As a reminder, there’s a live chat today at 2 p.m. PT with Logan, De Jon and Tim Hallgren.

Also, a great write-up on Sons of Steve Garvey about the Father’s Day Catch for those who didn’t get a chance to make it out here. “Orel” is right, this is one of those events that can’t be ruined by a losing streak…if you haven’t had the chance to make it down here for this over the last five years, make sure you do soon. And while I appreciate the kudos, I can’t take credit for this event…there are a ton of hard-working people in the front office who put this together for the fans and they deserve it far more than me. In fact, I didn’t even make it down this year, as my daughter can’t quite throw yet.

Meanwhile, team travel manager Scott Akasaki checks in with a blog posting from Cincy on a well-deserved day off…

“The Basic Agreement calls for 162 regular season games in a period of 180 days.  Simple mathematics tells us that there are not a lot of “off days” during the regular season.  If there is an off day, it is usually spent traveling to the next city, like we did on April 3rd, April 17th, April 28th, May 12th, and June 9th.  A home off day is truly special (and perhaps even sacred) while a road off day comes every now and again.  I do not know about the other members of our traveling party but when I am at home, I try to use the off day and spend it with loved ones – I may even do home repairs and self maintenance stuff like regular doctor’s appointments or a visit to the dentist. 

On the road, like we had here in Cincinnati, I took the chance to catch up (and get ahead) on some work, do some running, and go out for a nice dinner.  I heard that other players and staff were going to use the off day to play golf or shop.  Some probably went to catch a movie but no matter what everyone ended up doing, we all probably wanted to catch a break from the daily routine of our baseball lives.  The baseball season is long and I am of the opinion that we all need a mental break from the game to recharge.  While the rest of the world may have two days off every week, those who are with the team on a daily basis have 18 days off in 180 days.  Let’s hope that our team had a good off day and that we follow up with some wins here in Cincinnati.”

UPDATE: Today’s lineup:

Pierre, LF

DeWitt, 3B

Kent, 2B

Martin, C

Loney, 1B

Kemp, CF

Ethier, RF

Berroa, SS

Billingsley, P