OBSERVATIONS: When Cincinnati nearly turned Vida Blue into red
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave waiting to see which NBA team makes Obi Toppin a multi-millionaire. And you have to love what Toppin said when asked if his Dayton Flyers would have won the NCAA tournament if the pandemic hadn’t intervened: “Hell, yeah.” —It was December, 1977 and baseball’s winter meetings […]
Trevor Bauer: First Reds pitcher to win the Cy Young
By Hal McCoy It was mid-September and Trevor Bauer was seated behind a microphone after painting another near-flawless landscape on the pitching mound. Bauer was asked if he thought he should win the National League Cy Young Award. He didn’t hesitate. If he had been on the mound his delivery was so quick he would […]
Tom Carroll gets his World Series ring — 45 years late
By Hal McCoy This is a feel-good story that should put a smile on faces and puts the current Cincinnati Reds regime on a high plateau and pedestal. Unless you are a deep-in-depth Cincinnati Reds fan, you may not remember Tom Carroll. When a player has a brief career in the majors it is said […]
OBSERVATIONS: Some ‘personal’ Joe Morgan stories
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave as I sit with no baseball to watch and nobody can pay me enough to watch The Debate or the New York Football Giants. —Joe Morgan was afraid he would kill me, or at least maim me. And he was probably right. There were times on […]
OBSERVATIONS: ‘Sweet Lou’ predicted Reds ’90 World Series win
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave awaiting the start of the World Series, pulling for Tampa Bay but realizing the LA Dodgers have more potent pieces. The Dodgers win in six and if that doesn’t put the whammy-jinx-hex on ‘em, nothing will. —Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts made a bold comment […]
OBSERVATIONS: Some last thoughts on the ’20 Cincinnati Reds
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave as I sit here on my 80th year of life and wondering how in the hell I got here, but it has been one extremely fortunate and glorious ride. I am so thankful for my wonderful wife, Nadine, my great family and all you fabulous readers […]
OBSERVATIONS: ‘Heaven’ has a great 2020 baseball team
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave watching Dusty Baker in the dugout with his mask on and wondering, “Where’s the toothpick?” Dusty is the first manager to take five different teams to the post-season — San Francisco, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals, Houston Astros. And he is still looking for his […]
OBSERVATIONS: Some ‘sidelights’ from the ’75 World Series
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, jinxing the Oakland Athletics by wearing a green A’s cap while watching the game. But I’m happy for Houston manager Dusty Baker. Wonder how much the Atlanta Braves would pay me to keep my Braves cap in the closet? —This memory popped into my mind while […]
OBSERVATIONS: Ryan Weathers. . .like father, like son
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave still dizzy from watching three of my four teams lose Tuesday in the LDS: Oakland, Miami and San Diego. Tampa Bay did win, but Meat Loaf didn’t sing ‘One Out of Four Ain’t Bad.’ —When it comes to drama and the unexpected, baseball produces better than […]