HOMER BAILEY = SALVATION

Weathers gets Hafner looking!!!!!!!!!!!!!

4-3 Reds!!!!!!!

Homer Bailey is the winning pitcher!!!!!! 1-0!!! Retire while you're on top!

Homer Bailey > God? FIFTH INNING

Someone predicted Bailey would go 5 and give up 3, and they're dang close because you can expect he will not be out there when Inning 6 comes a-calling and he will probably be done before then. He maybe should have already been done, but he's out there now nearing 100 pitches.

Sizemore up and Sizemore figured him out. Early. He's on with a single.

Holy balls, Sizemore has 18 stolen bases this year. And appropriately, Bailey makes his first-ever MLB pickoff move. Doesn't work, though. Casey Blake with a nice pop out. Could use more of those. Anything to cut this half-inning short and get this kid to the dugout with a lead. The only problem with that idea is the next 2 batters are Hafner & V-Mar.

You can tell Hafner just wants to crush one. And he's over 100. Pitches, that is. Instead he walks. Getting into dangerous territory again. Can we call on a sac fly DP? Haha, I doubt it.

V-Mar with 2 on and no sign of Narron coming to the rescue. The kid is on his own. It's his game to win or lose and the odds are looking like a big L right now. Holy bazooka, V-Mar threatened with a 3-run homer but Hopper gets it in his mitt AT THE WALL. That would have been a DEVESTATING way to end his first major league outing, but things are looking a little better for the kid. Just one more to go.

You never know what the wily Trot Nixon is gonna do. Better start him off with 2 balls and get him guessing early, right? Hmm......or 3 balls. Might as well load 'em up to get some real nerves and some real adrenaline flowing.

Delluci is up and crazy things happen when this guy bats. 2 walks, 110 pitches, and he's still in? Hard call to make, but dang, Narron is not only overworking the arms of his trusted vets and aces, but he's overworking The Savior in his first outing! That's Narron for you, though.

Alright Homer, you got into this mess, not get out of it! It's only the top team in the ALC.

AND THE STRIKEOUT SEALS THE DEAL!!!!!!!!!!

You couldn't call it any better than that, folks. The bases loaded, the kid working out of the jam, and he throws the K to Delluci. Unbelieveable stuff. I am sure GABP is going nuts right now. Well done, kid, well done. That's bigtime heat right there and he got through it alright.

A solid outing for The Savior. He's done, right? He has to be.

5 innings, 5 hits, 3 Ks, 4 BBs, 1 HBP, 2 runs.

Homer Bailey > God? FOURTH INNING

Getting no help from his teammates tonight. In fact, outside of the whack Phillips put on the ball, Bailey probably had the best at-bat of anyone else on the team thus far. Sad or impressive? Both?

The big bad V-Mar up to bat, the RBI man of the night. Bailey is again working his favorite corner, down-and-away. It got him 2 early strikes. Followed up by two high fouls. Sprinkle in 3 balls and you've got yourself a full count. He's all over the zone, where will he go next? Right down the middle for another foul. Martinez knocks one Griffey's way and he's 2/2. That's 70 pitches already, only 3.0 innings in the books. This'll be interesting.

Nixon doubles and we've got trouble brewing my friends. If Bailey escapes this jam, that would be pretty awesome and would give some hope for the future. Not that he will dash hope with his outing tonight, no matter how ugly it ends up. He's still The Savior.

Delluci wastes no time in swinging at the first pitch and it turns into one of the weirdest plays I've ever witnessed. A sacrifice double play??? Who knew that existed???? Anyway, Delluci flies out to bring V-Mar home, and V-Mar scuttles home. Hopper throws to Conine who promptly throws to EdE for the double play, Nixon out at 3rd. What an odd sequence of events. Well, the bases are cleared and only one run scored so we've got that to be thankful for. Not sure what Trotty was thinking.

