CNATI: Cincinnati OH Sports Journalism

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Yesterday it was warmer in Cincinnati than here and it may be the same today. Enjoy it while it lasts.

Diamondbacks
Stephen Drew 6
Conor Jackson 7
Justin Upton 9
Mark Reynolds 5
Kelly Johnson 4
Chris Young DH
Chris Snyder 2
Brandon Allen 3
Cole Gillespie 8

Pitchers (all RHP)
Billy Buckner
Roque Mercedes
Jose Marte
Blaine Boyer
Juan Gutierrez

Redlegs
Drew Stubbs CF
Orlando Cabrera SS
Joey Votto 1B
Brandon Phillips 2B
Scott Rolen 3B
Jay Bruce DH
Jonny Gomes LF
Wladimir Balentien RF
Ryan Hanigan C

Pitchers
Aaron Harang (3 innings)
Francisco Cordero (1)
Matt Maloney (2)
Sam LeCure (1)
Alexander Smit (1)
Jon Adkins (1)

* Mike Lincoln has two more scheduled starts, and Matt Maloney will get one as well.

Here's the upcoming rotation:
Tue vs Ari: RHP Aaron Harang (6-14, 4.21) vs RHP Billy Buckner (4-6, 6.40) 3:05et
Wed at LAA: RHP Mike Lincoln (0-1, 27.00) vs LHP Trevor Reckling (0-0, 4.50) 3:05et
Thu vs Mil (ss): RHP Johnny Cueto (0-1, 9.00) vs LHP Chris Narveson (0-0, 0.00) 3:05et
Fri at LAD (ss): RHP Bronson Arroyo (0-0, 0.00) vs LHP Clayton Kershaw (0-0, 4.50) 3:05et
Sat at Cubs (ss): RHP Homer Bailey (8-5, 4.53) vs TBA 700 wlw, 3:05et
Sun vs WSox: LHP Matt Maloney (2-4, 4.87) vs TBA 700 wlw, 3:05et
Mon vs Oak: RHP Mike Lincoln vs TBA 3:05e

* Dusty Baker said the team is looking for another "B" game, they'd like one Sunday the 14th.

The B game yesterday gave them a chance to look at more players.

"It may not count in the stats, but it counts to us," Baker said.

Our Thinking out Loud spring training guest series continues with Mr. R from the Reds forum Red Letter Daze. You have undoubtedly seen him on the Reds blogosphere as the curmudgeon "Mr. Redlegs" or "MisterRedlegs," but at his gilded age he likes to save typing characters whenever possible. That's why he loves Twitter, you dope-smokers.

********************************

Happy birthday to Ms. R, who turned [bleep!] on Saturday and conducts what she calls the "Monthlong Celebration Tour." No joke, she gets free lunches and dinners from friends and family as she can schedule them throughout March. It's quite the racket. I'm never invited.

* Reds fireballer Aroldis Chapman hit 100 and (a questionable) 102 mph on scouts guns Monday during his two-inning stint against the Royals. That performance lit up Al's Internets like a Saturn V and starts raising the legit question about Chapman jumping straight to the big leagues. "I'll take 100 with command," says manager Dusty Baker, unabashingly.

Chapman also excited the ultra-excitable omgReds.com, where Dan was quick to illustrate this Chapman card.

Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune tweeted, "Just saw the future of pitching. His name is Aroldis Chapman. . . Seriously, he looks like a great $30 million investment for the Reds."

Gushed former scout Frankie Piliere of AOL Fanhouse: "This early and apparently with some consistency. . . that's incredible."

Joe Posnanski of Sports Illustrated was on the scene and filed a beauty of a story, quoting a scout that Chapman is the best left-handed arm he's seen since Herb Score. For you kiddies, that's going back to 1955.

Dave Shenin of the Washington Post also witnessed and was a little more critical. Perhaps the best observation of the day came from funnyman Jamie Ramsey of the Reds' media relations department:

"As a batter, imagine facing a DRay Herrera 68 mph screwball two innings after you had to catch up with an Aroldis 102 mph heater."

