OBSERVATIONS: Bullpenners and characters (Borbon, Carroll, Eastwick, McEnaney)
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave wondering if the Cincinnati Reds will at least get a ‘Participation Trophy’ this year after investing $170 million in player improvement. Watching them, I just want to scream, “Smallball, smallball, smallball.” Doubt if they know what that means. —Big Red Machine manager Sparky Anderson’s idea of […]
OBSERVATIONS: Of Thom Brennaman and Fernando Tatis Jr.
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave while sitting in my La-Z-Boy thinking about Thom Brennaman and Fernando Tatis Jr. —It is difficult to defend Reds/Fox broadcaster Thom Brennaman for his open mic homophobic slur during Wednesday’s Cincinnati Reds-Kansas City doubleheader. And this is no attempt to spread butter over the incident. He […]
OBSERVATIONS: The hardest thrower in the history of baseball
UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave wondering how in the name of Stan Musial will the St. Louis Cardinals play 60 games without collapsing in exhaustion after playing beaucoup doubleheaders? —For those who saw the classic baseball movie ‘Bull Durham’ and the wild-throwing pitcher Nuke Laloosh, well, there was a real-life Nuke Laloosh. In […]
OBSERVATIONS: Chris Sabo was a special breed
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave enjoying some cantaloupe grown in Covington, OH by Sonny Fulks, farmer/photographer/Gettysburg aficionado and mastermind behind PressProsMagazine.com —Chris Sabo, one of the all-time best competitors to put on a Cincinnati Reds uniform, was also one of my favorite characters. Manager Pete Rose dubbed him Spuds McKenzie because […]
OBSERVATIONS: A walk around a few ballparks
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave trying to concentrate on writing while Nadine runs the sweeper to clean up the detritus on the floor where I missed the ash tray. Underneath my ash tray looks like the remnants of Mount Rainier. —Some not-so-fond memories from baseball parks and other venues: CANDLESTICK PARK […]
OBSERVATIONS: The ‘Pleasure’ of Covering Games in Dodger Stadium
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, believing the Cincinnati Reds bullpen could not get worse, then watching new guy Jose De Leon and Cody Reed give up 10 runs in one inning to the Cleveland Indians. The Tribe had scored four runs in four games in a series with the Minnesota Twins […]
OBSERVATIONS: George Foster integrated the bat rack
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave while checking my new watch purchased by Nadine for my birthday, even though my birthday is 2 1/2 months away. She is always on time. Now I will be. —George Foster was the most underrated and unappreciated member of The Big Red Machine, something I often […]
OBSERVATIONS: McNamara was the leader of the band
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave while wondering what baseball will do if all 30 teams finish 30-30. —The passing of former Cincinnati Reds manager John McNamara this week evoked some unforgettable memories about this ruddy-faced Irishman who had a baseball for a heart. —When he managed in San Diego, they had […]
OBSERVATIONS: From strike up the band to strike out the man
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave while watching the rain turn the backyard into the swimming pool Nadine always wanted. —Everybody has heard the term, “Strike up the band.” In baseball, the term is, “Strike out the man.” And strike him out, strike him out and strike him out. In the first […]