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Because I can.

First time starting today against Milwaukee, a leadoff homerun to Rickie Weeks, and then not much of anything off of him. His line:

3 IP 1 hit 1 R 5 Ks 1 BB.

45 pitches, 29 for strikes. He touched 100 on the gun again, and was sitting at 98 generally. Nasty slider apparently.

Reds fans? Probably giddy. I know I am. The fun continues for a little while longer this spring…

Things that catch the eye as we wait to find out who dances come Thursday in the NCAA:

—If you have already drafted Brian Roberts, time to worry. If your fantasy baseball draft is still to come, time to monitor and adjust draft rankings at 2b accordingly. Because that bad back for Roberts is getting no better. And he has left Orioles camp to see a back specialist. He has not played in a game yet this spring, but still says he will be ready to go by opening day. Nothing like a bad back on a 32-year-old whose game has been speed-based to raise a warning flag…

—Ervin Santana says he’s back to where he was in 2008, and thinks he can be better.

—Daisuke Matsuzaka still hasn’t thrown a pitch in a game this spring, and the latest set-back was a stiff neck that scratched his latest batting practice session. Tim Wakefield, you may be up again.

—Ryan Howard is working hard to improve at the plate. In his case, that means mores consistent contact and fewer strikeouts. As it is, he’s pretty damn good.

—Erik Bedard, coming off of shoulder surgery, threw pain-free yesterday and is still hoping to be ready for the Seattle rotation by June. If he can get even halfway back to where he was, then that rotation with King Felix and Cliff Lee at the top will be stout.

—Could Francisco Liriano move from the rotation to the vacated closer’s role in Minnesota? There’s a chance.

—And now your obligatory Chapman update from this Reds zealot. More goodness on Friday including back-to-back Ks of Matt Kemp and Casey Blake. The K on Blake was looking at a 3-2 change up that slid in at 83. He dialed it up to 100 in the Kemp at bat. The only hits he allowed were two infield singles. Through four innings this spring he has yet to have an out recorded in the outfield, all outs coming on Ks or infield pops or ground outs. The Reds continue to insist they won’t rush him, but they sure are not ruling out bringing him north. If he keeps throwing like this, it is hard to see the Reds holding him in the minors much past June 1, regardless. Absolutely easy gas, a good change-up and very good slider, and has showed enough command to put some lie to the initial scouting reports. I am kinda giddy.

Check out the Reds’ dugout in the picture below:

Whatever “it” is, Aroldis Chapman is rocking it as Reds camp unfolds. Joe Posnanski with some words that make this Reds fan giggle. Hey, let me enjoy it now, before something inevitably goes wrong…(insert your own damn wry Dusty-Baker-and-young-arms-pithiness here as it suits you).

Some odds and ends on a Sunday just a few short days ahead of spring training baseball getting underway:

—I am sucker for articles where the writer talks to an annoymous scout and gets their take on this and that, and a few other things. Works in football, works in basketball, and it works in baseball, where Gene Wojciechowski at espn.com has a really good read from that genre. What do I have in common with that annoymous scout? Glad you asked. We would both pay to watch Tim Lincecum pitch.

—Jake Peavy, no fool, would like the White Sox to reunite him with Adrian Gonzalez.

—Jair Jurrjens is ready to test his throwing arm from the mound. The Braves appear ready to let him. I remain ready to leave him several places down my fantasy draft list.

—When the Brewers get around to making an conract offer to Prince Fielder, it won’t be for show, it will be meant to genuinely reflect their love and devotion.

—Brad Bergesen’s road back from his how-stupid-can-you-be injuring of himself throwing during the filming of a promo for Orioles tickets in December takes a good turn, as he has moved up to throwing off the mound.

—Grady Sizemore will no longer be leading off for Cleveland, instead moving to second in the order behind Asdrubal Cabrera, in the hope that his power will lead to more RBI opportunities in that slot.

—And, no link, just a general note from this Reds zealot, the hype on Aroldis Chapman might have some legit to it. He’s been damn good early in camp. The velocity has been as advertised, the command better than advertised, and the slider and change way above average. I still think he starts in AA, but with a good spring, would not be surprised to see him in Cincinnati around June 1.

Supposedly, against all reasonable guesses, the Reds are going to win the bidding for Cuban pitcher Aroldis Chapman. He’s 22. He’s a lefty. He’s a flamethrower (reportedly in the high 90s when he wants to). And he has control issues. So there’s that. At any rate, not a bad gamble. And, at $30 million per the reports, if true, it means the Reds might be getting off the financial-woe-is-me bench. And that is something I did not think I would see at any point soon.