*Despite the Chapman excitement and good storylines from Reds camp, anyone else not feeling the usual spring training buzz across the Reds fan base yet? Neither are the ticket takers at Goodyear. In three games, the Reds have drawn a miserable 12,145 fans for just 40.5 percent of stadium capacity. . .

* Because this column is titled, "Thinking Out Loud," let's think about how much of Chapman's $30.25 mil spread over 10 years the Redlegs can recoup this season if he's on the big-league roster out of spring training.

* It's a big day for Washington Nationals fans as their own pitching phenom, 2009 No. 1 pick Stephen Strasburg, greatest . . . prospect . . . ever (or since Ben McDonald in 1989), makes his debut against the Tiggers at 1 p.m. The game will be televised in the mid-Atlantic on MASN and nationally on MLB.TV. Phil Rogers made this observation yesterday: "Strasburg. . . better than Chapman? I'll believe it when I see it."

* Oft-injured former Reds OF Josh Hamilton on the market? Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe quotes a scout as saying, "Everybody in Texas denies it, and I don't know what to base it on, but there's a feeling the Rangers may do something, and teams want to be ready."

* I have no vested interest in U. of Cinti basketball but for a couple of weeks now I've watched with demented curiosity the spewing of venom from the Bearcats faithful. I've seen two full UC games on TV and small parts of two others this season. Do Bearcats fans hate Mick Cronin because he's not Bob Huggins, or because Miss Beasley in gym class out-coaches him?

* One of the most common complaints about Cronin is he makes excuses. I don't know if that's true, but I do know that in 34 years of sports journalism I've never heard a coach on any level blaming game officials for three losses. Even Miss Beasley in gym class ain't that stupid.

* Then, Monday evening, Paul Dehner Jr. posted an amazing story here on Cnati.com where Cronin says former 5-star recruit Yancy Gates is a victim of lofty expectations. "So, the problem with Yancy is people want him to be something he's not," Cronin says.

Say what?!?! 

Dehner craftily refers to a 2008 article by Bearcats announcer Dan Hoard quoting the coach saying Gates is "the most talented big guy that I have ever recruited. For a coach it's exciting because he's got everything that you can't teach. Everything that Yancy needs are things that can be taught."

Wow. Just . . . wow. Where I come from, which is pretty much the same as where anyone else comes from, that's called talking out both sides of your yakker. Or making excuses. You choose.

* If the NCAA expands the basketball tournament to 4,256 teams, not only does the regular season not have meaning, but neither does the cash cow conference tournaments. The Big East Tourney opens today at Madison Square Garden and there is a lot at stake for 5-6 teams.

* Antonio Bryant and Terrell Owens? Ever wish you were a fly on the wall of Bengals owner Mike Brown so you'd know just what the hell he is thinking at times?

* 85 on "Dancing With the Stars." You scoff. You won't watch. You seen those professional dancers? Best optical workout since "Charlie's Angels," Season 2, "Angels in Paradise" episode. Not that I remember. Much. Chad is paired with Cheryl Burke, who has won the DWTS title twice, one with Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith. Ms. R really likes the show because a.) She really likes the show and b.) it's something I'll watch with her without blabbering cuz my jaw is on the floor.

* Growing Pet Peeve: Publications that aggressively use Twitter to drive traffic to their sites only to find out it's subscription content once you get there. Hello, Baseball America and Sports Business Daily, you bozos.

* One of my favorite Twitter feeds is @historyday, where we learn on this date in 1862, the Civil War ironclads USS Monitor and CSS Virginia (nee, Merrimack) fight to a draw off the coast of Hampton Roads, Va., and actor George Burns died in 1996. Wait, George Burns is dead?

* The dumbasses at the Cincinnati Enquirer are trying something called "First in Print," where they withhold one story of each section of the newspaper from being placed online until the next day. This concept supposedly rewards the paying customers and will perhaps drive circulation. Quick: How many of you rushed out to buy your Sunday Enquirer because you couldn't read John Fay's Insider column on Brandon Phillips online?

