that. And there's no question the kid does flash a lot of potential from time to time and is blessed with exceptional speed. But if he's ever even an average hitter (notice I didn't even say "good") on the Major League level than I will be surprised. He does play a mean centerfield and his defense will help lengthen his career. However, as a hitter, one would be foolish to expect him to ever be anything more than average.

But he's got a hell of a long way to go to even get to average. He's a flat-out liability right now at the dish.

And no, it doesn't help that the Reds passed on Tim Lincecum to draft Stubbs in the first round (8^th overall) of the 2006 draft. Lincecum went two picks later to the Giants and already has two Cy Young awards on his resume. And this isn't "hindsight is 20/20." A lot of Reds fans - myself included - wanted Lincecum to be the pick at the time. If you are a member of a Reds' message board, just bump a "2006 draft" thread to see what I mean. (FWIW, my personal favorite Reds message board is www.redszone.com.)

Anyway, we're all hoping for Stubbs to turn into a stud, but I just don't see it happening. At no point in his professional career - even when he was playing low-A ball with the Dayton Dragons - has Stubbs performed well as a hitter. That is not going to magically change, especially when he's facing the best pitchers on the planet.

As for the Reds' 5-4 win over the Padres on Sunday, it was big because it allowed Cincinnati to avoid being swept at home by San Diego for the first time since 2000. The Reds have already been swept once this year by a really bad team (Pirates) and it would have been a huge blow to their confidence for it to happen again against one of the worst teams in baseball.

No one is pleased with the start to this season, but it's not like they're out of anything with their 8-11 record. Let's be honest here: It's the National League and as long as the Reds are able to get to .500 (which obviously is a tough task for this team considering the results of the last decade) then they will be in the thick for at least the wildcard.

As for the starting pitching, wow, I couldn't have been more wrong. I think a lot of Reds' fans are in the same boat there - and there is the chance things will turn around - but the staff is a big liability right now. A far cry from the huge asset many expected it would be.

Other than some control issues, Aroldis Chapman has been lights-out good with Louisville in triple-A. I have to think he will be up by early June at the latest. But can the team really wait that long? And even Travis Wood and Matt Maloney might be upgrades over what fans are seeing right now from the staff. Aaron Harang is a shell of his former self and is one of the most-overpaid players in Major League Baseball, which is saying quite a bit. Bronson Arroyo is solid more often than not, but he will have days when teams tee off on him like they are taking batting practice. Johnny Cueto burst on the scene two years ago as an impressive 22-year-old rookie. Two years later, he has shown no marked improvement. Zero. That needs to change ASAFP. And then Homer Bailey will have his moments when he looks great, but he will likely be inconsistent all season and is likely a year or two away from really being a reliable member of the staff. He's at least solid though.

I still say this has the makings of the best Reds starting pitching staff of my lifetime, but it sure isn't panning out that way through the first 19 games.

The third day of the NFL Draft started out well enough for the Bengals on Saturday. With a pair of fourth-round picks, Cincinnati landed defensive tackle Geno Atkins from Georgia and linebacker Rodderick Muckelroy from Texas. Both of these players were extremely productive in good college programs and I thought they were solid picks. They weren't tremendous values - but they weren't reaches either - and they have a chance to play as rookies.

The Bengals need a legit fourth defensive tackle behind Domata Peko, Tank Johnson and Pat Sims and it looks like Atkins will fill that void. He's undersized at 6-foot-1, 295 pounds, but he is very powerful and quick.

The Bengals also have Jonathan Fanene who can play defensive tackle, but the team prefers to use him at his best position of strong-side defensive end. So, it looks like Atkins will fill out the two deep at defensive tackle. Fourth-round picks almost-always make the active roster.

Muckelroy (6-1, 240) isn't extremely athletic, but he was Texas' leading tackler the last two seasons and adds quality depth to what is already a very good group of linebackers. Muckelroy might not be needed very much this season, but with so many of the Bengals' linebackers in the final years of their contracts, some depth for the future was needed and Muckelroy was a solid pick.

And just when you thought the Bengals were going to have a great final day of the draft, they reverted back to their old selves in the fifth round and took a player that was projected an undrafted free agent by every draft service I can think of. He is none other than offensive lineman Otis Hudson (6-5, 312) from Eastern Illinois.

Hudson couldn't crack the starting lineup at the college football juggernaut Minnesota his first two years and then transferred to Eastern Illinois where he started at right tackle for two years. He will be used at right guard by the Bengals. And then after he doesn't make the team and is released in early September, he will be signed to the practice squad.

And then we will continue to wonder why the hell Cincinnati didn't take one of the safeties that were still on the board like Larry Asante from Nebraska or Reshad Jones from Georgia. Safety was thought to be the Bengals' biggest need entering the second day. I was glad they didn't reach for one in the fourth round - I have already made my feelings clear on reaching based on need in the draft. That's what bad teams do.

