AN EMOTIONAL WEEKEND

             It was a very special weekend here in the Queen City.  We celebrated an event that that no one else on the planet gets to celebrate. 

You may or may not know that Cincinnati is home to the first professional baseball team, the Cincinnati Redlegs.  It has a long history beginning in 1881 of some years very special, some years, not so much.  However, the 1975-1976 seasons was one of the spectacular two seasons, back-to-back world series titles, with the most outstanding team ever put together.  (My bias is evident!)

This weekend was the celebration of the 50^th anniversary of the Big Red Machine, that group of Reds who played on the team including Johnnie Bench, Tony Perez, Joe Morgan, Davey Concepcion, Pete Rose, Cesar Geronimo, George Foster and Ken Griffey.

So, I have a cousin, Gayle, who is even more of a Reds fan than me.  She stays on top of current events within the organization, goes to many games, watches from home if she isn’t there, etc., etc.  About 3-4 times a season four of us attend the game, her daughter, another friend and me.  Gayle asked if we all wanted to go, and of course we did

The day included a “Meet & Greet” with several of the players, then dinner and then the game. 

The “Meet and Greet” was great.  Two separate rooms where the players were divided between, we only had 1 hour to get through both rooms and the lines were long!!!  We made it!!  The two most notable to see were George Foster and Johnnie Bench.  

 

The game was fantastic!!  The Reds won and we ALMOST saw a no-hitter.  Nick Martinez came so close, first batter in the 9^th inning finally got a hit off him.  The fans went crazy as he walked off the field.  On top of that Spencer Steer hit 3 home runs.  It was such a fun night.

 Many of my friends know that I am typically in bed by around 9-9:30. That night it was 12:15 am before I even got home.  During the drive home I had so many thoughts …..I wished so much that Dad, and my brother, Jim, could have been with us, they both loved the Reds.  Some of my earliest memories are of running around baseball parks while Dad played.  Then Mom, Dad and Jim playing in a church league in Pinellas Park, FL.  Meeting my dearest friend at a baseball game in Fairbanks, AK, watching my brother umpire games in Fairbanks, driving with Dad in 1970 from Cincinnati to Baltimore to watch the Reds and Orioles play for the World Series title and on and on and on. 

So, Saturday I watched the game from home, they didn’t win, but they had a terrific pre-game ceremony on the field.  The news was shared that Dave Parker had passed that day.  (Another Reds great from a different era).  Johnny Bench spoke.  The whole event brought tears to my eyes (I’m such a sucker!!)

And, I’ll be home today, watching the Sunday game, pretty sure there will be more Big Red Machine celebrations.