* Meet Rascal, world's ugliest dog. Shhhhhhhhudder.

* Meet Fifi Coco Puff, world's dumbest dog name and pissy li'l varmint that has more house privileges than I do (image purposefully omitted, varmint).

* You know you're old when you don't watch the Oscars because you forgot. We didn't see one movie in the theater in 2009. That's why HD television and surround sound are killing theaters. That, and $4 for a box of Milk Duds you can buy at Walmart for $1.

* Data visualization overload of famous movie quotes. 

* What a lousy TV season. I even gave up on "BBQ Pitmasters" on TLC. "The Office" is having its worst season (a comedy that hasn't been funny) and the final season of "Lost" has been absurd. We would drop 7 and punt if not for having invested into every episode since the pilot in 2004. And, after a nice revival last year, we dropped "24" after three (yawwwwwn) hours this year. Apparently, so have a lot of other people. The show is teetering on cancellation after this season.

The only new network show with any legs has been "Modern Family." It's funny and edgy but is it "appointment TV?" I hate their use of mockumentary style interviews. But then, I also hate Life cereal. . . .

* Oh. Speaking of which . . . Chocolate Cheerios. Best chocolate cereal of all time? I dunno. Cocoa Puffs are pretty awesome and make great chocolate milk. Cocoa Pebbles are pretty rich in chocolate, too. Chocolate Rice Krispies treats? Count Chocula? Tough call. . . .

* You Can't Make This Stuff Up Dept.: We have a young regular at Red Letter Daze named Ashland A-Team who so happens to be a minister who his body adorned with Reds tattoos. He also eats his hot dogs with a fork.

* You Can't Make This Stuff Up Dept. II: After the Reds-Royals game yesterday in Goodyear, they had a senior stroll around the bases.

* March 17 is St. Patrick's Day and Reds fans know what that means. Yep, the green caps. Get ready, get yours. Looks good this year.

* Mitchell Conrad Stinson's biography of the great Reds hitter, Hall of Famer Edd Roush, is due out any time now. Roush was the star of the 1919 world championship team and a fiery, colorful guy. He died in 1988 at age 94, swearing to his grave the Reds would have beaten the Black Sox without the gambling scandal.

* The Biz of Baseball web site has a look at the top ballpark giveaways in MLB this year. The Orioles' 1970 Brooks Robinson replica jersey is killer, and so is the Brewers' Klement's Italian Sausage bobber. The Carlos Pena toothbrush holder has choppers (har). However, Lawyers Night with the Marlins is disputable as a top 10 because the stunt doesn't include a school bus to throw them under.

* And, finally, since there is usually a music element on TOL, I saw on the wires the other day that Elton John and the great Leon Russell are teaming for a new album. If you don't know the legendary Russell, you should. He's a master songwriter, pianist and guitarist who crosses rock, R&B, country, blues, bluegrass and gospel. He was hugely popular and influential with his big band rock during the 1970s. Today, he's pushing 70 and looks like John Brown's ghost.

My brother is a huge Leon Russell fan--and so was our old man. In 1973, Leon went on a world tour that became Billboard's concert of the year and can be heard on his spectacular triple-LP "Leon Live" CD.  My brother snagged tickets to one of Leon's shows and took our dad, who was 44 at the time.  They did some serious rockin' and didn't sit the entire night.  Their ears buzzed for a couple of days because their seats were next to the stage speakers. Leon tore down the house.

As the story goes, after Leon performed his final encore, he and the band exited the stage in the path of my brother and dad. As Leon approached, my old man reached over the rail, thrust a fist in the air and screamed, "LEEEEEON!!!" Russell saw him, grinned and gave him a big thumbs up.

Years later, a few days before dad died, we were in his room at hospice talking about some funny times together. My brother revisited the story of the Leon Russell concert. Dad grinned, smiled, gave a thumbs up and said with as much voice as he could muster, "LEEEEEON!!!"

