The Reds have recalled 31-year old righty swinging 1B Andy Phillips and sent outfielder Corey Patterson to AAA. Phillips has played in 40 games in AAA this season and he is 46 for 146 (.315 avg, .887 OPS) with 27 runs scored, 5 homers and 22 RBIs. Phillips has played in 203 games in his major league career and he is 121 for 479 (.253 avg, .678 OPS) with 65 runs scored, 11 homers and 60 RBIs. He likely won’t play much with Joey Votto starting most of the time at 1B.

The Reds decided that it was Jay Bruce’s time so they called him up and he will be playing tonight. The 21-year old lefty swinging Bruce played in 49 games in AAA ball this season and he was 67 for 184 (.364 avg, 1.023 OPS) with 34 runs scored, 10 homers, 37 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. The Reds might have preferred to leave him in the minors a little longer but Corey Patterson has been awful this season. Patterson has played in 44 games for the Reds this season and he is 29 for 144 (.201 avg, .596 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 4 homers, 13 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. He was very lucky to retain his roster spot.

The Reds have designated 1B Scott Hatteberg for assignment to make room for outfielder Jay Bruce on the roster. Hatteberg lost his starting job at first base to rookie Joey Votto and he never adjusted to his new role off of the bench. Hatteberg played in 34 games this season for the Reds and he was 9 for 52 (.173 avg, .493 OPS) with 3 runs scored and 7 RBIs. Hatteberg finished his career with the Reds having played in 291 games and going 253 for 869 (.291 avg) with 115 runs scored, 23 homers and 105 RBIs. The Reds felt it was time to turn the page with Joey Votto playing so well. Votto has played in 47 games this season for the Reds and he is 41 for 150 (.273 avg, .872 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 10 homers and 27 RBIs.

Edison Volquez has been the best pitcher in the National League so far this season. He has now started 10 games for the Reds and he is 7-1 with a 1.34 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. He has whiffed an amazing 74 batters in only 60.1 innings. Volquez has only allowed 41 hits this season which shows how unhittable he has been but his sole weakness is that he has walked 32 batters this season. But, it hasn’t hurt Volquez yet…..knock on wood.

The Reds have placed starting shortstop Jeff Keppinger on the 15-day disabled list with a fractured left kneecap. This injury will likely cause Keppinger to miss the next 4-6 weeks. Keppinger was off to a very solid start this season and the Reds will miss him. Keppinger has played in 39 games this season and he is 48 for 148 (.324 avg, .819 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 3 homers, 21 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Another amazing fact about the start Keppinger was off to this season was that he only has whiffed 8 times this season. Jerry Hairston & rookie Paul Janish will share the SS job until Keppinger is ready to return. Hairston has played very well for the Reds this season. He has played in 20 games this season for the Reds and he is 17 for 50 (.340 avg, .937 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 1 homer, 6 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. 25-year old righty swinging rookie Paul Janish is off to a solid start for the Reds. He has played in 3 games for the Reds so far and he is 4 for 5 (.800 avg, 1.633 OPS) with 1 run scored and 1 RBI. Janish played in 35 games this season in AAA ball this season and he was 36 for 123 (.293 avg, .782 OPS) with 20 runs scored, 4 homers, 20 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Janish was the #19 prospect in the Reds’ system coming into this season according to Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook but his reputation is as a defense only shortstop so it will be interesting to see how he holds up against major league pitching.