In the world of blogs, I'm a newcomer. The problem is not writing them, my problem lies with the technology. I did a blog last night, but apparently I screwed it up in the posting. So this morning I'll try it again.
It's cloudy but warm in Sarasota on a Sunday morning. But there's no threat of rain and the Reds are on the field for another workout.
Yesterday's workout was given the hurry-up because they were expecting rain. So they bypassed the mind-numbing pitchers fielding practice and went straight to batting practice. It was a nice change.
Worth noting: regular gas in Sarasota is $3.23 a gallon. Ouch!
Dusty Baker is a walker and a talker. He's everywhere in camp, usually holding a bat, with a glove attached at the barrel. He makes the rounds during stretching, just chatting and getting to know what makes these guys tick. And trying to figure out which guys can actually tick.
A common observation in this camp is the liveliness of many of the young arms. Joey Votto noted that the Reds faced some teams last year that came at you with bullpen heat pitcher after pitcher. He thinks the Reds now have some of those guys.
Not exactly a flamethrower, but David Weathers impressed Brandon Phillips in batting practice on Sunday. Phillips whiffed at a pitch and told Weather that it "cut a foot" Weathers replied,"vaseline".
Gus's 12th Street Cafe is a little dive across the street from the ballpark and I just ran over there for a cup of coffee. $1.90 for a cup. I should have stopped at Starbucks to save some money.
Whenever Junior Griffey goes to hit, 90-percent of the fans still turn and watch. He looks like he's in a good shape. Moody as usual.
Best performance yesterday at batting practice came from Norris Hopper, who jacked a ball over the left field fence. Then he went into his Adam Dunn home run trot, shuffling his feet to hit second base..and then slapping hands with an imaginary coach at third. He had his hitting group laughing. He's a positive personality on this club.
I'm heading out to the field. I'll let you know what I see.