Reds Pass Over Homer Bailey; Tap Sun-Woo Kim

Journeyman reliever-starter Sun-Woo Kim will get the call to start in Cincinnati's hotly contested matchup with San Francisco on Wednesday while 20-year-old super prospect Homer Bailey remains in Chattanooga. Fans had flooded ticket outlets Sunday when the team refused to name a starter for the game, leading to wild rumors that the fireballing Bailey would be the surprise callup as the Reds battle neck-and-neck with the Giants for a wild card berth. Observers speculated that Bailey would be needed to halt a freefall in the standings following the Reds disasterous West Coast road trip in which eight of 10 games were lost. Though Bailey looks impressive with a sparkling minor league 1.63 ERA, and was personally visited in Chattanooga by Reds GM Wayne Krivsky last week, he has no experience beyond the AA level. Bailey was bombed Saturday when he came out of his most recent game with the bases loaded in the first inning. Facing just seven batters without getting an out, Bailey surrendered four runs in a 5-3 loss. Despite the battering, Chattanooga Lookouts manager Jayhawk Owens told Chattanooga Times Free Press writer David Paschall that Bailey would make his next regular minor league start Thursday. With the youngster rapidly approaching his innings limit for the season, Bailey likely will not be seen with the Reds before next spring.