Via John Fay’s blog, I learned that the Reds have announced their non-roster invitees to spring training, which is just around the corner. Here’s a list for you:

• RHP Nick Christiani – 25 year old who’s been in the Reds’ system all along. He had a 3.34 ERA last year in AAA Louisville.
• LHP Wilkin De La Rosa – 27 year old who’s been bouncing around minor league teams for the last 8 years. He rocked a 2.49 ERA in AA Pensacola last year, so maybe this is finally his shot.
• RHP Justin Freeman – 26 year old who’s come up through the Reds’ system. He had a 2.91 ERA in AA Pensacola last year.
• RHP Drew Hayes – Another 25 year old coming up through the Reds’ system. 3.41 ERA in AA Pensacola last year.
• RHP Chad Rogers – Ooh, a youngun at just 23. Also home grown. 2.92 ERA in AA Pensacola last year.



• C Nevin Ashley – This 28 year old came up with the Rays before becoming a free agent and signing a minor league deal with the Reds in November. He’s got a fairly active Twitter account. He’s a fellow Hoosier and apparently likes yoga.
• C Tucker Barnhart – Just 22 and another Hoosier. Tucker spent last year in AA Pensacola.
• C Corky Miller – What could I possibly say about Corky Miller that hasn’t already been said? I’m just hoping to get a good picture at the Reds Caravan.
• IF Emmanuel Burriss – 27 year old who actually logged some major league experience in the middle infield with the Giants over the last 5 or so years.
• IF Cesar Izturis – Izturis has been the name out of this list that everyone’s been talking about. My take: they’re tempting Dusty Baker with a light-hitting, 32 year old shortstop? Heaven help us.
• IF Kristopher Negron – We saw Kristopher in 5 games with the Reds last year. He even got a hit in one of his 4 ABs.
• OF Billy Hamilton – I heard that Hamilton will be wearing #6–pretty bold for a spring training invitee who’s so young to choose such a low number. I wonder if it’s in honor of the Reds’ last best base-stealing threat (not Drew Stubbs).
• OF Ryan LaMarre – 24 year old who’s come up through the Reds system. He hit .263 in AA Pensacola last year. He’ll also be on the western leg of the Reds Caravan this year.
• OF Denis Phipps – We saw this 27 year old in 8 games in Cincinnati last year. Hit .300. Way to handle the pressure.
• OF Derrick Robinson – This 25 year old switch hitter came up through the Royals’ system and most recently played for the AAA Omaha Storm Chasers. Clearly, they’ve run out of good minor league team names.

We tuned in for the sneak peek of Pete Rose: Hits and Mrs last night on TLC. I was fully expecting it to be the latest headshaker in the line of headshake-inspiring activities that we’ve come to expect from Rose.

In fact, the program was quite mundane. The episode I watched contained:

• Multiple references to how sorry he was for his mistakes
• A short scene in a batting cage, but no other baseball that I noticed
• Plenty of his super-hot, surprisingly intelligent, and unduly tolerant fiancee

There were also several mildly racist comments (to explain how nice the Mexican restaurant where he proposed was, Rose said “I don’t think any Mexicans go there”) and some really sophomoric behavior (like showing a picture of his scantily clad fiancee to her mother) but that’s where the outrageousness ended. Pretty bland for reality television.

Rose says he wants the public to get a chance to know him through this show, but unless his stepkids-to-be turn into Honey Boo Boos, I don’t see people taking the time to tune in to this one. That being said, his own kids haven’t shown up; there might yet be plenty of emotionally stunted drama to come!

The show is Pete Rose: Hits and Mrs. It is on Mondays at 10 p.m. ET on TLC. Check out TLC’s website for more information.

You know the drought of baseball news is about to break when you start hearing about the Reds Caravan. A couple weeks after that it’ll be pitchers and catchers reporting, then the drama of who’s going to make the roster, then, before you know it, Opening Day.

The dates, stops, and players on the tour have been announced, and it is an impressive line-up. Kudos to the Reds for convincing these guys to come out; it’s a good enough line-up that I’m thinking I’ll be heading to two of the locations.