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- In a feverish attempt to push that old mug shot Marc put up lower, here's the Reds' A Game lineup against the Royals this afternoon:

Stubbs cf
Cabrera ss
Votto 1b
Phillips 2b
Rolen 3b
Bruce RF
Dickerson LF
Hernandez c
Gomes DH

pitching:
Bronson Arroyo (2 innings)
Aroldis Chapman (2)
Nick Masset (1)
Daniel Ray Herrera (1)
Jared Burton (1)
Micah Owings (1)
Pedro Viola (1)

Royals
David DeJesus RF
Chris Getz SS
Billy Butler 1B
Rick Ankiel CF
Alberto Callaspo 2B
Josh Fields 3B
Brayan Pena C
Kila Ka'aihue DH
Brian Anderson LF

The B game lineup is
Josh Anderson 8
Chris Heisey 7
Yonder Alonso 3
Todd Frazier 4
Juan Francisco 5
Wladimir Balentien 9
Laynce Nix DH
Ryan Hanigan 2
Paul Janish 6

Homer Bailey p (2 innings)
Carlos Fisher (1-2)
Jordan Smith (1-2)
Logan Ondrusek (1)
Philippe Valiquette (1)
Enerio Del Rosario (1)

* I was standing by the board writing down the lineup and Todd Frazier was looking at when he'd be taking BP. He looked and the BP groups were named for who was throwing the BP. He started laughing because not only was there a (Ted) Power group, but also a Porky (Lopez) group -- although he didn't think two of the three belonged in that group, it was Wladimir Balentien, Ryan Hanigan and Laynce Nix. You can decide who Todd believed should be in the Porky group. As for the Power group, "we can all go in there." Orlando Cabrera, Brandon Phillips and Chris Dickerson are the official Power group.

* Homer Bailey will pitch the first game (if they play it, it's raining right now), so much of the pregame talk was about Homer. A lot of it's a recap from some of the things I wrote about here, but Dusty was again good.

"The thing he's learning is a routine," Baker said. "That's why he wanted to pitch the first game. They say sameness is greatness. He's gotten into a regimine, which wasn't Homer in the past. He's maturing, he's serious about being good in this game. He's a man. He's growing up."

Someone asked if it takes a little longer for some, rather than others.

"It ain't that long, it ain't like he's 35," Baker said. "Where were you at 23? Probably hanging in a bar somewhere. I was probably around the corner. We expect because they've been around a long time, or they've got a lot of money, we want our young to grow up superfast."

Do you have to wait them out?

"Sometimes. You try to help them. A lot depends on where you're from, your background, your family structure," Baker said. "Were you the breadwinner at 16? Or were you never the breadwinner? You can see a lot of guys from different places and different senses of responsibility. I was forced to grow up quicker than I wanted to, my parents got divorced and all of a sudden I was the oldest of five. Things change kind of quickly sometimes. And they've all got a story out there. We've all got a story."

After talking about figuring it out while your arm's still good, Bakre said, "I tell our guys, 'try not to be a gimmie-another-chance guy' -- I feel for those guys, but how many chances are you going to get. You've got to look at it like it's your only chance."

That led to Enerio Del Rosario, the 24-year old right-hander, who started 2009 at Class A Sarastoa and finished the season at Class AAA Louisville and on the team's 40-man roster.

"He was supposed to be sent home to poverty and then Tom Browning dropped (his arm angle) down, and he went from Rookie ball, to A, to AA, to AAA," Baker said. "Here he is now and I'm looking at him and he's one of the hardest-working guys in camp. Whenever I see the sprints, I see him and (Pedro) Viola at the front of the pack all the time. These are the kinds of things that impress you, you know they're hungry. You need to be hungry even if you may not be hungry."

Of course, Del Rosario is still "young" but older than Homer Bailey. As are other young guys like Sam LeCure, Matt Maloney, Logan Ondrusek, Jordan Smith, Chris Valaika, Chris Heisey, Alexander Smit, Zack Cozart and Todd Frazier.

* Aaron Miles is not back yet. The infielder suffered a finger injury. "He's close. Right now I think it looks worse than it is," Baker said.

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Looking ahead to Monday morning.

