Reds are out.

So the Central Division winners got swept by an outstanding pitching crew. Last night, the Reds ended the run towards a World Series going down 7-4.

"Key Plays

• In the first inning, Placido Polanco hit a one out single off of Johnny Cueto.  One out later, Ryan Howard also singled and Polanco moved to third on the play, totally stealing Cincinnati's move.  It's okay; they weren't using it.  Jayson Werth then hit a ground ball right to Orlando Cabrera.  Cabrera seemed to have reinjured his side in Game 2 and was thought to miss the rest of the series.  He deemed himself fit to play this afternoon, but on this instance, threw the ball high and wide of first base, pulling Joey Votto off the bag and allowing Polanco to score.  Phillies lead, 1-0.
• Drew Stubbs singled to lead off the Reds half of the first inning.  Brandon Phillips then hit a deep drive to center, but Shane Victorino made a nice running, over the shoulder catch.  Joey Votto then grounded out to the pitcher and Scott Rolen struck out looking.
• In the fifth inning, with two outs, Chase Utley hit a deep fly ball to center field.  Drew Stubbs tracked it back to the wall, and leapt, hoping to bring it back in the yard and rob that cheater Chutley of a home run.  Instead, in a move that will have Dusty Baker flashing back to the Steve Bartman game, a Cincinnati fan tried to catch the ball with their glove, knocking it away from Stubbs.  The umpires reviewed the play, but it was clearly a home run.  Still, if there was an emblematic play that signaled that Cincinnati is not quite ready for the postseason, that was it.  Phillies lead, 2-0.
• The Reds were unable to generate much offense at all against Cole Hamels, which is not entirely surprising.  Down to their final chance in the ninth inning, Brandon Phillips got the region's hopes raised with a sharply hit ball that went under the glove of Placido Polanco for a leadoff single.  Joey Votto came to the plate, hoping to shake off a disappointing series and act the way MVPs do.  Instead, he grounded into a soul-crushing double play.  Scott Rolen then struck out for the billionth time and the season was over."

 - Red Reporter

The Cincinnati Reds are your 2010 NL Central Champions!

How about that?? The first time in 15 years, the Reds won last night 3-2 against the Astros on a walk off homerun from Jay Bruce to finally seal up the NL Central. We have good pitching, great batting, and Aroldis Chapman. I think this team could go deep in October.

Cincinnati Reds fans celebrate after the Reds defeated the Houston Astros 3-2 in a baseball game to clinch the NL Central, Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2010, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)

"The Reds started off strongly, with Drew Stubbs working a walk fromWandy Rodriguez.  Stubbs then stole second, and Rodriguez walked Orlando Cabrera.  Joey Votto then hit into a double play, but Stubbs moved to third.  Then Scott Rolen hit a grounder to third and Brett Wallace couldn't handle the throw from Chris Johnson.  Stubbs scored to give the Reds a 1-0 lead.

Chris Johnson atoned for that throw with a single off of Edinson Volquez to begin the second inning.  Brett Wallace then did his part by hitting a sharp grounder.  It looked like it might have been a double play ball, but Orlando Cabrera was shading towards second and couldn't get to it.  The Astros then turned to the bunt.  Angel Sanchez laid one down, but Volquez fielded it and threw out Johnson at third.  Jason Castro singled to score Wallace and Sanchez went to third.  Wandy Rodriguez then laid down a successful suicide squeeze, and Sanchez scored.  Astros take the lead, 2-1.


In the third inning, with a runner on first and one out, Carlos Lee smashed a ball to left field.  Drew Stubbs raced back, put his hand against the wall, then leapt a foot above the fence and brought the ball back with him.  Just an amazing catch.

Wandy Rodriguez was dominant, striking out eight Reds, including four in a row at one point.  Through the first five innings, he only allowed one hit, and an infield one that was probably an error at that.  But in the sixth inning, Cabrera and Votto both singled.  Scott Rolen walked, and the bases were loaded with no outs.  Jonny Gomes then engaged in an epic ten pitch at-bat that sadly resulted in a pop out.  Brandon Phillips stepped up and grounded a ball deep to the shortstop.  It was a perfectly placed grounder, and a sprinting Rolen beat the throw to second.  Cabrera came home and the game was tied.  Jay Bruce then lined one directly to Jeff Keppinger who turned the inning ending double play.  Game tied, 2-2.
Drew Stubbs hit a two out drive in the seventh inning that banged less than a foot from the top of the wall.
The Reds bullpen trio of Arthur Rhodes, Nick Masset, and Aroldis Chapman were masterful, retiring all nine batters they faced.

