Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

CINCINNATI (AP)—Left-hander Dontrelle Willis(notes) of the Cincinnati Reds has
been scratched from his start against the Milwaukee Brewers because of back
spasms.

Lefty Matt Maloney(notes) was moved up in the rotation to take Willis’ spot on
Sunday. Maloney had been scheduled to start Monday against Houston.

Willis (0-6), the 2003 NL Rookie of the Year and a two-time All-Star, has
made 12 starts since being called from Triple-A Louisville on July 10. He’d been
the victim of three blown saves and had allowed three runs or fewer in nine of
his starts.

Maloney opened the season with the Reds and was 0-2 with a 6.88 ERA in six
appearances before going on the disabled on May 26 with a cracked rib that kept
him out until Aug. 16.

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CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Reds placed right-handed pitcher Logan Ondrusek on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right forearm, and recalled left-hander Travis Wood from Triple-A Louisville.

Ondrusek was 4-4 with a 2.63 earned run average in 56 games, but he had a 14.53 ERA over his last seven appearances. He was placed on the DL Tuesday, retroactive to Monday.

Wood began the season with the Reds and went 5-5 with a 5.11 ERA in 16 starts before he was optioned to Louisville on June 22. He went 8-8 with a 4.17 ERA in eight starts for the Bats.

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CINCINNATI (AP)—The Cincinnati Reds placed right-handed pitcher Logan
Ondrusek(notes) on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right forearm, and recalled
left-hander Travis Wood(notes) from Triple-A Louisville.

Ondrusek was 4-4 with a 2.63 earned run average in 56 games, but he had a
14.53 ERA over his last seven appearances. He was placed on the DL Tuesday,
retroactive to Monday.

Wood began the season with the Reds and went 5-5 with a 5.11 ERA in 16
starts before he was optioned to Louisville on June 22. He went 8-8 with a 4.17
ERA in eight starts for the Bats.

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CINCINNATI — Was it the forced exile to Triple-A Louisville or was it the Reverse Samson, the shearing of his dreadlocks?

Edinson Volquez, the Opening Day pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds, suffered the embarrassment of a demotion to the minors to search for his lost command of the strike zone.

When he returned, Volquez had the curls removed from his head, which reduced the size of his cap and made him look like a new man — on and off the mound.

“I love my hair and I still have it at home, but it was too hot,” he said. “And it has been three years and it was too much work. Time to cut it off.”

Volquez came into a game Tuesday night against the Chicago Cubs with a 3-2 record, a 6.35 ERA and a penchant for giving up runs in the first inning like John D. Rockefeller passing out dimes to little kids.

In seven of his 10 starts, Volquez allowed at least one run in the first inning. His first-inning ERA was 18.00.

In his first start since his recall from Louisville, his new-man appearance suited him well in the first inning — no runs, one hit, two strikeouts, 14 pitches.

He teetered in the second inning, but didn’t totter. He gave up a run and three hits, but left the bases loaded.

From there, it was a breeze on a 91-degree night that had no breeze — seven innings, one run, seven hits, two walks (just two walks), five strikeouts, 105 pitches, 61 strikes and he won, 8-2.

For the Reds, it was a glass of champagne when all they asked for was a drink of water.

Fans have been upset with the lack of offensive production from left fielder Jonny Gomes and shortstop Paul Janish, laying heavy blame on those two for a slow start that has the Reds in third place, five games behind the St. Louis Cardinals.

Those are false charges.

It starts and ends with pitching. As manager Dusty Baker said, “We are first or second in the league in nearly all offensive categories, so it isn’t our left fielder or shortstop who is hurting us. It is pitching. We need good starting pitchers, pitchers to take us deeper into games.”

For example, the Reds scored eight runs Saturday and lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 10 innings, 11-8. They scored six runs Sunday against the Dodgers and lost 9-6.

It is the pitching, the lack of consistent starting pitching that has put the Reds in the discomfort zone.

Injuries and bad pitching are a bad combination.

Before Volquez’s beauty Tuesday, the starters owned a 4.96 ERA, 13th in the National League, better than only the Cubs.

It started on a downward turn the last week of spring training when the Reds lost two-fifths of the starting rotation when both Johnny Cueto and Homer Bailey were injured.

Both missed the first six weeks of the season. Bailey came back to go 3-1 with a 3.00 ERA in five starts then relapsed to the DL, where he now resides. Cueto is 2-2 with a 2.27 ERA in his six starts.

The Reds have had nine pitchers start at least one game, and the litany of injuries to all their pitchers is baffling.

Matt Maloney: on the DL with a cracked rib, sustained by a sneeze.

Johnny Cueto: biceps/triceps injury.

Homer Bailey: shoulder inflammation (twice).

Sam LeCure: forearm stiffness.

Jose Arredondo: right shoulder injury.

Jared Burton: right shoulder injury.

Aroldis Chapman: left shoulder injury.

