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Reds Notes: A clean slate in the postseason

Cincinnati lost five of seven games to the Phillies during the regular season, including the last four by a total of five runs.

Aroldis Chapman made his major-league debut on Aug. 31, when four of his pitches topped 100 m.p.h.
Aroldis Chapman made his major-league debut on Aug. 31, when four of his pitches topped 100 m.p.h.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer

Cincinnati lost five of seven games to the Phillies during the regular season, including the last four by a total of five runs.

Neither manager placed any value on that for the National League division series, especially since the teams haven't met since July 11.

"One thing I've learned is what happened during the season has no bearing on what happens now," Reds manager Dusty Baker said Tuesday. "I've been on teams that just beat the pants off this one team all year, and you get to the playoffs and they beat us. I remember we played the Phillies a couple of times when I was a player [with the Dodgers], and they'd beaten us nine out of 12 times and we ended up beating them to go to the World Series."

Flamethrower in 'pen

About 45,000 pairs of eyes will be straining to see the space on the Citizens Bank Park scoreboard that displays the velocity of each pitch if a 22-year-old lefthander comes out of the bullpen for the Reds.

Aroldis Chapman, a 6-foot-4 Cuban defector, makes baseball fans happy there are radar guns.

Chapman, who has yet to pitch against the Phillies, has a fastball that hit 105 m.p.h. against Tony Gwynn on Sept. 24 in San Diego. In the same game, he fired three more that reached 104.

It didn't take Chapman long to become one of baseball's biggest curiosities. In his big-league debut on Aug. 31, he threw a perfect eighth inning as four of his pitches went at least 100 m.p.h. He has reached 100 m.p.h. or more with 75 pitches.

Speaking through an interpreter, Chapman said that he first reached 100 m.p.h. in 2007.

"At that time, I didn't believe it myself," he said.

Chapman also said his boyhood idol was Jose Contreras, the Phillies' 38-year-old reliever who is also from Cuba.

"When I was a kid and I was watching baseball, I started to follow Jose," Chapman said. "I liked the way he threw. I liked the way he pitched. And back then, he was our best pitcher in Cuba, so I really liked him."

Chapman said he has not met Contreras or Danys Baez, another Cuban-born pitcher for the Phillies.

Chapman pitched for Cuba's national team in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. But as part of his punishment by Cuban President Raul Castro for a failed attempt to defect in the spring of 2008, he was banned from playing for Cuba in the Beijing Olympics.

He defected in the Netherlands on July 1, 2009, when the Cuban national team was playing in the World Port Tournament. The Reds signed him to a six-year contract worth a reported $30.25 million.

Eight days ago, Chapman pitched a perfect ninth inning against Houston in a 3-2 win that clinched the NL West for the Reds.

The real Underdog

Baker said he has a picture of Underdog on a wall that was given to him by Joe Harris, the creator and illustrator of the animated cartoon series.

"He drew me a picture two years ago of Underdog flying into our stadium with the pennant, the National League pennant in one hand, and the World Series pennant in the other hand," Baker said. "So maybe it's appropriate that we are the underdog. As long as you go to the dance, as they say, you've got a chance."

Extra bases

The Reds led the NL in batting average, runs, hits, total bases, home runs, RBIs, slugging percentage, hitting with runners in scoring position, and runs scored with two outs. . . . Baker said Joey Votto should be the National League's MVP. "I think he's MVP, big-time," he said. "You see where we were when we lost him for six weeks last year. Life wasn't very pleasant without Joey Votto on the field."