In the bottom of the ninth, Jay Bruce swung at the first pitch he saw, and as the ball landed in the grass beyond the centerfield wall where not even Drew Stubbs could catch it, the dugout emptied to greet him at home plate - as NL Central Champions."


For the whole story, and more recaps head over to the great Reds blog, Red Reporter.

Playoffs baby!!!!

Reds hold a 3 game lead.

Teamwork, baby! (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

After getting swept by the Cards, the Reds are on a 5 game winning streak with 1 more game before the Dodgers series, and they lead the Cards by 3 games!! That is a season high for the Redlegs. This is pretty impressive stuff, as many believed that the Cardinals series was the beginning of the regular Reds. Good in the first half, horrible in the 2nd. These Reds are proving that they can continue to win. I will admit, they need to do well against teams that win. Especially in their own division.

As for last night,

"The Reds seemed down, but as we've learned this season, they are never out.  With one out in the eighth inning, pinch hitter Miguel Cairo singled off Sam Demel, and then Jay Bruce hit a triple to drive him in.  Then Ramon Hernandez doubled and Bruce scored.  Paul Janish singled and runners were on the corners.  Aaron Heilman came in in relief, and Laynce Nix hit a sacrifice fly.  Hernandez scored and Janish moved to second, which was a great move because Brandon Phillips hit a ground rule double.  Game tied, 7-7."

- Red Reporter

After that it was all Reds, scoring 4 more, and shutting down the Diamondbacks for the rest of the game. It really was a great game for teamwork. The chemistry of this team was already phenomnal, now it's even better with a game like this. Johhny Gomes was taken out of the game because he popped up 3 times, and had a few defensive errors. Gomes, usually a pretty good hitter, has struggled of late. We need him to get back on his horse to be successful as a deep team.

Your Weekly Sports Mash Up

According to this report, Brian Shaw is the next Cavalier coach, with or without Lebron James. I've never been a huge fan of this, but I would rather have Byron Scott coaching the Cavs. Also, Scott's agent sent a congratulatory email to Shaw that was pretty lengthy. Nothing is official, but just about. I guess we will see if Lebron stays with this choice of coaching. For those of you who want info on Brian, he was the assistant coach to Phil Jackson for awhile and is his "most trusted" assistant.

The Cincinnati Reds are still doing well, leading the NL Central along with a win over the defending NL Champions, the Phillies, 7-3 last night. St. Louis won as well, so our lead is still a half game. Tonight, Mike Leake, the outstanding rookie, pitches against Joe Blanton.

Chris Henry died with brain damage. Multiple hits to the head, which happens many times in the NFL, can lead to damage such as that.

Surprise! Inside The Shoe is looking for another football writer! You need to be active, and have a gmail account. There are other things we need to talk about as well, so if you are interested in this, please email me  at insidetheshoe2009@hotmail.com

Super Monday.

We've got a lot of topics to cover today, as big news has hit from a couple of sides on the sports world.

First off, the expansion of conferences is heating up once more, as the Big Ten Council met in Park Ridge to discuss. The Dispatch also reports and prints emails from Gordon Gee to and from Jim Delany, and a big key to this is Delany saying that they are fast tracking the expansion. This most likely is due to the fact that the Pac 10, over the weekend, dropped the bomb inviting Texas, and many more Big 12 schools. This is huge, and could lead the Big Ten to making some tough decisions in the future. Nebraska and Missouri have been given an ultimatum, the Big 12 saying, by Friday, you either need to pack your things or get comfy.

Is this the future Lebron??

Lebron James is said to be favoring the Chicago Bulls, but Gilbert is leaning hard on hiring Michigan State coach Tom Izzo for the job, and he hopes that will sway LBJ's choice towards the Cavs. I'm not sure this is a good thing, because it's giving Lebron too much power. If he wants Calipari, then the Cavs will get him. I don't like it, and neither does anyone else. If it does get Lebron to stay, he better stay his entire career, because he is basically managing the Cavs.

Celtics tie the series at 1, and will head to Boston for what should be a good home stretch. Kobe Bryant and the Lakers have to be feeling some heat right now, as they were expected to be 2-0 in the series at this point.

The Reds battled back yesterday to take the game into extra innings, and then finally closing it out. They look good, and are tied for first as the Cards lost in extra innings to the Brewers. Bronson Arroyo didn't get the win, but the Reds still got it done.

Just how good are these Reds?

I've been a Red's fan all of my life, thanks to my dad. Sometimes I wonder even why he stayed with him. Every time when I was younger I would try and look for a different team to root for, I couldn't. Finally, the Reds are showing they have some talent in their team. They've got some good chemistry as well. Mike Leake just won his tenth game 2 days ago, and is undefeated as a rookie. Johnny Cueto pitched last night as well and got a 9-8 win out of it. The Reds now stand at 1st in the NL Central again, and they are here to stay. They finish up the series with the Cards, and then they get to face Stephen Strasburg with the Nationals coming up. I would like to see Scott Rolen homering off him like no other.

