Mike Leake

Yes, you read that headline right.

Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Mike Leake was arrested Monday by Cincinnati police after he walked out of a Macy's store with six shirts worth an outstanding sum of $59.88.

Let that sink in.

A professional athlete who is making four hundred twenty five thousand dollars this year shoplifted sixty bucks worth of clothes.

Cause that makes sense.

Last year, the Cincinnati Reds had two young pitchers that burst onto the scene.

One of them was Mike Leake, who skipped the minor leagues and started in the majors instantly. He stole a spot in the Reds' rotation and ran away with it. He took the fantasy world by storm by going 5-0 with a 2.22 ERA in his first 11 starts.

Although the Reds didn't have a "true" ace this season, which cost them in the postseason, they had a ton of quality depth that helped them navigate through the 162-game meat grinder.

Bronson Arroyo, Johnny Cueto, Edinson Volquez, Travis Wood, Aroldis Chapman and Homer Bailey are the seven names for the five available spots in the rotation. 

Without further ado, here's a look at the individuals, and their potential for making the five-man rotation in 2011.

Outstanding rookie Mike Leake will not be a part of his team as they make their first playoff appearance in 15 years.

This is from the Cincinnati Reds Team Report on Yahoo! Sports:

The Cincinnati Reds are 17 games over the .500 mark for the first time since 1999 and to their credit they are making moves that make sense rather than making snap judgements that may blow up in their face.

Rookie Mike Leake has been relegated to the bullpen effective immediately.

Leake came straight to the Reds from Arizona State University without stepping foot in a minor league dugout. He has been a pleasant surprise all year to a rotation that looks nothing like it did to start the season.

Much as been chronicled about innings pitched for the young right-hander. Obviously, baseball seasons at the college level are not nearly as long as in MLB.

The 2010 MLB season has been quite a season for rookies may it be Stephen Strasburg, Jason Heyward or Austin Jackson.

This season has brought us the debuts of some of baseball's most touted prospects and has shown us waht the future of baseball may be.

The most touted prospect of all, Strasburg, debuted about a month ago against the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Strasburg phenomenon has struck the country.

2010 certainly seems to have provided one of baseball's most dynamic draft classes in years. Every corner of the Majors seems to have itself a prominent and productive rookie.

Whether its speed, power, consistent hitting, or power pitching; every base seems to be covered.

Here's to the rookies of 2010. If an All-Star team was strictly comprised of MLB rookies, it would probably look something like this...

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The Baseball Jimmy with Caesar Cliffius Eastham and Sir Illya Charleton Harrell

Illya Harrell: Cliff, As Jerry Reed so eloquently sang in Smokey and the Bandit we, “Have a Long Way To Go and a Short Time To Get There.”

Down to brass tacks, who should the Reds attempt to acquire before the Major League trade deadline?