Some Pre-Weekend Observations

By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, watching the maturation of Elly De La Cruz over the last month. Instead of attemption to drown baseballs in the Ohio River, he has become a magician, using a bat as his wand to spray singles and doubles up the middle and the opposite way. He […]

Some mid-week Observations…

By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, wondering how a team that lost 100 games last season and has been more than 10 games under .500 most of this year can win 11 straight road games as the Miami Marlines have done. Baseball. Ya gotta love it. —ALL-$$$ TEAM: They’ve named the All-Star […]

Some Post-Fourth Observations

By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, trying to convince Parker and the Milghty Quinn that the fireworks are over and the world isn’t ending. —TELL ‘EM HERBIE: Kirk Herbstreit is a Centerville native, a former Ohio State football star, a top-shelf TV football analyst. . .and a gargantuan Cincinnati Reds fan. On […]

Something ‘Racy’ Today

By Hal McCoy Columbus, OH.— A county fair features cotton candy, corn on the cob, FFA livestock shows, live singing, amusement rides. . .and harness racing. As Ohio’s fairs move from county to county during the summer, up and coming sulky stars follow the calendar. and fans follow the horses and their drivers. And some […]

Some Holiday Observations…

By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave after spending the off day at Scioto Downs in Columbus and bet $20 on one race and won $144. Thank you, driver Brent Miller. —TIPPING OR NOT: The discussions over whethr the Boston Red Sox detected Cincinnati Reds pitcher Chase Burns tipping his pitches rages on. […]

Some weekend Observations…

By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, working on a piece about Johnny Bench for my ‘Great Eight’ series for the Dayton Daily News, trying to whittle it down because the greatest catcher ever to walk a ball field is worth more than a thousand words. —MAD MAN MADDUX: Nobody disputes that Sandy […]

Some Mid-Week Observations…

By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from Suite 217 in Akron’s Canal Park Stadium while watching in rain so hard somebody needs to take a message to Noah. —THE BIG RED PITCHERS: When the conversation turns to the 1975-76 Cincinnati Reds, it is always about ‘The Great Eight,’ Pete Rose, Ken Griffey, Joe Morgan, Tony Perez, […]

Observations: Aiming Some Recognition To Ex-Reds Skipper

By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, suffering a swollen left ear from doing so many cellphone interviews on the Pete Rose situation. And I know the checks are in the mail. —PRAISE FOR DAVE: Dave Bristol managed the Cincinnati Reds in the late 1960s and does not receive enough credit for being […]

Some Mid-Week Observations….

By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave… —WHAT DID HE SAY?: When Bob Castellini moved into the big executive chair in Great American Park, his first media press conference was a concert of optimism. One of his quotes, as recalled by great friend Matt Steinmann, was more than naive: “We will bring championships […]