By Hal McCoy
UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave and as I sit in front of my laptop listening to Do Wah Diddy Diddy by Manfred Mann, it sounds like something baseball commissioner Rob Manfred would say at a rules meeting.
—‘WE’RE NUMBER FOUR’: Jim Bowden was a general manager with the Cincinnati Reds during CEO Marge Schott’s reign of terror and the Dog Days (Schottzie 02) of the franchise’s history.
Bowden now is an analyst/writer for MLB’s web-site. In a recent piece, he listed five franchises that have stepped backward this off-season.
The Reds were No. 4, behind the New York Mets, New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians. And here are some of the poignant points he made about the Reds.
“The Pirates have a great young starting rotation and have added Brandon Lowe, Ryan O’Hearn and Jhostynxon Garcia. If the Reds aren’t careful they could watch Pittsburgh go right by them this season.”
My thoughts exactly.
And how about the Chicago Cubs? They’ve been as active as a Chicago El train at rush hour. They signed third baseman Alex Bregman to a five-year $175 million deal, plus adding three bullpenners — Phil Maton, Hunter Harvey and Jacob Webb.
Bouton also touched on the team’s failure to sign free agent Kyle Schwarber and what the Reds have done, or not done, since that failure.
“Unlike the Orioles, who also lost out on Schwarber, instead of pivoting to Pete Alonso, the Reds closed up shop. Although they were able to bring back closer Emilio Pagan, they really haven’t done anything to improve the offense.
“They added outfield depth in Dane Myers and JJ Bledsoe, but neither is a starting player on a championship-calibre team.”
Thank you, Captain Obvious.
***MLB’s website also came out with its pre-season rankings.
Surprise, surprise. The Los Angeles Dodgers are No. 1 and the Colorado Rockies are No. 30.
And the Cincinnati Reds? Rlght in the middle at No. 17, which seems a bit optimistic to me.
Not surprising is that Milwaukee (No. 6) and the Chicago Cubs (No. 10) are ahead of the Reds. What is surprising is that the Reds, who have done nothing magical to improve their lot, are ahead of the Pittsburgh Pirates (No. 23), a team that is giving it a try with some off-season maneuvers.
And what did MLB say about the Reds?
“The Reds were rumored to be in on the Kyle Schwarber Sweepstakes, but whether or not you believe they were serious for him, it’s clear they still need some offensive firepower now that he’s back in Philadephia. They need more than just JJ Bleday. But there is a lane for this team in the NL Central, if the Reds can take it.”
For the Reds it’s a one-way lane and they always seem to be going the wrong way.
And when are folks (me included) going to stop connecting Schwarber to the Reds in any way? Time to move on and time for the Reds to just move. . .period.
—MORE THAN PERFECT: One of the many reasons why Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza hoisted and hefted the Heisman Trophy over his head:
In both CFP games, Mendoza threw more touchdown passes than incompletions. Incomprehensible. . .except when you watch, his passes find receivers like a German Shorthaired Pointer finds a pheasant.
***Against Alabama he was 14 for 16 for 196 yards and three touchdowns. . .two incompletions, three TDs.
***Against Oregon he was 17 for 20 for 270 yards and five touchdowns. . .three incompletions, five TDs.
—NUMBERS GAME: This is a story told by legendary baseball broadcaster Vin Scully about Jackie Robinson’s travails as baseball’s first African-American.
During the 1951 season, Robinson received a letter threatening his life and said he would be assassinated on a Sunday in Cincinnati’s Crosley Field.
“The clubhouse that morning before the game was deathly quiet,” said Scully. “Not a sound. Everybody was quiet.”
But he said teammate Gene Hermanski suddenly broke the silence and said, “I’ve got it.”
“What’s that?” several teammates replied.
“We’ll all wear uniform Number 42 and nobody will know which one of us is Jackie Robinson.”
—BIITTNER BITS: When the Cincinnati Reds signed free agent Larry Biittner in 1981, they were the last team to engage in free agency.
As I later described Biittner, “Two eyes, two tees, no hits.” (His ’81 contribution was 66 at bats, .218 average, 0 home runs, 8 RBI.)
—REMEMBERING BEVO: Rio Grande’s Bevo Francis scored 116 points in a game against Ashland in January of 1953, the most ever scored in a college game.
