He asks about Ken Griffey Jr., Barry Larkin, Sean Casey, Dave Miley and the pitching.

Then comes the big question: "Do you think the Reds will make trades to get better at the July 31 trading deadline?"

To which I expertly reply: "Ah ... I don't know."

Pretty enlightening, eh?

But I really don't know. With Jim Bowden, you knew.

PHOTO GALLERY

Photos of Saturday's game

If he were general manager and the Reds were in the position they're in now and you asked Bowden if he was looking to improve the club, he would say something like: "I'm going to have a cell phone surgically implanted in my head. I'm calling all 29 teams 13 times a day. We will make the club better."

Ask current GM Dan O'Brien the same question, and you get:

"At this point, it's a little early to prognosticate where we'll be in six weeks. We hope to be in a position in late July relative to the rest of the division that we'll try to add to improve the club."

The fans can take that to the bank.

O'Brien and Bowden are on opposite ends of the GM spectrum. Bowden flew by the seat of his leather pants. He talked a better game than he played. But he was proactive on the trade front.

O'Brien is deliberate. He talks in a baseball version of corporate-speak. He has been, so far, inactive on the trade front.

But O'Brien will answer the big question. When asked if the Reds have the flexibility to add payroll, he says: "Essentially the answer is yes."

If that's the case, the Reds should not wait until the trade deadline to make a move. The team is hurting. The bullpen is overworked. Third base continues to be a weak spot.

The Reds could go a long way toward fixing that with two moves:

First, trade Edwin Encarnacion to Montreal for Tony Batista. Batista makes $1.5 million. He's not having a great year (.235, seven homers, 22 RBI), but he's a guy who averaged 27 home runs and 93 RBI over the last two seasons.

Second, trade a couple of the pitching prospects to Kansas City for Scott Sullivan. Sullivan makes $2.1 million. He's having a typical Sullivan year - 3-1, 3.41 ERA. He has not blown a save. Given his ability to fill a lot of roles, he immediately upgrades the bullpen.

It should be noted that these are not trade rumors. They are examples. There is a long list of players who could help the Reds.

But the point is: Why wait?

If the Reds went out and got some help now, chances are they'd be in the race when the trade deadline comes around. Then they could concentrate on getting a strong starting pitcher.

Again, O'Brien isn't saying the Reds will make moves.

"You can't predict those things," he said. "We continue to monitor and have dialogue, but those things move at their own pace. If there is an opportunity today, tomorrow or in two weeks to improve the club, we're going to do it."

REITSMA TRADE: Given what the Reds got in the Chris Reitsma trade, it looks like a disaster. Jung Keun Bong wasn't very good at Triple-A and he was bad in his one start for the big club.

Bubba Nelson, the other player the Reds got, is 1-9 at Triple-A.

But the trade makes perfect sense in a Moneyball kind of way. The Reds obtained Todd Jones to take Reitsma's place for this year.

Reitsma is 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA for Atlanta. Jones is 4-1 with a 3.79 ERA. Reitsma has nine holds and two blown saves. Jones has 15 holds and three blown saves.

And in the Moneyball spirit, Jones makes half of what Reitsma makes ($950,000 to $425,000). Billy Beane, the star of Moneyball and the Oakland GM, advocates always going with a cheaper player who can put up similar stats.

Now, if the Reds had Reitsma and Jones ...

BAILEY UPDATE: The Reds signed 16 of their draft choices Friday. The work on getting Homer Bailey, the Reds' No. 1 pick, in the fold probably will begin next week. "We'll begin discussions once he completes his season," O'Brien said.

Bailey's team competed in the Texas high school tournament Saturday and won 10-4 in the UIL Class 3A state championship.

Bailey picked up the win, finishing the year 15-0. He allowed three earned runs and six hits over seven innings, striking out 14 and walking four. He was named the championship game's Most Valuable Player.

Reds chatter

Can the Reds survive the Oakland collapse? And how did they get 12 games over .500 to begin with?

The Reds lost three in a row in Oakland, being outscored 40-16. The losses of 13-2 and 17-8 each surpassed the Reds' previous worst loss this season - 8-1 to the Cubs on April 19.

The Reds entered Saturday having been outscored by 22 runs, despite being eight games over .500.

Saturday, they had the NL's second-best record despite these numbers:

• ERA: 22nd, 4.72.

• Hits allowed: Sixth most, 570.

• Home runs allowed: T-fourth most, 73.

• Strikeouts thrown: eighth fewest, 353.

• Batting average: 28th, .249.

• Runs scored: T-15th, 285.

• Stolen bases: T-22nd, 22.

• Fielding percentage: 23rd, .981.

• Errors: T-seventh most, 44.

• Passed balls: T-second, 8.

Who's hot: Jacob Cruz

Entering Saturday, the first baseman/outfielder had an RBI in each of his last three games. He was 3-for-7 in those games, hitting .429 with two home runs.

Who's not: The starters

At Oakland, Cory Lidle, Jose Acevedo and Jung Kuen Bong combined for an 18.90 ERA. None got out of the fourth inning, and the team starters' ERA rose nearly half a run, from 4.63 to 5.06.

Trivia

Ken Griffey Jr. was third in the latest All-Star balloting and could be headed for his 12th All-Star appearance. Barry Larkin also has been an All-Star 11 times. Which other current Reds have been All-Stars?

