The Reds have lost 27-year old lefty swinging outfielder Jeremy Hermida off waivers to the Padres. Hermida played in 10 games for the Reds this year and he was 2 for 18 (.111 avg, .389 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 1 homer and 3 RBIs. He also played in 105 games in AAA-ball for the Reds in which he was 126 for 395 (.319 avg, .924 OPS) with 67 runs scored, 17 homers, 55 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. This isn’t much of a loss for the Reds as they have a lot of depth in the outfield.

23-year old righty starting pitcher Mike Leake started out this season in the Dog House due to an arrest for shoplifting. They even sent him to the minors for the first time in his career. Leake has rebounded from all of that to pitch well for the Reds this year. Leake has pitched in 25 games (22 starts) for the Reds so far this year and he is 10-8 with a 4.09 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. He has given up 137 hits in his first 138 2/3 innings but 19 of them have been homers, which isn’t good. He has limited the damage by striking out 103 batters while only walking 34 batters so far this year. Despite spending some time in the minors this year, Leake is leading the Reds in wins.

The Reds have released 24-year old lefty reliever/starter Phillippe-Alexandre Valiquette. Valiquette has not pitched at all this year in the minors for he Reds. He has pitched in 201 games (28 starts) in his six years in the minors for the Reds and he was 18-19 with 20 saves, a 4.50 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP. The Reds won’t miss Valiquette too much as he never really looked that good in the minors.

The Reds need more out of 26-year old righty swinging CF Drew Stubbs offensively. He has played in 126 games for the Reds so far this year and he is 123 for 496 (.248 avg, .703 OPS) with 83 runs scored, 15 homers, 41 RBIs and 30 stolen bases. But, Stubbs has whiffed 166 times already this year, which leads the majors. The Reds would probably be happy with Stubbs if he cut down on his swing a little bit to take more advantage of his speed. Stubbs has now played in 318 games in his first three years with the Reds and he is 302 for 1,190 (.254 avg, .742 OPS) with 201 runs scored, 45 homers, 135 RBIs and 70 stolen bases, while whiffing 383 times.

27-year old lefty swinging 1B Joey Votto is turning in a great follow-up season to his 2010 N.L. MVP Award winning year. Votto has played in 122 games for the Reds so far this year and he is 144 for 449 (.321 avg, .962 OPS) with 81 runs scored, 20 homers, 73 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. Votto’s numbers might be down a tad production wise but that’s only because he has the full respect of pitching staffs. That’s because he has already walked 88 times this year. He will smash his career high for walks (91), which he set last year. Votto has now played in 578 games in his first five years in the majors and he is 655 for 2,075 (.316 avg, .959 OPS) with 349 runs scored, 110 homers, 371 RBIs and 34 stolen bases.