Reds roll the Pirates on Jay Bruce Day

Jay Bruce knows May 27 is Jay Bruce Day

Jay hit a 408 foot home run in the first inning off Charlie Morton. It was his first home run in about a month (April 29). If you want to see it, click here.

“Two years ago today, I got called up. Last year, I hit two homers on May 27 and this year I hit one. May 27 is a pretty good day. Johnny was pitching too.” — Jay Bruce, postgame interview.

Our boy is now hitting .291/.423/.405 in the month of May. I fully expect his slugging percentage to increase and I wonder he can keep up a .423 OBP. If he does, you have a full-fledge superstar on your hands. The kind a pennant winning team hitches their wagon to. Long ways to go, but he made huge strides this month and continued hitting the ball hard. Despite a couple of K’s he still added a double later in the game.

Reds take 3 of 4 from Pirates

This is the first time since the middle of 2006 that we’ve been 8 games over .500, and man does it feel good. The Reds needed 3 of 4 from the Pirates and that’s exactly what they did. They now enter the weekend playing the Houston Astros for three while the Cardinals battle the Cubs. This series is paramount because it will allow the Reds to gain ground on someone behind them. Things are setting up nicely if the Reds can handle their business at home. Something they’ve done 17 times in 27 tries thus far this season.

Rolen & Cueto

Rolen equals his home run total from last year. Please, just stay healthy Scott. Playing like he’s 24 again. That 3-run home run in the first inning was the catalyst for the entire evening (after of course Orlando Cabrera getting on base again to lead off a ballgame).

Johnny Cueto is 5-0 with a sub-1 ERA in his last 5 starts. The guy is absolutely dominating right now. He’s unhittable, and if his arm doesn’t fatigue again he is the type of guy who you could see becoming a household name around the National League. He’s delivering on the promise that a lot of scouts were talking about when he first came up.