Yeah, I know we just previewed the Cardinals with Bellyscratcher, but if you have the opportunity to have a celebrity blogger like Will Leitch from the Deadspin.com on the show, you take it. I mean, we’re talking about the guy who glogged the Super Bowl!On tonight’s show we talk about how Deadspin began, how it grew to what it is today, and how they get the community to provide most of the content–and that’s just the stuff before we start talking about baseball.

Episode 48: Cardinals Preview with Will Leitch (15.5 MB, 22:32)

Tonight on the Red Hot Broadcast we’re pleased to welcome our favorite smack-talker, Bellyscratcher, to give us a preview of the Cardinals 2007 season.Ms. Scratcher talks about the big, throbbing question mark that is the St. Louis starting rotation (can you believe Ryan Franklin is in the mix??), the future of Colby Rasmus, and how any team with Albert Pujols doesn’t have to worry about offense. Also hear first-hand how the home of Busch ran out of beer one fabled night.

Check out Ms. Scratcher’s site, bellyitcher, on a regular basis. Many thanks, Belly, for being on the show. I can hardly wait for the smack to begin!

Episode 47: Cardinals Preview with Bellyscratcher (13.3 MB, 19:26)

In Sunday's Reds' Notebook in The Enquirer, the first sentence concerns Jeff Conine.

Jeff Conine is Jerry Narron's kind of ballplayer. He plays hard. He plays the right way.

Now I'm all for baseball players that play hard, smart, and to the fullest of their abilities. But why does this statement scare me so much?

Are we doomed to another year of Encarnación being blocked because of an older player who knew how to play the game right?

Lest you think there won't be anything new and exciting to watch at PNC Park this season, the Pirates have announced that they are improving their big-screen scoreboard and adding an LED to span the upper deck:

The new main scoreboard display will have the capability of more than doubling the size of the current video display, as well as splitting into multiple windows to show lineups, statistics, out-of-town game information, animation, video clips and much more.

Finally you'll be able to watch the Pirates' fail to score runs at twice the size!

In much more site-appropriate news, there's another plan on the table for the Reds' spring training facility:

A consultant's plan quietly being shopped around by Sarasota Agricultural Fair Association leaders shows a new spring training baseball stadium, clubhouse, offices and practice facilities for the Cincinnati Reds at the fairgrounds on Fruitville Road -- along with a hotel, modern arena and conference center.

So long as the on-site hotel is for tourists and not pre-practice Craig's List interludes, it could be a good plan.

…it's how you dangle the bait. And Ryan Freel is apparently pretty good.
I grew up fishing almost every day, though I haven't done it in years. So I got a kick out of these photos from the Enquirer. Ryan Freel went fishing after practice, and apparently took Bubba Crosby with him:

LOL! Bubba looks faintly horrified. I guess Freel must have been using live bait?

Freel was successful:

Where was he fishing, I wonder? In the Ohio River? Are the fish safe to eat?

In other news, the Reds are considering going with only 11 pitchers - so they can carry Josh Hamilton. Which would be good news for Bubba, I guess. Especially if going with less than three catchers is out of the question…

The Big Lead seems to think that Ryan Freel (or rather, Farney) is responsible for this ad on Craigslist (Via Deadspin):

I am here for two months before i head back up north. I have this morning before practice…..looking for a woman to enjoy the morning with. Can be married or single, disease free is important. I am 5′9″ 180 short hair and blue eyes, in shape, of course.

It's probably not Freel, of course, but it's easy to imagine the Reds' clubhouse getting a little TOO wired, if you know what I mean.

Adam Dunn reported to spring training camp a little early and a little lighter this year. While people will debate whether Dunn really needed to trim down, there aren't too many people out there saying it's going to be a bad thing.

Especially, I bet, his doctor. Looking at this photo, you can tell he's looking good, but even so, Dunner is hardly dodging raindrops. His cholesterol had to be approaching the Crestor phase by the end of last season.

So what's changed? Did he get tired of getting short of breath from tying his shoes? Probably not: that wasn't enough to get his booty in gear last season. Did he get sick of people being down on him all the time? Doubtful: what does the Big Donkey care what people think? Did the bruises from Griffey constantly poking him in the belly to laugh like the Pillsbury doughboy start to bother him? Of course not: that's a good thing!

But there is one thing that comes immediately to mind when I think of things that are different in Mr. Dunn's life since last year: fatherhood. Maybe the desire to stay fit and healthy long enough to see his son grow up has had an impact or perhaps a lady-friend has had a positive impact. Maybe something else. Whatever it is, I think I'd be more interested to hear about it than hear Josh Hamilton's story again or listen to Yankee fans complain about Bubba Crosby.

One things for sure: if there is a good woman back there, she's going to have a tough time staying hidden behind him if he keeps losing weight.

I didn't even realize that the Twins were looking to replace the Metrodome, but now that I see that they're having problems getting the land deal done, I see what a potentially large impact this could have on the Reds. I mean, if they don't build themselves a new ballpark, how are we ever going to get their old one?