Aroldis Chapman is still standing in Triple A, waiting his turn. I would have really liked to see a Strasburg-Chapman pitch-out, but apparently he's not ready. I wouldn't be surprised if they brought him in the next game after the All-Star break, so it might be awhile before we get to see the Cuban.

Hangover.

We feel the same way right now.

With the hangover of the Game 5 loss looming over me, I couldn't bring myself to do a Spring Finals, so expect the WR's tommorow. The Cavs played so terrible, I didn't think it was possible they were a 1 seed. I think LeBrowns' Town said it best when one of their writers stated that the Cavs think they can turn it on at any point in the game, no matter how much they are down by, and win. Well, we see where that cockiness has gotten them. This venting is feeling pretty good, but I feel like a hypocrite since earlier I thought it was bad that all the Cavs writers were destroying Lebron and the Cavs, and I mean absolutely ripping them. I can understand where they are coming from, and I did just do it, but still. I shouldn't have.

David Lighty broke his left foot. Again. My heart goes out to him, and I hope he will be able to play come this fall/winter. If he can, that would be good news for our championship hopes. How ironic that we are all sitting here pouting over a championship season going down the drains (almost, it's not over till the fat lady sings!) and yet were looking ahead to 2 sports where we could win a Championship. Buckeye basketball and football. How about that?

The Reds are doing pretty well, winning against the Pirates last night in which Johnny Cueto had a 1 hitter. Oh so close. Some writers are saying that they might be able to finish above .500 this year, and try and compete for that NL!

So that's all I've got for you today. Sorry I didn't put a Spring Finals up. I need another writer with me, so if any one's interested drop a comment. Or email us @ insidetheshoe2009@hotmail.com. Thanks!

Let the countdown start.

The 2010 Spring Game came and went, and most people were most excited to see the upbringing of freshman Kenny Guiton. He had a great day, and most fans weren't worried about Terrelle Pryor, the running backs, the defensive line, or the offensive line. No, the one thing they were wondering once the game was over, was if Guiton was going to be OK. I took this as a good sign, and it also could mean were going to be really good, and have depth at every position. I like this, and I'll take it. The hit he took usually ends up with knee surgery, or a career ending injury. He walked off his own power, and then was able to walk up and down the sidelines, which is good. So now the countdown starts until the Marshall game. Summer ball will start up here, and we will keep you up to date.

The Cavaliers won their 3rd game, at Chicago giving them a 3-1 series lead. Lebron posted a triple double yesterday, and seems to get better every game.

The Reds won 5-4 to avoid being swept by the San Diego Padres as Homer Bailey pitched pretty well.
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Inside The Shoe is still looking for two writers. One basketball, and one football writer. If your interested, please leave a comment, or email us at insidetheshoe2009@hotmail.com. The requirements can be found here. We hope to be talking to you soon!

While we wait..

While we are waiting for Ohio State news to report for you guys, let's give you a break down of what's happening around the Buckeye sphere.

First, the Pittsburgh Steelers traded Santonio Holmes for a 5th round pick. Let me say that again, a fifth round pick. I know this is fairly old news by now, but come on! I know he had a mediocre year last year, but he still won you the Super Bowl just 2 years ago. I would think he deserves better than that. Not only did he get traded, he got traded to the New York Jets. Normally, I wouldn't care much about that, but this is a team that is getting more dangerous by the second. As for the Bengals, they are going to have a tough time competing with them next year, and I think the rest of the NFL might to.

Your getting rid of this???

Evan Turner is going to be a Harlem Globetrotter tonight. He is testing his skills, and having a little bit of fun, while he waits for the NBA draft. It will be cool to see him at the Value City Arena making flashy moves, and of course, winning. (Do the Globetrotters ever lose?) I think it's a good thing for him, as it will keep him working hard to get that first pick. I don't know where he will end up, but my guess is the Timberwolves, just because he will be right behind Wall in the draft, although I hate to say it. Turner is the best overall player this year, and there is no doubt about it.

Finally, the Reds are doing just fine, winning in extra innings last night to the Florida Marlins, 6-5. They stand ranked at 18th in the MLB, which isn't too bad. They have won 3 straight now, though.
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Inside The Shoe is still looking for two writers. One basketball, and one football writer. If your interested, please leave a comment, or email us at insidetheshoe2009@hotmail.com. The requirements can be found here. We hope to be talking to you soon!