However, Asante or Jones wouldn't have been reaches in the fifth round AND they would have filled a need. Each of them were projected to be fourth-or fifth-round picks by most scouting services, so they actually would have been good value there. Instead, the Bengals dislocated their shoulder reaching for Hudson ... and then Asante and Jones went off the board 8 and 11 picks later, respectively.

This has Paul Alexander and his poor eye for OL scouting written all over it. Bengals.com printed a couple of hilarious comments (well, they were being serious, but I found it highly amusing) regarding Alexander and the Hudson pick.

Here is one:

"Hudson wasn't a scouting service darling - he wasn't even listed in Jerry Jones' The DrugStore List - but that has never been the M.O. of offensive line coach Paul Alexander. Hudson is far from a polished prospect but Alexander likes the possibilities."

Yeah, the "M.O." of Alexander is more like taking guys like Eric Ghiaciuc in the fourth round in 2005 and then selecting Adam Kieft a round later. Alexander was talking those guys up after that particular draft like they were future Pro Bowlers. He sounded like he graduated from the same college that they did or something. Oh yeah, he did. Central Michigan. I remember thinking, "OK, no more allowing Alexander to pick scrubs from his alma mater, or from any college program really." (In Kieft's defense, injuries prevented him from really getting a chance, but Ghiaciuc fully lived up to bust status.)

Alexander also likes to roll with picks like Levi Jones, who was projected to go late in the first round in the 2001 draft. However, based on Alexander's glowing recommendation, they reached for him with the No. 10 overall pick. And then even re-signed him to a ridiculous contract a few years later. Ouch.

Here is another gem from Bengals.com which apparently wants its readers to believe Alexander is some type of O-line guru, despite his history of questionable picks:

"Alexander isn't one to look at scouting services for his recommendations," the website wrote.

Yep, he would rather screw it up all by himself.

And don't forget, the Bengals didn't even want Andrew Whitworth in the second round in 2006. They wanted a TE and only took Whitworth when Anthony Fasano - who would have been a horrible pick - was taken two picks ahead of them by the Cowboys. So, the Bengals were like, "What the hell, we'll take Whitworth" and it ended up being the best OL pick of the Marvin Lewis era. They backed into that one my friends. But credit them for at least getting one right.

Anyway, as for that head-scratcher of a fifth-round pick, excuse me if I don't buy the "trust Paul Alexander" line. If he had proven he has a good eye for talent, I'd feel different. But it's been the exact opposite.

The Bengals needed a safety in this draft. Their starters -- FS Chris Crocker (30) and SS Roy Williams (29) -- are getting up there in age. The backups are young in FS Tom Nelson (23) and SS Chinedum Ndukwe (25) but the Bengals could have used a safety in the fifth round to push those guys for a spot. Instead, they reached for an offensive lineman that likely won't make the team unless every scouting service was wrong and Paul Alexander was right.

In the sixth round, I liked the Bengals' pick of Kansas wide receiver Dezmon Briscoe (6-2, 207) who has good size and speed, and was highly productive in college. There are some minor off-the-field issues, but there is no risk with a sixth-rounder. The signing bonus is so small that if he acts up, they can cut his ass no questions asked. But for a sixth-round pick, that was pretty solid. That makes two straight years where the Bengals landed good value in the sixth round. They struck gold with running back Bernard Scott last year and also landed cornerback Morgan Trent (who I think will get beaten out by 2010 third-round pick Brandon Ghee for the No. 3 cornerback role this year, but did have a somewhat solid rookie year).

In the seventh round, the Bengals took C/G Reggie Stevens (6-3, 333) from Iowa State.

Overall, I think it was a good not great draft for the Bengals and I'd give them a B. They had extra picks in the third and fourth round, so that automatically gave them an advantage heading into this draft. I thought they did a solid job for the most part and it will be interesting to see how many of these guys play as rookies.

The way I look at it, defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer is a very happy man because he landed four players in the first four rounds that could all potentially help right away. Carlos Dunlap is going to be in the rotation at DE and Ghee is likely to see the field as the No. 3 or No. 4 corner. Then Atkins will likely be the No. 4 DT and Muckelroy can step in if there are any injuries at linebacker.

Offensively, the Bengals landed two players that will need to help right away: tight end Jermaine Gresham and wide receiver Jordan Shipley. Gresham needs to be the starting TE. If he's not, that pick will already look bad. However, given the fact that he will have to beat out Dan Coats and Chase Coffman, that shouldn't be too much of a problem. Then the next question will be just how productive can Gresham be right away? Can he really be the threat over the middle in short and intermediate routes that Carson Palmer has been hoping for? The Bengals are banking on it.

Then Shipley will likely have a shot at winning the No. 3 wide receiver job over Andre Caldwell, who seems to be running in slow motion at times on the football field. Then again, Caldwell made several clutch grabs last year and has to be considered the favorite to be the No. 3. But Shipley will push him for the job and Shipley might end up as the No. 4. Shipley will also compete with his former Texas teammate Quan Cosby, 2008 second-round bust Jerome Simpson and free agent signee Matt Jones for playing time at WR.