Ironically, the record was owned by another Rio Grande player, Jack Duncan, who scored 84 in a 1941 game.
But at season’s end, the NCAA disallowed the record because Ashland was a two-year school.
So the next season, Bevo scored 113 against four-year Hillsdale College. The NCAA recognized that performance and the record stood until Jack Taylor of DIII Grinnell College scored 138 against Faith Baptist in 2012.
During that 1952 season, Bevo averaged 50.2 points and Rio Grande went 39-0. The next season, coach Newt Oliver took the Rio Grande team on tour, playing games in large arenas.
Bevo and Rio Grand played games at Troy’s Hobart Arena on January 20, 1953 and January 23, 1954.
Francis was married and an early ‘NIL’ guy, although illegally. Rio Grande gave him a scholarship that included books, $75 a month for groceries, $35 a month for a furnished apartmemnt and a campus job that paid 50 cents an hour.
—141 POINTS AND LOSE: There was a 1991 Division II college basketball game during which DeVry College scored 141 points. . .and lost by 117 points.
That’s right. It was Troy State 258, DeVry 141. Troy State had 10 playeres in double figures, took 109 three-point shots and made 51. And T-State shot only three free throws and made all three.
Shortly thereafter, Troy Statre transitioned to D-1 and DeVry dropped all sports, but remains the record-holder for scoring the most points in a losing game.
—OPEN FRONT DOORS: Not certain which college football coach said this — it could have been any coach — and it is the truest words ever spoken regarding the NIL.
“They used to take money through the back door, now they just take it through the front door.”
And if Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson accepts Miami’s offer to transfer, he’ll need a double-wide front door.
Miami reportedly is offering him $6.5 million to transfer to its lockerrom, while Ole Miss and Tennessee are offering $4 million.
Woner which one he’ll take?
—TRIVIA TIME: Stuff that rattles around in my brain, crowding out real important things:
—Ted Williams twice won the Triple Crown (1942, 1947) and didn’t win the MVP. Joe Gordon of the New York Yankees won the MVP in 1942 and Joe DiMaggio of the Yankees won it in 1947.
By the way, no Cincinnati Reds player has ever won the Triple Crown.
—Dolf Luque of the Cincinnati Reds won the National League earned run title (2.63), despite a losing record (16-18). And Reds pitcher Eppa Rixey owns the most carer complete games (263) without ever leading the league in complete games for a season.
—When Babe Ruth hit 60 home runs in 1927, he faced 63 different pitchers. When Seattle’s Cal Raleigh hit 60 home runs last season, he faced 303 different pitchers.
—When Vida Blue pitched, he carried two dimes in his back pocket for good luck, but Oakland A’s owner Charles O. Finley said he should have carreid two pennies, “So he could get in his two cents worth.”
—QUOTE MACHINE: Sports celebrities (And non-sports folks) say the darndest things:
—From comedian John Caparulo: “I grew up a Browns fan and that’s no way to live.”
—From Hall of Famer Dave Parker, who loved to make loud chatter in the clubhouse before games, shouting things like, “I’m wall-to-wall and treetop tall. Two things for sure today. The sun’s gonna shine and I’m going to go three for four.”
—From former Orioles player Elrod Hendricks on manager, Earl Weaver: “You know Earl, he’s not happy unless he’s unhappy.”
—From formere President Richard M. Nixon: “If I had my life to live over I’d have ended up a sportswriter.” (I pray he was misquoted.)
—PLAYLIST NUMBER 140: As German writer Jean Paul Friedrich Richter put it, “ Music is the moonlight in the gloomy night of life.”
—It’s All Too Beautiful (Itchycoo Park), Do You Know What I Mean? (Lee Michaels), I Will Survive (Gloria Gaynor), Old-Time Rock And Roll (Bob Seger), That’s What Friends Are For (Dione Warwick), Broken Wings (Mr. Mister), I Miss You (Klymaxx), Who’s That Lady (Isley Brothers), Break My Stride (Mathew Wilder).
—Built This City (Starship), I Love Your Way (Will To Power), Everytime I Think Of You (Babys), Careless Whisper (Wham!), I Feel For You (Chaka Khan), My Life (Billy Joel), Lead Me On (Maxine Nightengale), Stumblin’ In (Suzi Quatro & Chris Norman).