Reds' Curt Casali: More playing time
Casual started again Friday night, his seventh start in the last 11 games, going 0-for-3 with two walks and an RBI. Before the game Reds manager David Bell confirmed that the catching position is closer to a timeshare between Casali and Tucker Barnhart, rather than Casali backing up Barnhart, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. "I've talked to both guys," Bell said. "The way I see it, I don't know how the split is going to turn out. It may still be Tucker ends up getting 60-40, 70-30 or maybe at times it is closer to 50-50."
After Friday's game Casali is now hitting .273/.347/.445, whereas Barnhart has struggled, hitting just .196/.297/.393 in 59 games. Barnhart has the contract, plus the defensive reputation, that will keep giving him chances, but he's no longer a default starter over Casali.