It is reminiscent of what former manager Jack McKeon once said: “We’re more concerned right now with MRIs than ERAs.”

The Reds have a daily shuttle of pitchers between Cincinnati, Louisville and Carolina; during one seven-day period, they made a pitching roster change every day. They’ve used 19 pitchers.

So what Volquez did, even against the moribund Cubs, was an intake of fresh oxygen.

While in Louisville, Volquez worked five straight days with roving pitching instructor and former major league pitcher Mario Soto, a man Volquez admires so much he wears his No. 36 on his back.

“I knew I needed to go down there,” Volquez said. “I know I needed to work on things so I was cool with it, not mad at anybody. I knew I was struggling in the big leagues and I had to do something at Triple A to make the adjustments.

“Seven innings, two walks tonight — that’s what I was trying to stay away from, the walks,” said Volquez, who had walked 38 in his first 51 innings. “I worked on staying tall in my windup and in my stretch. I tried being more compact.”

Manager Dusty Baker noticed two things about Volquez — “He’s a lot more handsome without that hair that was the Volquez we knew from before,” Baker said. “He looked real good, on his head and on the mound. Brandon Phillips has been on him all spring about getting rid of that mess off his head, as my mother would call it.

“He threw one pitch that was perfectly executed – nice and easy, nice and fluid, came out of his hand real nice and it was 96 miles an hour. It’s all about fluidity and timing of your windup and delivery, and that’s where he was having problems.”

Of Volquez’s strong return, Baker said, “We know we need him and that’s why we sent him down. Sending him down for a short period was a long-term deal – to get his stuff together. He worked and studied himself on film and, of course, we need him. I didn’t have him as our Opening Day starter for nothing. We know what he can do.”

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Saturday brought encouraging signs for the Cincinnati Reds and pitcher Edinson Volquez—in Louisville.

Volquez, demoted Monday after posting a 6.35 ERA in 10 starts with the Reds, pitched as if he’s eager to get back to Cincinnati, working a season-high 7 2/3 innings Saturday in the Class AAA Louisville Bats 4-3 victory over the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees.

“I felt good,” Volquez said, according to The Louisville Courier-Journal. “I haven’t had all my pitches like that in maybe two months. Tonight was probably my best game. It means a lot. It brings my confidence back, and I’ve got to keep working.”

Volquez was in line for the win until he allowed a two-out solo home run to Ramiro Pena in the eighth that tied the score at 2, the only negative on the night for Volquez.

“He hit a good pitch,” Volquez said, according to The Courier-Journal. “It was down and in. A lefty is always looking for something in. They have that golf swing. There was nothing I could do about it. It’s one pitch. The best thing was that we won.”

Before the home run, the only run he had allowed came in the first inning.

Volquez was so dominant that Bats manager Rick Sweet let him try to finish the eighth even while there was bullpen action.

Volquez retired the first two, but then Pena hammered the tying shot to right field. Sweet let Volquez pitch to one more batter, and Jesus Montero beat out an infield hit. That was it for Volquez, who threw 109 pitches, 69 for strikes.

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The Cincinnati Reds optioned struggling
starter Edinson Volquez to Triple-A Louisville on Monday.

Volquez, a 2008 All-Star selection, posted a 3-2 record and a 6.35 ERA in 10
games — all starts — this season. He allowed 47 hits and 38 walks while
striking out 53 in 51 innings.

In Sunday’s 12-4 loss to Cleveland, Volquez lasted just 2 2/3 innings,
allowing seven runs — six earned –, with seven hits and four walks.

The Reds also optioned pitcher Jordan Smith to Louisville, while recalling
infielder/outfielder Todd Frazier and pitcher Matt Maloney from the same club.

Smith posted a 7.20 ERA in 17 appearances this season. He allowed 16 runs over
20 innings and failed in his lone save opportunity.

Frazier batted .293 with 11 home runs and 33 RBI in 44 games with Louisville.

The left-handed Maloney was 2-1 with a 4.45 ERA in five games — all starts –
with the Bats this season.

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The Cincinnati Reds have sent pitchers Edinson Volquez and Jordan Smith to the minor leagues, creating roster space for outfielder Todd Frazier and pitcher Matt Maloney.

Volquez started on Sunday at Cleveland and allowed seven runs (six earned) in 2-2/3 innings. Smith later entered the game in relief and allowed four runs in one inning. Both were optioned to Triple-A Louisville on Monday.

Frazier and Maloney were recalled from Louisville.  Frazier will be making his major-league debut.  Maloney was on the roster at the start of the year, but struggled in five outings.

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The Associated Press

Posted:

May 23, 2011 5:07 PM ET

Last Updated:

May 23, 2011 5:07 PM ET

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Todd Frazier, the former Toms River Little League World Series champ and Rutgers star who was the supplemental first round pick of the Cincinnati Reds in 2007, is expected to be called up by the Reds today and could make his major league debut tonight in Philadelphia, where the Reds open a four-game series against the Phillies.

