Adam Dunn is glad Barry Larkin wasn't sure exactly what time the Reds were supposed arrive at Cinergy Field for Opening Day.

        Larkin telephoned Dunn at 9 a.m. Monday to ask.

        Keep in mind this was a 37-year-old veteran of 16 Reds openers calling a 22-year-old with no Reds' openers under his belt.

        “I'm glad he chose to call me, because as it turns out I (inadvertently) had my clock set for p.m. instead of a.m.,” Dunn said. “I was sleeping pretty good when the phone rang. I had trouble getting to sleep last night. It was like the first day of school. I didn't go to bed until about 3 o'clock.”

        Then again, maybe Larkin knew exactly what he was doing by choosing to ask the question of the young Texan.

        The highlight of Dunn's first Reds opener — other than the victory, of course — was getting to talk to country music star Tracy Byrd right after Byrd sang the national anthem. Byrd is a Texan, too.

        “He mentioned he lives in Kingwood, which is about 70 miles from Beaumont, where I lived,” Byrd said. “We talked about going hunting together some time. ... I like to hunt for whitetail, turkey, ducks, geese, you name it.”

        “Oh, yeah — that's something I really plan on taking him up on,” Dunn said. “I've always been a big fan of his.”

        Dunn, who hit sixth Monday, led off the second, fourth, sixth and eighth innings; Aaron Boone, the No.5 hitter, ended each of the preceding innings with an out. Typical of baseball, Boone wound up the hero.

        In what may be one of the few bits of sanity in Dunn's otherwise hyped-to-the-max first full season, manager Bob Boone is batting more experienced guys earlier.

        “I don't mind hitting sixth at all,” Dunn said. “The only thing that bothers me is the wait to get my first AB. And even that's not that big of a deal. ... I watch how they pitch Junior, how they pitch "Case' (Sean Casey). That helps me. They're probably going to try to pitch me like they pitch them.

        “In this lineup, it doesn't matter where you hit. Let's say it goes 1-2-3 for us in the first inning. In the second, we've got "Case' leading off, Aaron, then me.”

        In his first at-bat, Dunn struck out on a slider down and in. (“I took a first-pitch strike that I probably should've hit,” he said.) Second AB, flied to center. (“Good pitch to hit, a cut fastball that he left up, middle in. I just jammed myself.”) Third AB, Cubs second baseman Delino DeShields robbed him of a hit up the middle. (“Great play; he was playing me up the middle, and I still don't know why.”) Fourth at-bat, hit by pitch.

        Dunn said his first opener was emotionally charged: “You saw how everybody was acting out there. The emotions were unbelievable. Having the fans behind us the whole way was great.”

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