In the latter third of July, Reds third baseman Scott Rolen was placed on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation. Rolen has a history of shoulder problems, and this particular problem had bothered him off and on during the 2011 season, and the second half of the 2010 season. The hope was that he'd feel much better after getting a break.

On Wednesday, Rolen met with Reds team doctor, Tim Kremchek. The idea in theory was for Kremchek to observe Rolen's progress, but what actually happened was that Kremchek cut him open. Rolen underwent surgery, and is now expected to be out for another 4-6 weeks.

With the Reds at 54-56 and 6.5 games out of first place, this isn't that big of a deal. They don't figure too much in the playoff picture anyway. Nevertheless, a team would prefer not to be without Scott Rolen, when the alternative is Miguel Cairo. Maybe the surgery will allow Rolen to put his shoulder problems in the past, but for now, the Reds will have to keep running with Cairo and a little Todd Frazier, and that just isn't the same.

Rolen has a .676 season OPS, posted while frequently playing through pain. He's under contract for $6.5 million in 2012.