Here's the lineup for the "B" game tomorrow

Josh Anderson 8
Chris Heisey 7
Yonder Alonso 3
Todd Frazier 4
Juan Francisco 5
Wladimir Balentien 9
Laynce Nix DH
Ryan Hanigan 2
Paul Janish 6

Homer Bailey p (2 innings)
Carlos Fisher (1-2)
Jordan Smith (1-2)
Logan Ondrusek (1)
Philippe Valiquette (1)
Enerio Del Rosario (1)

No lineup yet for the A game at 1:05, but we do have pitchers

Bronson Arroyo (2 innings)
Aroldis Chapman (2)
Nick Masset (1)
Daniel Ray Herrera (1)
Jared Burton (1)
Micah Owings (1)
Pedro Viola (1)

Today's game has been canceled due to rain

There will be a "B" game tomorrow at the Reds' Complex on Field 1 against the Brewers with Aroldis Chapman pitching at 9:30 a.m.

A Game @ 1 p.m. vs. Royals
Arroyo
Bailey
Masset
Herrera
Burton
Owings
Viola

B Game @ 9:30 a.m. vs. Brewers
Chapman
Del Rosario
Ondrusek
Smith
Volquette
Fisher

And another change of plans, Mark Berry came in and told us Chapman throwing in the A game, Bailey to start the B game.

PHOENIX -- Here's the Reds travel roster. The Brewers don't want to use the DH, so the lineup is being changed right now.

So here's the travel roster:
Infielders
Alonso, Yonder
Cairo, Miguel
Cozart, Zack
Francisco, Juan
Frazier, Todd
Janish, Paul
Phillips, Brandon
Sutton, Drew
Valaika, Chris

Outfielders
Anderson, Josh
Balentien, Wladimir
Bruce, Jay
Dickerson, Chris
Dorn, Danny
Heisey, Chris
Stubbs, Drew

Catchers
Denove, Chris
Hanigan, Ryan
Hernandez, Ramon
Mesoraco, Devin
Miller, Corky
Yarbrough, Brandon

Pitchers
Arroyo, Bronson
Burton, Jared
Fisher, Carlos
Herrera, Daniel Ray
Masset, Nick
Ondrusek, Logan
Smith, Jordan
Valiquette, Philippe
Viola, Pedro

And the lineup:
Drew Stubbs ................ CF
Chris Dickerson ............LF
Brandon Phillips............2B
Jay Bruce..................... RF
Ramon Hernandez ........ C
Juan Francisco .............3B
Todd Frazier..................1B
Paul Janish .................. SS
Bronson Arroyo ......... RHP

* That said, rain is in the forecast for most of the day, so I don't know if we'll get this game in. Will keep you updated. It's rained every Sunday since I've been here. Odd.

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Here's today's lineup against the Indians

Chris Dickerson 8
Orlando Cabrera 6
Joey Votto 3
Brandon Phillips 4
Scott Rolen 5
Jay Bruce 9
Jonny Gomes 7
Corky Miller 2
Devin Mesoraco DH

pitchers
Johnny Cueto (2 innings)
Arthur Rhodes (1)
Francisco Cordero (2)
Travis Wood (2)
Mike Leake (1)
Kip Wells (2)

Indians
Michale Brantley cf
Mark Gridzielanek 2b
Shin-Soo Choo DH
Jhonny Peralta 3b
Nick Weglarz lf
Austin Kearns rf
Andy Marte 1b
Wyatt Toregas c
Jason Donald SS

pitchers
LHP David Huff
RHP Mitch Talbot
RHP Hector Ambriz
LHP Tony
Sipp
RHP Jess Todd
RHP Jensen Lewis (Anderson High School graduate)
LHP Mike Gosling (a former Red)

* I know everyone loves to criticize Dusty Baker, to pick out any inconsistency in any quote, pick at any decision made and jump to the same old conclusions.

My thing is, if you sit back and listen to him, most of the time he makes a lot of sense. And I can also see why guys love to play for him. Orlando Cabrera said it's one of the big reasons he chose to play for the Reds, with Dusty you know where you stand and you know what you're going to be doing.

