Some Sunday OBSERVATIONS

By Hal McCoy

UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave thinking about being a great grandfather several times over. People ask me if that makes me feel old and I say, “No, being a great grandfather doesn’t make me feel old. Knowing that my son is a grandfather. . .that makes me feel old.”

—PUSHY PEDRO: All these years I thought The Big Red Machine clubhouse was a sea of tranquility, never a problem, never cross words, never so much as a push and a shove.

I was in that clubhouse before and after every game in 1975 and 1976, home to back-to-back World Series champions.

And I never heard a disparaging word nor witnessed a confrontation.

I was wrong. I just found out there was at least one incident involving relief pitcher Pedro Borbon, quite the character.

Borbon’s teeth were so sharp that when equipment manager Bernie Stowe repaired gloves and needed strips of rawhide cut, he would hand it to Borbon and he would bite it in half.

Before one ten-day road trip, Borbon had nobody to watch his dog. So he filled a tub with water and left an open bag of dog food for the dog to tend to itself.

One can only imagine what his apartment looked like when he returned. But the dog survived.

Borbon, though, was an instigator. He liked to walk around the clubhouse and punch players ‘playfully’ in the back and stomach.

Center fielder Cesar Geronimo, a fellow Dominican, loved to work crossword puzzles. One day Borbon, carrying a bat, ‘playfully’ knocked the crossword puzzle out of Geronimo’s hands.

That was enough. The ‘Chief’ (Geronimo’s nickname) jumped Borbon and a wrestling match erupted on the clubhouse floor. Just a mild skirmish and they were quickly separated.

Borbon, by the way, holds the Reds record for most appearances by a relief pitcher in a season. . .Sparky Anderson called on him 86 times in 1976. And never once did I see Borbon’s shoulder or elbow encased in ice.

—GIVING CHASE: If the Cincinnati Reds are strong in any facet, it definitely is the starting rotation, one of baseball’s best.

Heading into the season, the first four in the rotation is a given. . .Hunter Greene, Brady Singer, Andrew Abbott and Nick Lodolo. And that’s if all make it through spring training uninjured. . .a big if.

And the fifth starter? The candidate list is lengthy and in alphabetial order — Julian Aguilar, Graham Ashcraft, Chase Burns, Chase Petty and Brandon Williamson.

Tremendous depth.

But who starts the season as the fifth starter? My advice, no charge, Chase Burns. And before you say he was 0-3 in eight starts last season with a 5.24 earned run average, take note.

First of all, like most Reds starters, he suffered from the no run support malady.

Secondly, he gave up seven runs in one-third of an inning against Boston in his second MLB start. Why? He was tipping his pitches and the Red Sox knew what pitch was coming.

Pitching coach Derek Johnson quickly fixed it.

And consider this. Burns averaged 14.97 strikeouts per nine inning, something no pitcher has ever done for any eight straight starts over any span of a season.

Not Bob Feller, not Sandy Koufax, not Bob Gibson, not Nolan Ryan, not Randy Johnson.

In 34 1/3 innings, Burns struck out 57 befuddled batters.

The chase for the fifth spot should belong to Chase — Burns, not Petty.

—NUMBERS GAME: The ink wasn’t dry on Kyle Tucker’s $250 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers when he called manager Dave Roberts.

“Dave, this is Kyle Tucker. I know you wear number 30, may I have it?”

“No.” (click.)

That took gall from Tucker unless he didn’t know the story. Roberts wears ’30’ to honor Maury Wills, who was his mentor when Roberts was a young player.

And good on him for not bowing to a star player and give it up. As they say about Roberts as a manager, “What a difference a Dave makes.”

—A MESSY MONKEN: Freshly minted Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken is catching heavy fire for something he said about the Browns six years ago.

At the time, Monken was Cleveland’s offensive coordinator under head coach Freddie Kitchens.

Kitchens called the plays, though, and Monken said most weren’t part of the game plan. Before games Monken told opposing coaches how bad things were with the Browns, “That they were a total mess.”

What’s wrong with that? He was right and right now they are even messier. It’s up to Monken to clean up that mess and make it better.

Good luck with that. Odds are that late next season one of Monken’s assistant coaches will be telling opposing coaches, “The Browns organization is a complete mess.”

With the Browns, it’s the Circle of Life. Remember that some guy named Bill Belichick was 36-44 in five years as Cleveland’s coach.

If Bill couldn’t do it. . .

—ABOUT DROUGHTS: It has been 36 years since the debut of the classic movie, ‘Honey, I Shrunk The Kids,’ the same period of time since the Cleveland Browns last appeared in an NFL conference championship game.

