McCoy: Bryce Was Not Nice To Reds (Three Home Runs!!!)
By Hal McCoy On a freezing night in Citizens Bank Park, the Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies were as cold as ice on a Tuesday night more suited for outdoor hockey. That is with the exception of Philadelphia’s $330 million man, Bryce Harper. Harper, 0-for-2024 when the frigid night began, smacked, smashed and smoked three […]
OBSERVATIONS: Oh No, Not Another No-No (Oh, Yes)
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, totally enthralled and mesmerized over what already has happened in baseball in less than a week. What a game. —A BLANKING FOR BLANCO: Baseball stories consistently are head-scratchers, right off the back lots of movie studios producing ‘B’ movies that are too smaltzy to be believable. […]
McCoy: Reds Ride Steer’s Grand Slam To 6-3 Win
By Hal McCoy The Cincinnati Reds’ flair for dramatics is insatiable and seemingly it is done with a cast of thousands. This time, on a chill Monday night in the City of Brotherly love, it was Spencer Steer providing the heroics — a grand slam home run in the 10th inning to lift the Reds […]
ASK HAL: Will Gambling Eventually Affect Baseball?
By Hal McCoy Q: Considering the widespread legalization of sports gambling, does this pose a threat to the integrity of baseball? — DAVE, Miamisburg/Centerville/Beavercreek. A: Absolutely, which is why the Shohei Ohtani mess is a crisis. MLB players are permitted to gamble, as long as it is with legal wagering sites and emporiums and as […]
OBSERVATIONS: Big Klu Was Baseball’s ‘Gentle Goliath’
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, proposing that Happy New Year is not on January 1, it is baseball’s Opening Day. So. . .Happy New Year, basebal fans. —KLU HAD A CLUE: Ted Kluszewski could hit. He could hit for power and he could hit for average. And he didn’t say much, […]
McCoy: Reds serve up a ‘double’ Martini in 8-2 win
By Hal McCoy There is nothing in the Wide World of Baseball like Opening Day in Cincinnati. The pomp and circumstance is palpable. No other franchise has an Opening Day parade and then Great American Ball Park becomes the red sea — red hats, red sweaters, red jackets and on semi-frigid days like Thursday’s 2024 […]
PREDICTION COLUMN: And hold your laughter until the end
(Prediction Column) By Hal McCoy Baseball season officially began last week when the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres played a two-game series in Korea. They split the series so it can be safely predicted that both the Dodgers and Padres will at least lose one game and win one game. The rest of […]
OBSERVATIONS: Ohtani Mess Has Questions To Answer
By Hal McCoy UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave, counting the hours until Opening Day. . .er, make that counting the minutes. —OH, OH OHTANI: Shohei Ohtani seemed honest and sincere during his ‘no questions asked’ press conference when he said he has never bet on baseball, sports or the future cost of sushi in […]
Ask Hal: No Franchise Needs A New Park (Not Boston, Not Chicago)
By Hal McCoy Q: With the continuing construction of new stadiums, which franchise is in dire need of a new stadium? — DAVE, Miamisburg/Centerville/Beavercreek. A: Not what you might think. Some believe Boston and Chicago need new parks so those franchises can add the upscale suites and other amenities. Not me. I love Fenway Park […]