Elijah Dukes is in camp as we all know by now.   If you didn’t see his press conference, bits and pieces of it are on the Washington Post Nationals Journal blog.  I must say that I was more impressed with him than I expected to be.  His explanations about his past behavior were rather odd (its hard to be in a place where you are loved is what I got from it…) but he looked people in the eye and seemed sincere in stating that he is ready to turn the page and understands that he needs to mature.  After seeing him, I must say that I am ready to accept him at face value and hope for the best.   

Otherwise, everyone’s apparently in camp.  Giddup!

1.  Jim Bowden is riding around Viera in a scooter with the Nats logo painted on it.   I’m not making this up (though somehow I wish I was…)

2.  This probably should be on a Reds blog somewhere, but RIP Bob Howsam.  Howsam was the GM of the Cincinnati Reds from the mid-1960s through the late 1970s, and thus, the architect of the Big Red Machine.  He was very conservative (he’s the one who shaved the moustache off of Mr. Red) but pulled off some brilliant baseball moves and compiled what to my mind was the best baseball team ever assembled.  If you are interested in his prowess and the building of the Big Red Machine, pick up the book "Big Red Dynasty". 

3.  Bowden said on a TV interview today that the club is going to have personnel with Elijah Dukes 24/7.   Am I the only person wondering why they are going to these extremes to get a major league outfielder?  Wouldn’t it be easier (and safer) to get a good guy through free agency?  This does not seem like a burden that Barry Larkin nor Dmitri Young should be bearing to me.    (Are you getting the sense that I’m not a big fan of the Dukes trade yet?)

4.  Both Nick and Dmitri are taking the high road about the competition for the starting 1b slot, speaking highly of the other.  Nice to see.   Dmitri was reportedly asked if he would settle for a backup spot and he reportedly said "we’ll see about that." 

5.  I see Odalis Perez making this starting rotation, unless he has totally fallen off the table since I last saw him in a Dodger uniform.  I have faith that Randy St. Claire may get a good year of him (Esteban Loaiza anyone?)  A rotation of Patterson, Hill, Bergmann (another guy I have faith in), Perez and Chico/Redding/Clippard/Lannan would not be a bad thing. 

6.  Jose Guillen is playing the good guy again as he prepares to play for his 9th major league team since 1997.  (Pirates, DBacks, Devil Rays, Reds, A’s, Angels, Nats, Mariners and now Royals).  He even came to camp in a festive hysterical wig.  Lets see how long that lasts — probably only until someone tries to pitch him inside once.   

7.  Nook Logan signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers.   What was he doing?   What was he thinking?

1.  John Patterson has a new haircut.  He says he’s healthy and badly wants to pitch on Opening Night to make up for his Opening Day start last year (which, we all remember, didn’t go so well.)  Somehow, I believe in Patterson.

2.  Elijah Dukes is late already.  Who knows, maybe the cat ate his gun registration….

3.  Odalis Perez just signed with the Nats after choosing us over the Red Sox.  Odalis Perez deciding which team to play for is a bit like Jason Alexander trying to start a bidding war between Fox and Columbia Pictures for the DVD rights to "Bob Patterson."

4.  We signed another ex-Cincinnati Red, Bret Boone.  YES!!!  He says he wants to start and I’d like to see it on the one hand, but on the other hand Ronnie Bellard gets amazingly hot at times and plays a mean and highly underrated second base (or is it short right field?)  Belliard is a gamer, I’d hate to see him lose his spot. 

5.  The team now has the entire late 1990s Cincinnati Reds infield on its payroll– 1b Dmitri Young, 2b Bret Boone, ss Barry Larkin (who looks to me like he still is the best ss on the payroll) and 3b Aaron Boone.   Can Pokey Reese or Ernie Taubensee be far behind? 

6.  I drove by the stadium over the weekend and there is a big ‘NATIONALS PARK’  written just above the jumbotron on the scoreboard.  Could that mean that there will be no naming rights sold for a while?

7.  Justin Maxwell, whom I refer to as the "The Mighty Max" for no apparent reason, was interviewed on NBC4 last night.  A good guy from all appearances — one wishes it were he and not Elijah Dukes slated as the fourth outfielder.   Max is a guy you want to root for.