Barfield takes Bailey long and he's just throwing too many pitches on every batter. Barfield gets beaned and he's on base. One of the many HBP's that Bailey is going to throw in his lifetime. Barfield advances on a balk. Does Homer know all the rules?

Rouse gets the intentional walk, I'm sure he's feeling like a big man now. The pitcher Cliff Lee up next.

Lee puts it in play as Conine throws to Bailey at the bag on first.

Whew, what an inning. An interesting experience.

1 inning, 2 hits, 1 HBP, 1 BB, 1 run. Only 1 run out of that.
4 innings, 4 hits, 2 Ks, 2 BBs, 1 HBP, 2 runs.

Homer Bailey > God? THIRD INNING

He's already thrown 48 pitches.

2 balls again. At least it's Sizemore this time. Haha and again!!! Sizemore with the 2nd K after there were no more balls to be given. Thanks buddy.

2 balls again. Casey Blake with the groundout. I'm surprised Cleveland is being so aggressive with their swings after the initial 2 balls. I'd sit around and wait for the other 2. But Bailey is getting bailed out a little bit.

Now back to the guys with the hits. Again with 2 outs. We'll see what happens this time around.

Hafner looks at a first-pitch strike. There's something new. Good tactic. Hafner with the groundout to Gonzo. Looking good.

1 inning, 1 K, 0 runs
3 innings, 2 K, 1 BB, 2 hits, 1 run

Homer Bailey > God? SECOND INNING

The Reds got him a run back so we're all even.

A leadoff walk to Delluci on 5 pitches. Not pretty. If there's one thing you can give Bailey it's that he challenges hitters and goes right at them, throwing strikes. Not in this case, though I guess we can let The Savior allow a guy a base-on-balls every now and then. Would like to see another K, though. Get Sizemore back up here.

Barfield comes precariously close to the wall, but Adam Dunn makes the snag and keeps Delluci at first base.

2 balls to Rouse and it's becoming habitual. Does the strike zone shrink from Triple A to the props? You'd think not. Full count now and Rouse mercifully flies out to Hopper right in the middle of the field.

Bailey is working the down-and-away corner like a madman and he's been throwing a lot of balls because of it, but he throws 3 straight nice looking strikes down in the corner, forcing Lee to swing at a grounder that is played by Gonzo.

1 inning, 1 BB, 0 runs
2 innings, 1 K, 1 BB, 2 hits, 1 run

Homer Bailey > God? FIRST INNING

Man, I wish I could be there. It must be electric right now. Or at least I wish I could watch it on TV instead of following on the Interwebs. Ah well.

First batter - STRIKEOUT!!! Doesn't get much better than that. He was just fooling with Sizemore, Grady's got no game.

Bailey gets the crafty vet Casey Blake to ground out to EdE after he fools with him a little bit.

Watch out, here comes The Big Hurt2. And a single. I thought Bailey had him, he was doing what he wanted, but Hafner is a heckuva hitter and he drops one in there to spoil the no-hitter. At least we got that out of the way.

Dang, didn't realize the Indians lineup was so STACKED. Any team in the league save the Yanks/BoSox would pay top dollar to have this lineup 1-4. Anyway, Victor Martinez is up and he's looking at 2 balls. Well....alright, never mind. Is Hafner going to steal his first base of the season?

Ouch. V-Mar rips the double, scoring Hafner and sending Bailey's ERA through the roof. It was a likely scenario, but do we really need any more bad news for the Reds? I think we would have been satisfied if Homer would've taken a no-hitter through 7. But it was not meant to be.

Two more balls and now he's just got to get out of the inning. I have a feeling he'll get a standing ovation no matter what happens, unless it's just downright awful. I hope nobody boos the man. And Trot Nixon lines out to Griff.

1 inning, 2 hits, 1 run

Homer "The Savior" Bailey

He's wearing my number, baby! 34 to the bank!

His miraculous first outing is mere minutes away....