THE BROO VIEW with Ken Broo

Welcome To Wednesday!

Still waiting for the swelling to subside.

Just added to the front page of my web site, www.kenbroo.com is an interview I conducted with Cincinnati Reds phenom, Chris Heisey. He's with the Reds' AAA affiliate in Louisville and appears to be on the fast track to the big club.

I don't see how Bronson Arroyo AND Aaron Harang remain with the Reds past this week. The trade deadline is 4p Friday. Harang is scheduled to make $12.5 million in 2009 and Arroyo just over $11 million. Mix in Francisco Cordero's $13 mil for 2009, that's $36.5 million in salary for hust three players on a team with a $75 million limit. Didn't we just go through this a year ago with Griffey and Dunn?

And spending prospects and $11 million next season in a potential trade for the Blue Jay's Scott Rolen? No sense at his age of 35.

I'm surprised this current Reds team can win anything given the line-up they trot out every night. Jerry Hairston, Jr, Laynce Nix, Jonny Gomes, Chris Dickerson (hurt), Ryan Hanigan? This is a collection of spare parts. They're all back of the roster players. But here, they take turns starting. You don't beat a Cardinals line-up that just went out and traded for Mark DeRosa, Julio Lugo and Matt Holliday with that group.

Here's the really bad news for Reds owner Bob Castellini. At 3p Friday, the Reds cease to be relevant for the balance of this season. That's the time of the Bengals first workout of their training camp. The Reds owner and his front office staff have no one but themselves to blame. They failed to field a competitive team, plain, simple, end of story.

Why do I have this sinking feeling the Bengals will cease to be relevant by October 1?

Heard this one today: Brett Favre tantilized the Vikings just long enough to screw up their training camp and create dissention among the quarterback ranks in that franchise so he could help the Packers win that NFC North this season. That's rich. If Favre had any juice left in his arm, he'd be out there sweating up a blue streak when the Vikings hit the field later this week. Exactly how exciting can Mississippi be, at any time of the year?

Michael Vick to the Vikings, that's what I'm seeing. Why not?

Mike Brown said Tuesday he's not interested in bringing Vick to the Bengals. Not a good fit, says the Bengals chief pooh-bah. Chris Henry is? Odell Thurman was?