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Finally, you too can know the secret to why The Latin Love Machine won't be learning to play the banjo any time soon.

So says John Fay:

Outfielder Norris Hopper will not be coming north with the Reds.

“He might be DLed,” Jerry Narron said.

Does that mean Chad Moeller gets the last spot for a position player?

“He's got a good chance,”Narron said.

Hopper will go on the DL and stay here to rehab. Dewayne Wise also make the trip to Dayton, so there a chance he could make it if the Reds decide they need an outfielder. Remember, Ryan Freel hasn't played since he hit the wall in Clearwater. He is in the lineup today.

So I guess that leaves us with just Jeff Conine to back up the outfield, which is super-awesome. When Griffey hurts himself this season, I hope they realize they're not going to be able to do their normal screwing around pretending he's day-to-day for two months before putting him on the DL. They're going to need that roster spot immediately.

We were sitting in the last row of section 4 today, which was apparently a great spot to notice people walking by in the walkway.

I called C. Trent over when he walked by just before the National Anthem. We chatted for a moment before he headed off for the press box. You'll be glad to know that he really is better looking than the photo on his blog. Significantly less Igor-like.

Hal McCoy also walked by later, but I didn't stop him to chat. He doesn't have a blog, after all.

Rob Butcher came by, and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to flag him down. Butcher's a character that I've always found sort of intimidating, but the Reds legitimate media always have such nice things to say about him that I thought it was time to introduce myself.

I wasn't asking for a press pass, but I mentioned that I'd heard that other bloggers had, to which his response was “never going to happen.” When I asked why, he said they were too hard to control.

So, you legitimate media types ought to be happy to know that you're apparently easy to control.

I said “hi” to Bob Castellini when he walked by. The woman with him actually seemed to recognize me, and I've seen her in the stands, which makes me think that she has an excellent memory for faces. How nice.

Though it was a crummy game, the evening of celebrity sightings was topped off when Javy Valentín waved to me when I called out to him after the game. Short of a win, what more could you ask for?

Lots of interesting things going on today:

• The Reds optioned to Louisville Gary Majewski. I did not see that one coming, but it's nice that he won't be taking up a spot on the active roster to begin the season. Here's hoping he can get his game together with the Bats.
• Bobby Livingston will be joining Majewski in Louisville.
• Jerry Narron says it looks like it will be Matt Belisle or Kirk Saarloos in the role of fourth starter. He said fifth starter, but we already know that's really Eric Milton.
• The final bullpen spot is down to Victor Santos, Jared Burton, and Jon Coutlangus. I'm crossing my fingers for Coutlangus, personally.
• Jeff Keppinger, Bill Bray, Elizardo Ramirez, Jerry Gil, and Eddie Guardado are DL-bound. So, if you're keeping count, we won't be seeing ANY of the players we got in The Trade on Opening Day. Way to improve the team.
• Chris Denorfia, who seemed on the brink of making the Opening Day roster, will be out for six months recovering from Tommy John surgery. Dammit! With The Heartthrob out of the picture for the moment, the final roster spot appears to be between Norris Hopper and Chad Moeller. I bet I'm not the only one who thinks that Wayne Krivsky was premature in sending down Bubba Crosby.

This week on the podcast, the Crack Technical Staff and I broadcast from our vacation condo in Sarasota, Florida, the home base of our wacky spring training adventures. We talk about the rotations, the line-up, our favorite away park, Red Hot Mama’s mention in Sports Illustrated (don’t forget to vote! For RHM, of course!), and the fancy schmancy car owned by someone affiliated with MLB that we saw at the Cody Roadhouse in Bradenton last night.Episode 51: Live! from Sarasota! (27.2 MB, 39:41)

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