Noah Hunt and the All-Stars perform “Under the Lights” at Redsfest in December 2006. Hunt definitely has a Jason LaRue-esque hotness going on, only with less John Deere hat.

Maybe I was imagining things, but as I watched the performance live, it seemed like the entire band was pissed off at Noah, like maybe they'd been fighting back stage just before going on. But, c'mon, how could you be mad a such a cutie?

From the press release on Reds.com:

CINCINNATI -- The 2007 Reds Winter Caravan, sponsored by Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network, is scheduled to make 26 stops in 21 cities and towns in four states covering four days and 1,300 miles. The caravan kicks off Thursday, Jan. 25 and will include 13 fan stops that will be open to the public, 12 Hot Stove stops at Reds on Radio affiliates, a field renovation dedication ceremony in Louisville and a visit to Shriners Hospital for Children in Lexington.

The 2007 version will consist of two separate caravans touring simultaneously. The 13 stops open to the public will be free, and at each stop the Reds will raffle off 2 tickets to the 2007 Opening Day game against the Chicago Cubs.

Last year's Caravan made eight stops and covered 1,165 miles.

The very popular Reds Winter Caravan provides fans with the opportunity to interact with Reds executive vice president and general manager Wayne Krivsky, manager Jerry Narron, players, broadcasters and other members of the front office staff. At each stop, the group will field questions from fans, sign autographs and pose for photographs. Sales representatives will be on hand to discuss season tickets and group sales, while the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum, the Reds Community Fund and Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network also will attend selected stops.

Already scheduled to appear in stops on the Northern Leg are Narron, pitcher Todd Coffey, outfielder Chris Dickerson, new Reds broadcaster Thom Brennaman and senior vice president of business operations Phil Castellini.

The Southern Leg group includes Krivsky, executive vice president and chief operating officer John Allen, Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Brennaman, infielder Brandon Phillips and the organization's Minor League Player of the Year, which will be announced at the LaSalle High School Stag on Jan. 24.

NORTHERN LEG FAN STOPS (free and open to the public)

Date: Location Time

Thursday, January 25
Columbus (OH), Flannagan’s Dublin 7:00 to 9:00

Friday, January 26
Marion (OH), BW3s 10:00 to 11:00
Findlay (OH), Fricker’s Noon to 2:00
Lima (OH), Lima Mall 6:00 to 8:00

Saturday, January 27
Muncie (IN), Damon’s 3:30 to 5:30
Indianapolis (IN), location TBA 7:00 to 9:00

Sunday, January 28
Dayton (OH), Fricker’s in West Carrollton Noon to 2:00 p.m.

SOUTHERN LEG FAN STOPS (free and open to the public)

Date: Location Time

Thursday, January 25
Louisville (KY), Metro Parks/Louisville West Sports field renovation ceremony 5:00 to 5:30
Louisville (KY), Louisville Slugger Museum 7:00 to 9:00

Friday, January 26
Cynthiana (KY), Cynthiana Country Club 11:00 to 1:00
Lexington (KY), Shriners Hospital for Children 2:00 to 3:00
Lexington (KY), Beaumont Centre Family YMCA 5:00 to 7:00

Saturday, January 27
South Point (OH), Big Sandy Superstore 2:00 to 3:00
Huntington (WV), Huntington Mall 4:00 to 6:00

Sunday, January 28
Ashland (KY), Ashland Town Center Noon to 2:00 p.m.

See also the story about the caravan on Reds.com and comments on Marc's blog.

The hits just keep on coming. This one is Freekbass performing “Reds Fan,” which I think was even more enjoyable live than on the album. The CTS and I came home with three of those pom poms, so you can look forward to those being included in prize packages in the future.

September
I started off the month with a transaction round-up for the team for the month of August. There were 14 moves made, though none at the trade deadline. A few days later, the Reds would still be making transactions when they picked up Sun Woo Kim from the Rockies.

September 7 was the day I decided to enjoy the ride and not concern myself with the fact that it was a ride to a baseball-free October. Despite the fact that the team was falling apart, they kept hanging in the post-season race, thanks to the ineptitude of everyone around them.

One of my favorite things to do while “watching” the game on the Gameday at work is to take the occasional screen shot of the game and post it on RHM. Ever wonder what the coach is saying when he visits the mound?

The 16th was CTS and my 10-year wedding anniversary. Not baseball-related, I know, but then, I think a lot of Reds fans weren't concentrating so much on the season by this time.

At least we got back in the vicinity of the team when we learned some handy Reds-related IM abbreviations.

The bright point in the month of September? BLOGGER DAY! The Reds had six errors that day, the mascot wiffleball game was cancelled, and the CTS came down with a fever, but it was super-fun anyway. It rained, but we were the proud recipients of a 12-page excerpt from the new book Crosley: Two Brothers and a Business Empire that Transformed the Nation, which we, like most people, held over our heads to keep the rain out of our eyes or sat on to keep our tushes from getting completely soaked on the bleachers.

The day after blogger day was pretty darn fun as well, and featured an opportunity for me to record a segment for Ken Broo's television sports talks show Sports Rock.

The Reds ended the month with a 80-81 record. Thanks to the general stinkiness of NL baseball, the Reds hung in the chance until the very end. They weren't even part of this particular coin-toss for a change.

This week on the Red Hot Broadcast:

• Reds trade Brendan Harris in an effort to hide the evidence.
• Marlins give Alex Sanchez a chance to clean up his reputation.
• Mariners sign Chris Reitsma, despite hope in Redsland that we'd see his pretty face 'round these parts.
• Spring training invitees have been announced.
• Reds Caravan coming to Indiana!
• Ken Griffey's healing hand.
• Jason Standridge's weird statistic.
• Other teams' players getting arrested. For your inner voyeur.

Episode 40: Some Actual News for a Change (13.4 MB, 19:30)

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