Today we were talking about Johnny Cueto.

"I hope he keeps taking steps, I can't judge how far those steps are," Baker said. "There are a lot of guys around the league that got here early, everyone's not (Tim) Lincecum. You look at guys Matt Cain in San Francisco, these guys are still learning. They're still only 23 years old and they've got two years in the big leagues already."

Cueto has shown those flashes of being a dominant starter, but has also struggled at times.

"We're helping to get this finished product and we all want this finished product, but sometimes you've got to let the product finish," Baker said. "It's like that story about the little kid that plants a seed and the plants started growing and he pulled on it to help it grow and killed it. Sometimes you've got to let it grow - just water it sometimes."

I then noted it was the same with Homer Bailey.

"We're all in a hurry for these guys and that's the hard part of coaching sometimes is not to overcoach sometimes," Baker said. "I was talking to Tony Phillips about that this morning, that's what Bill Walsh would tell me all time."

Baker said he could see Cueto maturing on the mound, in part because he had fewer of those really bad innings last year than he did the year before.

"You're seeing these guys mature, him and Homer and as long as you're taking positive steps and then bang, once they get it, they'll keep it for a while," Baker said. "You look at Greg Maddux's first years in the big leagues, Smoltz and Glavine, look at a whole bunch of them. I'd like to compare (Cueto's) years to those guys, Randy Johnson, Curt Schilling. Nolan Ryan. I think people forget. What would we do (today) if we had Steve Carlton and he lost 20 games? I bet nobody remembers he lost 20 games. When I first came up, Nolan Ryan was in long relief, he couldn't make the starting rotation."

I'm sure someone will pull a number somewhere, but a single exception doesn't change the rule. Young guys play young sometimes, and sometimes you have to let them grow and learn. There was a game late last year where Homer Bailey had pitched well through four or five innings, then got into some trouble with walks and everyone wanted him pulled. Well, Baker let him stay in and get shelled. A couple of starts later, Bailey got in the same situation and got out of it. Homer gave Baker a lot of credit and said it was because he was left out there the time before and he learned from it.

I know Dusty-bashing is Cincinnati's favorite pastime (just another example of how sometimes Cincinnati tries too hard to follow Chicago's lead) and the man certainly has some different ideas about baseball than some of us, but it doesn't mean he doesn't know what he's doing. It doesn't mean he knows more about baseball than I do and it doesn't mean there aren't positives to what he's doing here. Is the guy perfect? No. But he does have a lot of experience and has won a ton of games. I don't think that's a mistake.

(Now, rant on to me why I'm wrong.)

* Todd Frazier will get a couple of at-bats today, Baker said. Frazier was hit in the knee by an Aroldis Chapman fastball on Thursday and has been cleared to play.

"He'll get a couple of at-bats today," Baker said. "He's champing at the bit."

That news was music to Frazier's ears.

"I heard I'm getting a couple of at-bats, I'm juiced up, I'm ready to go," Frazier said. "I was jealous of the guys yesterday because they got to play. Now I'm ready to gear up and have some fun playing the game of baseball."

* The two guys I'm going to be interested to watch today - and I'll be writing about later - are Travis Wood and Mike Leake.

These are two young guys who are pitchers more than throwers. It's a big spring for both of them.

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Laynce Nix is out of today's game, to be replaced by Drew Sutton.

Nix went into the wall yesterday trying to track down a Miguel Cairo double. He scratched up his arm and was generally sore today. But he shouldn't be out too long.

"It's just precautionary," Baker said.

Also, Todd Frazier should be back tomorrow.

Frazier had knee surgery in December and had hurt the knee playing golf.

"I'm not big on guys playing golf anyway if they're baseball players," Baker said. "I've only seen a few remain good hitters after playing golf. Pitchers play golf. Hitters are different. The weight transfer is different, Mays and Jim Rice and who else? Some switch hitters, Robin Yount, Chili (Davis) and Tony Phillips. They played right-handed and didn't hit much right-handed."