But, hey, the Browns aren’t the Lone Rangers in this category. More like Tonto.

It has been 30 years since the iconic Dallas Cowboys have appeared in a conference championship game (Where have you gone Don Meredith, Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman?)

It has been 23 years since the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders have played in a conference championship game (Where have you gone George Blanda, Daryle Lamonica, Ken Stabler and Jim Plunkett?).

It has been 17 years since the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers played in a conference championship game (Where have you gone Dan Fouts, John Hadl and Phillip Rivers?)

OK, I’ll say it for the Browns. Where have you gone Otto Graham?

—MARITAL BLISS: How times have changed in college basketball and it isn’t just the transfer portal and NIL.

The University of Hawaii (15-5) has eight players 23 years old or older. That’s not all, though. Five are married.

Geez, when I played basketball at Akron East High School, coach Russ Estey was mad at me because I had a girl friend.

“Hey, Mac,” he said. “Take your hand out of that girl’s hand and use it practice your dribbling.”

—COLLEGE CAPERS: What you see on a Saturday when seven televised college basketball games all start at noon and it is channel-chasing time.

It was Campbell University at William & Mary and early in the game Mary showed up but William didn’t. W&M fell behind, 30-8, at home, where the Tribe hadn’t lost all season.

But W&M fought back against the Fighting Camels (Camels don’t fight, they spit, so Campbell should be the Spitting Camels).

William & Mary closed to within two several times, the last at 91-89, before the Camels, despite three starters fouling out, prevailed, 104-96. The two teams combined to shoot 73 free throws.

Then there was the Texas Tech-Central Florida game in Orlando. UCF’s nickname is the Knights, but it read ‘Space’ on the front of their jerseys, honoring nearby Cape Canaveral. And for the second time this season, the Space Knights knocked off a ranked team. They beat No. 11 Texas Tech, 88-79. Earlier this season they beat Kansas.

—STICK TO IT: I stay away from political chatter, but here goes:

“With what has happenend, I was angry, upset, disgusted, confused and conflicted because on the other side those guys are just doing their jobs.

“They have families to go home to and I know it’s not popular. . .but I’m still gonna say it. . .I still stand with the Dayton Flyers.”

—TRIVIA TIME: Stuff that means nothing to non-baseball folks, but everything to lovers of the game:

—Mike Marshall of the Los Angeles Dodgers appeared in 106 games out of the bullpen in 1974, an all-time record. The second most is a tie, both Pittsburgh Pirates. Kent Tekulve (1979) and Salamon Torres (2006) both appeared in 94 games.

—In 2000, Darin Erstad put together a season of 240 hits, 121 runs, 25 homers, 28 steals and a slash line of .355/.408/.541.

He won the American League MVP, right? Nope. Finished second, right? Nope. He finished eighth. Eighth!!! Oakland’s Jason Giambi won it with a .333 average, 43 homers and 138 RBI.

—Who were the oldest pitchers to throw a pitch in MLB from 2020 through 2025? Trick question. It was Rich Hill, Rich Hill, Rich Hill, Rich Hill, Rich Hill and Rich Hill.

—QUOTE MACHINE: Sports people say the darndest things:

—From NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt: “You win some, you lose some, you wreck some.” (Unfortunately, Earnhardt’s last wreck cost him his life.)

—From former basketball coach Abe Lemons: “I don’t draw up any trick plays. I’d rather have tricky players.” (He tried to recruit a tricky player named Johnny Bench to play college basketball for him at Oklahoma City. When Bench made baseball’s Hall of Fame, Lemons told him, “Just think, If you had come with me you could be the principal of Binger (Okla.) High School now.”

—From former manager Casey Stengel: “If you wan win 6-5 you’re better off than losing 5-4.” (When he managed the expansion New York Mets, those 6-5 wins were rare and the 5-4 losses piled up.)

—PLAYLIST NUMBER 149: As musician Jimi Hendrix put it, “Music, sweet music, has captured my soul.”

—Fortunate Son (Credence Clearwater Revival), Yellow Submarine (Beatles), Cold As Ice (Foreigner), Hold On (Wilson Phillips), Ebony Eyes (Bob Welch), Could This Be Magic (Dubs), Take On Me (A-ha), Careless Whisper (George Michael), A Thousand Miles Away (Heartbeats).

—Final Countdown (Europe), Nothing Can Stop Us Now (Starship), Somebody To Love (Queen), Don’t Cry For Me Argentina (Madonna), Don’t You Feel Like Crying (Solomon Burke), Bobbie’s Girl (Marcie Blane), Cara Mia (Jay & The Americans), Don’t Bring Me Down (Electric Light Orchestra).