By the numbers

8-1: The Reds' record on the road over the last nine games before being swept at Oakland.

32: Days the Reds were in first place before losing Friday.

18: Come-from-behind victories by the Reds.

16: Losses after the Reds held a lead.

142: Total bases by Sean Casey entering Saturday, best in the NL.

Remember him? Pokey Reese

The former Red has been invaluable to the Boston Red Sox. Signed as a free agent to play second base, he played stellar defense (six errors) in place of injured shortstop Nomar Garciaparra. As a bonus, he entered Saturday hitting .263 with three homers and 22 RBI.

Trivia answer

Griffey and Larkin have combined for 22 All-Star selections - the rest of the team has a total of four. Adam Dunn (2002), Danny Graves (2000) and Sean Casey (1999 and 2001) also have been All-Stars.

The week ahead

The Reds have a quick trip to Philadelphia Monday for a rainout makeup. Then they play the first of their two interleague series at home, Tuesday-Thursday against Texas. The Rangers, spoken of in the same breath as the Reds as one of baseball's surprising teams, are contending in the AL West. The Reds then have a crucial three-game set at St. Louis, Friday through Sunday. Incredibly, it will be the teams' first meeting this season.

All-Star sites are born?

Commissioner Bud Selig said Wednesday he plans to name three or four All-Star Game sites - for contests after 2005 - this summer. Wouldn't it be something if one of them were Great American Ball Park?

Beltran derby

Kansas City Royals center fielder Carlos Beltran, long the subject of speculation that he will be traded to a contender, is now officially on the market. Royals GM Allard Baird waved the white flag Friday, a day after the Royals' doubleheader loss to the Montreal Expos. Anyone wanting Beltran had better beware - he's headed for free agency after the season. But Beltran, 26, could be worth it to a number of clubs, including Anaheim, Boston and the New York Yankees. Beltran last year became the first switch hitter to bat over .300 (he hit .307) while hitting more than 25 home runs (26) and stealing more than 40 bases (41).

Scott Boras draftees

Florida state shortstop Stephen Drew and Long Beach State right-hander Jered Weaver were talked up as possible No. 1 selections in last week's amateur draft. As it turned out, Weaver, brother of Dodgers pitcher Jeff Weaver, went No. 12 to the Anaheim Angels and Drew, brother of Braves outfielder J.D. Drew, fell to No. 15 and the Arizona Diamondbacks. Not coincidentally, both draftees are represented by agent Scott Boras, who is notorious for driving a hard bargain - as he did for Drew's brother, J.D., when the outfielder refused to sign with Philadelphia in 1997 and was drafted and signed by the Cardinals a year later.

Line of the week

Milwaukee	000	000	000	000	000	01	-1	9	3
Anaheim	000	000	000	000	000	00	-0	4	0

Tuesday night in Anaheim, Milwaukee Brewers starter Ben Sheets had a perfect game until the Angels' Vladimir Guerrero singled with two outs in the seventh. But the drama didn't end there. In fact, it didn't end for 10 more innings. Scott Podsednik doubled home the go-ahead run in the 17th inning, giving the Brewers a 1-0 victory.

The win went to Matt Kinney (3-3), who pitched one inning and allowed one hit. Dan Kolb got three outs for his 16th save in 17 tries, ending the game after 4 hours, 46 minutes.

Stat street

Jeff Kent on Friday set an Astros team record when he extended his hitting streak to 25 games. Here are the all-time longest hitting streaks:

Player, Team, Year	No.
Joe DiMaggio, New York (A), 1941	56
Willie Keeler, Baltimore (N), 1897	44
Pete Rose, Cincinnati, 1978	44
Bill Dahlen, Chicago (N), 1894	42
George Sisler, St. Louis (A), 1922	41
Ty Cobb, Detroit, 1911	40
Paul Molitor, Milwaukee, 1987	39
Tommy Holmes, Boston (N), 1945	37
Bill Hamilton, Philadelphia, 1894	36
Fred Clarke, Louisville, 1895	35
Ty Cobb, Detroit, 1917	35
George Sisler, St. Louis (A), 1925	34
George McQuinn, St. Louis (A), 1938	34
Dom DiMaggio, Boston (A), 1949	34
Benito Santiago, San Diego, 1987	34
George Davis, New York (N), 1893	33
Hal Chase, New York (A), 1907	33
Rogers Hornsby, St. Louis (N), 1922	33
Heinie Manush, Washington, 1933	33
Ed Delahanty, Philadelphia, 1899	31
Nap Lajoie, Cleveland, 1906	31
Sam Rice, Washington, 1924	31
Willie Davis, Los Angeles, 1969	31
Rico Carty, Atlanta, 1970	31
Ken Landreaux, Minnesota, 1980	31
Vladimir Guerrero, Montreal, 1999	31
Cal McVey, Chicago (N), 1876	30
Elmer Smith, Cincinnati, 1898	30
Tris Speaker, Boston (A), 1912	30
Goose Goslin, Detroit, 1934	30
Stan Musial, St. Louis (N), 1950	30
Ron LeFlore, Detroit, 1976	30
George Brett, Kansas City, 1980	30
Jerome Walton, Chicago (N), 1989	30
Sandy Alomar Jr., Cleveland, 1997	30
Nomar Garciaparra, Boston, 1997	30
Eric Davis, Baltimore, 1997	30
Luis Gonzalez, Arizona, 1999	30

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