Here’s the low-down:

Northern Leg

In attendance will be:

• Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Brennaman
• All-Star second baseman Brandon Phillips
• broadcaster and former pitcher Chris Welsh
• minor league catcher Tucker Barnhart
• Assistant General Manager Bob Miller
• mascot Gapper

Southern Leg

In attendance will be:

• broadcaster Jim Kelch
• broadcaster and former pitcher Jeff Brantley
• infielder Todd Frazier (a more powerful draw this year than he was when he was on the western leg last year)
• pitcher Logan Ondrusek (Thurs. and Fri. only)
• 2012 minor league Player of the Year Billy Hamilton (see note on Frazier above)
• VP of Baseball Operations Dick Williams
• mascot Rosie Red (the best of the mascots)

Western Leg (and the only one I really care about)

In attendance will be:

• broadcaster Thom Brennaman
• President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Walt Jocketty
• All-Star outfielder Jay Bruce (Thurs. & Fri. only) – Don’t forget to congratulate him on getting married
• pitcher Homer Bailey (Sat. & Sun. only) – Let’s start calling him Mr. No Hitter
• veteran catcher Corky Miller – I hope he brings the ‘stache
• minor league outfielder Ryan LaMarre
• Reds COO Phil Castellini
• mascot Mr. Redlegs

There’s some fine print about the even at GABP and other details available on the Caravan post at Reds.com.

The Hall of Fame voting results were released today. Apparently, it was no huge loss when the fine men who retired at the end of 2007 left the game, because not a one of them was voted in this time around.

Yeah.

I didn’t watch the program that was on the MLB Network today at noon with the results. I wonder how Bob Costas filled up all that time.

And the winner is….no one!<lack of thunderous applause>

There are some pretty big names on that list, but of course the rumors that that these guys used steroids keeping these guys out of the Hall.

I don’t know: on the one hand, they should have known better. On the other the whole Major League environment was begging them for more and more home runs. Punish the players, sure, but how are you going to similarly punish all the other people who contributed to this fustercluck?

Thankfully, this is a temporary problem and eventually their names will roll of the ballot, one way or the other. Then self-righteous reporters who managed not to notice the steroids at the time when reporting on it might have actually done something productive can shut up about how morally superior they are for refusing to vote these guys in.

The Baseball Hall of Fame will announce the results of who was voted in by writers on Wednesday of this week. Of the 37 former players on the ballot, seven of them have ties to the Cincinnati Reds.

• Lee Smith
• Reggie Sanders
• David Wells
• Jeff Conine
• Royce Clayton
• Todd Walker
• Mike Stanton

Of these players, Sanders is the only one anyone would consider a Red. Sanders was drafted by the Reds in the 1987 draft and played his first eight Major League seasons for Cincinnati.

For the most part, the others were all with the Reds towards the end of their careers, long after their most effective seasons. Smith was traded to the Reds in 1996 for a portion of the season. The Reds traded for Wells to help them down the stretch in their division-winning 1995 campaign. Although I don’t remember it, Conine was with the team for most of 2007 before being traded to the New York Mets. Clayton was, of course, received during former general manager Wayne Krivsky’s horrible trade of 2006. Walker was the team’s second baseman for 2001 and 2002. And Stanton was another one of Krivsky’s horrible moves. Stanton was signed for 2 years for what would be his age 40 and 41 seasons. He last just one of those years before being released.

Of these players, the only ones with any real Hall of Fame chances are Lee Smith and Reggie Sanders, and neither are likely to make it. Smith held the record for the most career saves for many years, but the voters still haven’t realized that closers, much like designated hitters, are legitimate baseball positions that deserve representation in the Hall. That’s unlikely to change this year.

As for Sanders, he was an accomplished player, but is likely resigned to the Hall of Very Good. Over his career, he accumulated an average of .267, an on-base percentage of .343, and a slugging percentage of .487. Not bad, but not Hall of Fame caliber. His best years was 1995 when he hit 28 of his 305 home runs, and helped the Reds win the Central Division.

So no players who played for Cincinnati are likely to be voted in this year. But then, if you believe what Deadspin says, it’s likely that no players will be voted in.