The 25-year-old Frazier, a third baseman, has hit 11 home runs in 44 games for the Reds’ Triple-A affiliate, the Louisville Bats, and was hitting .293. The 6-3, 220-pound right-handed hitter made the Southern League (Double-A) All Star game in 2009 and was a postseason all star that season as well, after hitting .290, with 14 home runs and 68 RBI at the Double-A level. In 2010, his first year at Triple-A, Frazier hit 17 home runs with 66 RBI in 130 games.

In 1998, Frazier was part of the Toms River Little League team that won the Little League World Series. He went 4-for-4, with a home run, in the championship game against Japan. In his final season at Rutgers, in 2007, Frazier hit 22 home runs, which tied him for fourth that season in the NCAA.

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St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lance Berkman had an uneasy feeling about the game Saturday with the Cincinnati Reds.

“We were living on the edge because we kept giving them chances and they came through,” Berkman said.

Miguel Cairo hit a two-out, two-run, go-ahead single in the eighth inning to lift the Reds to a 5-3 rain-delayed victory against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Five Cardinal pitchers held Cincinnati to four hits but combined for five walks and a hit batter to go along with two throwing errors.

“That one inning, we made several mistakes you know one’s not good and any time it is more than one it gives the other club more of an opportunity,” St. Louis manager Tony La Russa said. “So, too many mistakes.”

The slumping Reds had lost seven of nine before snapping St. Louis’ three-game winning streak.

“This was a big win,” Cincinnati manager Dusty Baker said. “We needed it badly.”

A throwing error by Cardinals third baseman David Freese led to three unearned runs in the eighth and Miguel Batista (1-1) and two other St. Louis relievers couldn’t pitch around it.

Former Cardinals closer Ryan Franklin gave up a two-run single to left field by Cairo.

“Obviously, it’s going to be wet but I just made an error and it happens it turned out to be a big error,” Freese said. “I just got to make that play.”

Aroldis Chapman (1-0) got two outs in the seventh. Francisco Cordero pitched the ninth for his third save and No. 293 for his career, tying him with Jason Isringhausen for 22nd all-time.

The game was delayed 42 minutes after seven innings.

Chris Carpenter allowed two hits over six innings, striking out six and walking two in his 300th career start for St. Louis. He had won 10 consecutive starts over Cincinnati, dating back to Aug. 15, 2006, before Saturday’s no-decision.

Travis Wood started and pitched 6 1-3 innings, allowing eight hits and three runs for the Reds.

With one out in the eighth, Freese threw wildly third on a grounder hit by Drew Stubbs. Batista struck out Brandon Phillips before intentionally walking Joey Votto. Batista hit Jonny Gomes with a pitch to load the bases.

La Russa lifted Batista for left-hander Trever Miller, but Miller walked lefty Jay Bruce on a 3-2 pitch to tie the game at 3-3.

Former Cardinals closer Ryan Franklin, who lost his job after four blown saves, relieved Miller and gave up a two-run single to left field by Cairo.

“I was just trying to stay back and see what was coming,” said Cairo, who turns 37 on May 5. “He left it out over the plate and I was just lucky enough to get a hit.”

Franklin got out of the inning by getting pinch-hitter Jeremy Hermida to fly out. Franklin walked off the field to a cascade of boos by the fans who stuck around after the delay.

The Reds tied the game at 2-all when Votto ripped a 3-0 pitch in the left-field bleachers after Phillips walked with one out in the sixth inning.

“I got ahead of Phillips and wasn’t able to put him away and fell behind Votto and made a mistake,” Carpenter said. “I had a feeling he was probably thinking if he gets a good pitch to hit there he’s going to swing so I’m trying to make a good pitch down and away and I cut it off a little bit and left it in the middle of the plate and he hit it out.”

Albert Pujols gave St. Louis the lead at 3-2 when he hit a solo home run deep in the left-field bleachers in the sixth. The 437-foot homer tied Pujols for the NL lead with seven homers. He now has 415 in 10-year career. It was his third homer in five home games and six in his last nine.

Freese gave the Cardinals a 1-0 lead in the second with an RBI single and Colby Rasmus made it 2-0 in the third with a sacrifice fly that scored Carpenter, who led off with a double.

NOTES: Ryan Theriot had a throwing error at shortstop in the ninth, his sixth error of the season. … Pujols and Yadier Molina received their 2010 Rawlings Gold Glove awards before Saturday’s game. Sunday, Pujols and Matt Holliday will receive their Louisville Silver Slugger trophies before the game. … La Russa said before the game Jake Westbrook will start Sunday night’s series finale on three days’ rest. It will be for the third time in his career he’s done that and it is the first time since 2001 that Westbrook has gone on three days rest. Baker would not reveal his starter for Sunday. “It’s question mark vs. Westbrook,” Baker said. … The Reds will be playing on a Sunday night for the first time for the since they faced the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 8, 2005.

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