Ken Griffey Jr. also plays right-handed.

"That doesn't count," Baker said. "I've been going round-and-round on certain guys about that for a while now."



 

So the gang here at CNati decided to pitch in and help C. Trent out while he's slaving away in sunny Arizona.  This week we'll try our hand at TOL, but be warned:  C. Trent might like sneakers, Apple products, Japanese baseball and bacon, but the rest of us have our quirks too.

Our Thinking out Loud guest series continues with Scott Priestle from the CNati blog View from the Hill.  You'll also recognize Scott from his contributions as senior writer at CNati, primarily covering the Cincinnati Bengals.

**************************

NFL free agency started a few hours ago, and some teams already are busy.

The best defense in the league got a little better. The Jets traded for Antonio Cromartie, giving them a pair of cornerbacks to rival the Bengals'. I wrote this two months ago, and I believe it more today: The Jets are what the Bengals aspire to be, a dominant defense with an offense that complements it. The Bengals fall a tad short on both counts.

* The Chicago Bears seem intent on winning the day. Hasn't done much good for the Washington Redskins. But considering the Bears sold their future for Jay Cutler, focusing on the short term is probably the only way to go.

* I think the Bengals have a move or two in 'em, but not today. This is a good day to simply sit in front of the TV and watch some baseball. Actual, live baseball. The weather seems nicer just thinking about it.

* The story that won't die.

* The buzz in Indy last week was that the Browns will be active this month, and according the The Plain Dealer, there is some movement beneath the surface.

* I have read Will Carroll often enough to know that injuries are not simply a matter of fate, though some teams seem to treat the issue that way. It is an area of roster management where a smart team can create a notable edge.

The Bengals took some tangible steps toward being healthier in 2009. The Reds would be wise to do the same. Baseball Prospectus highlights the numerous injury concerns they have entering the season.

* Former UK football coach Guy Morriss has a troubling view of what constitutes a good "team-building exercise."

* Bengals coach Marvin Lewis is among the judges for Cincinnati Canstruction. I've seen one of the structures, and it's pretty cool.

* Ohio State won't be getting this from me -- unless CNati starts to make a whole lot of money.

* Finally, for the obligatory TOL music/movie/TV link, here is the song I've listened to most of late. Yep.

 

First off, here's the lineups for Friday's exhibition opener agianst Cleveland

Racist Mascots
Asdrubal Cabrera ss
Grady Sizemore cf
Shin-Soo Choo rf
Travis Hafner DH
Jhonny Peralta 3b
Jordan Brown lf
Andy Marte 1b
Luis Valbuena 2b
Lou Marson
RHP Justin Masterson

Redlegs
Drew Stubbscf
Orlando Cabrera ss
Joey Votto 1b
Brandon Phillips 2b
Scott Rolen 3b
Jay Bruce rf
Jonny Gomes lf
Ramon Hernandez c
Laynce Nix DH

RHP Mike Lincoln

* A quick observation, both shortstops are named Cabrera and each team will have a player with the name Johnny, alhtough neither is spelled that way.

* As for today, Homer Bailey looked pretty good -- if all eyes hadn't been on Chapman, Bailey may have been the story. Baker said he was impressed with just about all the pitchers, only Alexander Smit struggled with his control. Chris Dickerson had a single, a triple and walked, stole a base and scored on a Laynce Nix single.

Ramon Hernandez homered off of Aaron Harang.

"You've got to look out for your catcher," Harang said. "I wanted to help his confidence."

Harang said that to Hernandez, but admitted he was only joking when Hernandez was out of earshot.

Hernandez said he was impressed with Chapman, but that control will be the issue. After that, everything else will be fine.

Quite honestly, there was a mix-up in how postgame was supposed to work, so I didn't see too much else from the game. There are some great seats in that stadium, though.

* It was kind of funny to see players drive from the complex the 8-tenths of a mile to the stadium in full uniform. I hope Todd Frazier carpooled, so he didn't have to leave his car at the stadium. Frazier, the Reds said, has a bruised quad and will be re-evaluated on Friday.