July 2012 - Cincinnati Reds Wiretap

Dusty Baker plans to rejoin the Reds in St. Louis after missing 11 games following a mini-stroke.

Baker is expected to manage the club in their final series of the regular season.

The Reds have clinched the National League Central title and are in a race with Washington for the NL's best record.

Cincinnati is 7-4 without Baker.

Homer Bailey's no-hitter against the Pirates on Friday night was the seventh of the season, tying a Major League record.

There were seven no-hitters thrown in both 1990 and 1991.

"I don't think there is anything special about it," Bailey said. "Pitchers just have to find that fortunate night and there's got to be a couple of plays where defense makes a great play. Mix all of those things together, and you can have a very special night."

Reds starter Homer Bailey threw the season's seventh no-hitter, beating the Pirates 1-0 on Friday night, according to an ESPN.com report.

The seven no-hitters matches the modern record for most in a season, tying 1990 and 1991. There were eight no-hitters in 1884.

The Nationals, Reds, Giants and Braves have all locked up berths in the National League playoffs.

The Cardinals lead the race for the No. 2 Wild Card berth, holding at least a three-game lead over their competition. The Dodgers (three games back), Brewers (four), Diamondbacks (six) and Phillies (six) are all mathematically alive.

Cincinnati has clinched the NL Central title and San Francisco has locked up the West crown. Washington holds a four-game lead over Atlanta for the division title.

Arizona and Philadelphia could be eliminated from the postseason race as soon as Friday night.

In addition to his irregular heartbeat, Dusty Baker suffered a stroke last week and will need another week of rest before rejoining the Reds.

The 63-year-old disclosed the development to his players on Tuesday.

"He's lost a lot of water weight," bench coach Chris Speier said. "He was anxious [to get back]. It was great to see him. Again, he looks really, really good. We're all anxious to get him back in charge."

For now, Speier will manage the three-game series against the Brewers and a three-game series in Pittsburgh over the weekend.

Johnny Cueto, who had been a bit shaky as of late, won his 19th game of the season on Tuesday night.

He allowed two runs on five hits and no walks in a win over the Brewers. He struck out five batters en route to his 19th win of the season.

Cueto is the first Cincinnati pitcher with that many wins since Danny Jackson in 1988 and the first Reds right-hander to do so since Jack Billingham in 1974.

Overall, he is 19-9 with a 2.83 ERA and 3.4 K/BB ratio.

The Reds topped the Dodgers on Saturday night, clinching their second division title in three years.

Cincinnati won the National League Central title, becoming baseball's first division winner by a few minutes over the Giants (winners of the National League West).

Dusty Baker becomes only the third Reds skipper in franchise history to lead the team to the postseason more than once, joining Bill McKechnie (1939-40) and Sparky Anderson (1970, '72, '73, '75 and '76).

The Reds completed a sweep of the Cubs on Thursday, becoming the first team to clinch a playoff berth in the process.

Cincinnati leads the National League Central, but they have ensured themselves of at least a Wild Card berth. They won their last two games without Dusty Baker, who was not with the team after being diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat.

"Obviously, we won the last two games for him. We have him in our thoughts, but we got good news on his update," Sean Marshall said.

Cincinnati cut its magic number to two for winning the division for the second time in three years.

Dusty Baker was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat on Wednesday night and was expected to stay overnight in a Chicago hospital.

Baker left Wrigley Field before Wednesday night's game, and a spokesman said he would have X-rays to "rule out pneumonia."

"I guess the good thing is it's not pneumonia, but the bad thing is he has an irregular heartbeat, so basically they will keep him over at the hospital and run some more tests in the morning before he is set free," Reds trainer Paul Lessard said.

Baker will not be with the team on Thursday and his return is uncertain, according to an ESPN.com report.

The Reds have decided to give Aroldis Chapman a few days off to rest his pitching shoulder.

Chapman struggled with his velocity and command in an appearance against the Pirates on Monday night. He averaged a season-low 94.4 miles per hour on his fastball.

"We're lucky we got him to this point," Dusty Baker said. "When you throw 100 mph, you're bound to tweak something sooner or later. He's at a plateau he's never reached before. This is another step in learning how to be a closer."

Chapman set a club record when he didn't allow an earned run in his first 24 appearances of the season.

He said that he's felt no pain in the shoulder.

"It is a little fatigued," Chapman said through a translator. "I started feeling it a couple of games back. I just wasn't myself. It's nothing major. There's nothing wrong. I just feel weak.

"I think in five days or a week I should be ready."