Nothing like a little baseball news that’s not about steroids to give you a warm feeling.

The annual Reds Winter Caravan will be motoring to the Tri-State next week with a stop at the Huntington Mall on Thursday from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

The Southern Tour stopover will have Reds broadcaster Jeff Brantley; Reds broadcaster Jim Kelch; Manager Dusty Baker; Reds Hall of Famer and 1990 World Series team member Eric Davis; Reds shortstop Paul Janish; 2009 Southern League All-Star shortstop Zack Cozart; Reds Senior Special Assistant to the General Manager Gene Bennett and mascot Rosie Red.

The Reds will be at the Charleston (W.Va.) Towne Center from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. on Thursday.

The 2010 Reds Winter Caravan is scheduled to make 14 fan stops in four states covering four days and more than 2,600 miles. The stops are free and open to the public, and at each stop the Reds will raffle off two tickets to the Opening Day game against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 5.

Reds Rewind

Fox Sports Ohio will televise six classic Reds games from the franchise’s history starting Monday. Here is what’s planned:

‰ Monday, 10:30 p.m. — On September 11, 1985, a sellout crowd at Riverfront Stadium and a national television audience were watching to see if Pete Rose could break Ty Cobb’s hit record. After going 0-for-4 the previous night, Rose didn’t disappoint. He hit a line drive single to left field off San Diego’s Eric Show on a 2-1 pitch for hit No. 4,192.

‰ Monday, Feb. 1, 8 p.m. — On October 22, 1975, the Reds faced the Boston Red Sox in Game 7 of what has been ranked one of the best World Series ever. The “Big Red Machine” won it in the ninth to clinch the first of back-to-back World Series championships.

‰ Monday, Feb. 8, 8 p.m. — After 11 big league years, Tom Seaver was finally able to cross off one of the few achievements that had eluded him in his magnificent career with his only no-hitter on June 16, 1978.

‰ Monday, Feb. 15, 8 p.m. — A two-hour, 27-minute rain delay didn’t halt Tom Browning, who retired all 27 Los Angeles Dodgers he faced in a 1-0 victory on September 16, 1988. Browning concluded the only perfect game in Reds history by retiring Rick Dempsey on a fly to deep right field, Steve Sax on a grounder to shortstop and Tracy Woodson on a strikeout. A throwing error accounted for the Reds’ only run.

‰ Monday, Feb. 22, 8 p.m. — The re-mastered version of the classic Reds game from October 12, 1976, when the Reds swept the Phillies in NLCS Game 3. This special telecast includes original video from NBC synced with the audio of Reds veteran duo Marty Brennaman and Joe Nuxhall.

‰ Monday, March 1, 8 p.m. — The Reds faced Baltimore in Game 4 of the World Series on Oct. 14, 1970. The Reds lost the series but won this game 6-5 thanks to clutch hitting by Lee May and stellar relief pitching by rookie Don Gullett and veteran Clay Carroll. Featuring a very young and upcoming Big Red Machine, this game is one of the oldest known Reds games to exist in its entirety.

Norse on TV

Northern Kentucky University meets rival Bellarmine on national TV Saturday at 2 p.m. on CBS College Sports.

Three former area players — Elliott County’s Ethan Faulkner, Ironton’s Dennis Gagai and Russell’s Jon VanHoose — are on the Norse roster.

Bellarmine was a preseason No. 1 pick in NCAA Division but have struggled to a 12-6 record. NKU was preseason No. 20 but have suffered injuries and academic problems.

VanHoose will be appearing in only his fourth game after recovering from a torn meniscus — the third surgery of his college career. In his last game, VanHoose made four of eight from 3-point range to score 14 as NKU defeated Marysville 86-79.

Faulkner and Gagai have both played well for the Norse.

SEC Legend

Bob Emrick, a former Ashland Tomcat basketball star, will be recognized as a recipient of the 2010 SEC Basketball Legends award for his accomplishments at Florida.

Emrick played for the Gators from 1954-57 and he had four double-figure scoring games against Kentucky.

Emrick started for the Tomcats in 1952 and 1953, averaging 10.7 points per game in his career, scoring 676 points.

He will be honored at halftime of Florida’s opening game of the SEC tournament in Nashville.

The award was created to honor 12 individuals whose accomplishments on and off the basketball court have been a source of pride to their institution and the SEC.

MARK MAYNARD can be reached at mmaynard@

dailyindependent.com or

(606) 326-2648.