OBSERVATIONS: Where Will The Reds Finish?

By Hal McCoy

UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave with my fingers exercised and anxious to fly over the keys when Opening Day finally arrives.

—A REDS OCTOBER?: Who ya gonna believe? Nobody, until the deed is done.

Most Las Vegas betting emporiums list the Chicago Cubs to win the National League Central, followed by Milwaukee, Cincinnati, St. Louis and Pittsburgh.

This week on the MLB network, host Harold Reynolds and MLB national baseball columnist Will Leitch both picked the Reds to win it.

At the risk of sounding provincial, I’m waving the Reds flag, too. And the Reds are saying, “Why not us?” Yes, why not.

—A PROUD PATCH: As if it is needed to ‘remember’ Pete Rose, the Cincinnati Reds are doing the right thing by wearing a ’14’ patch on their sleeves this season.

And here is what Reds manager Terry Francona said about it:

“I will wear it as proudly as you can. Anybody that played with Pete, you’re not gonna find a better teammate. He was probably 20 years older than me, but he treated us young kids like gold.

“We hung on him so much. . .he was a pro’s pro. I got the honor of playing for him when he managed the Reds. It killed me because I played so bad. I hit so bad I felt like I let him down and it bothered me. It was like I got amnesia and forgot how to hit. And I love the guy.”

And I snickered heartily when broadcaster Jim Day interviewed Francona recently and Tito said, “Our job, every day, is to try to kick somebody’s ass. That’s why we’re here.”

—UNFORGETTABLE: Speaking of Pete Rose, last weekend I was privileged to share brisket and ribs in Arlington, Texas with former Reds/Senators/Dodgers pitcher Claude Osteen.

A product of Reading (OH) High School, Osteen didn’t throw hard enough to penetrate a wet Kleenex, but he won 196 games and completed 140 over a 19-year career.

“I once faced Pete Rose in the ninth inning with the Dodgers when we led, 2-1 and the Reds had the bases loaded with two outs. On a 3-and-2 count, I fed Pete one on the outside corner and he was called out on strikes.

“I didn’t see him again for 20 years,” he added. “One day I walked into a room and Rose was sitting there. He didn’t say hello. The first words out of his mouth were, “That wasn’t a strike.”

That was Pete. He could share memories with a pachyderm.

—HOW ABOUT 1939?: From 1923 to 1953, when both leagues had eight teams, the New York Yankees beat every National League team in a World Series but one. They never beat the Boston Braves because the Braves were never in the World Series in that 30-year period.

Most baseball aficionados believe the 1927 New York Yankees or the 1976 Cincinnati Reds or the 1996 Yankees was the best all-time team.

Ask the 1939 Cincinnati Reds about that. They, and a lot of people say the ’39 Yankes were the best.

The ’39 Yankees led the league in runs scored — 40 more than the second best team. They led in on-base average, slugging, home runs, earned run average, shutouts, fewest hits allowed and fielding percentage.

The Yankees won 106 regular-season games, then swept four straight from the Reds in the World Series. After the Series, on the train from Cincinnati to New York, Yankees manager Joe McCarthy sat in his compartment poring over the statstics from the 45 regular season losses.

Asked what he was doing, McCarthy said, “I’m trying to figure how why we lost those games and how we could have won them.”

—OUCH, OUCH, OUCH: Is it possible for a player to be hit by a baseball three times in one inning? Ask Stephen Piscotty.

While playing for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2017, Piscotty was hit by a pitch. Then on a passed ball he took off for second and slid in safely, but was hit in the back by the throw.

Kolten Wong then singled and Piscotty scored, but was hit in the head at home plate by throw.

Usually it’s three-and-out. For Piscotty, it was three-and-safe.

—IS THAT CONSISTENT: One could call Khris Davis, formerly with the Athletics “Mr. Consistency” and one would be accurate. But certainly Davis isn’t proud of it.

In a four-year span, here is what Davis hit: .247 in 2015, .247 in 2016, .247 in 2017 and .247 in 2018.

Now if he hit .307 in four straight years, that would be memorable. He was more like Mr. Monotonous.

—TRIVIA TIDBIT: Which National League team was the last to win back-to-back World Series?

That would be the 1975-76 Cincinnati Reds. Nope, hasn’t been done since. . .48 seasons ago.

And when the Reds did it, they were the first team since the 1921-22 New York Giants, a 54-season span.

Don’t wager against the Los Angeles Dodgers doing it in 2024-25.

—THEY DO RUN-RUN: Oh, the college game and those ping-ing aluminum war clubs and weak and wild pitching arms.

George Mason Univesity set an NCAA D-1 record by scoring 23 runs. . .in one inning. The run deluge came against five Holy Cross pitchers in the second inning.

GMU had 19 consecutive batters reach base and collected 11 hits (six singles, five doubles), nine walks and, get this one. . .five hit batsmen.

Holy Cross outscored George Mason, 6-3, in the other innings and lost, 26-6.

And then there was Tennessee tying an NCAA D1 record with three grand slams during a 22-9 win over Radford. The Vols also tied the record by hitting two grand slams during an 11-run seventh inning.

Andrew Fischer drove in five runs with a grand slam and a solo home run. His slam covered 427 feet.

Question: Why is 12-0 Tennesse from the SEC, the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, playing Radford University from the Big South Conference?

—NOTHING COMES FREE: The Dayton-Saint Louis basketball game this week at UD Arena resembled a free-for-all in a biker’s bar — bodies all over the floor, elbows flying, public muggins under the basket.

And Saint Louis coach Josh Schertz was more than miffed after his team’s 75-67 loss. Schertz felt the officials stole the shirts off his team’s back.

Despite the game’s physicality, the Billikens shot only three free throws, none in the second half. Meanwhile, the Flyers shot 10 second-half free throws.

Schertz said you could smell the ‘home-cookin’ on the other side of the Great Miami River. As UD coach Anthony Grant said recently after some dubious calls away from home, “That’s life on the road.”

The Flyers wore their chapel blue uniforms against Saint Louis and because Yellow Springs comedian Dave Chappelle showed up, fan Christoper Reed said they were ‘Chappelle Blue.”

—UECKER. . .AGAIN: Bob Uecker always found a unique way to describe his baseball ‘accomplishment.’

Said the Uke, “I don’t have to blow smoke about my career. No other player, ever, was paid by companies not to endorse their products.”

Miller Life objects to that one, Bob.

—BIG MEN, BIG MONEY: Research reveals that more than a dozen NFL defensive linemen are paid more than $20 million a season.

Further research reveals that I didn’t eat enough pastry and fried foods when I was a kid.

—SOME ‘SUBURB’: Arlington, Texas is tucked between Dallas and Fort Worth, part of what they call the Metroplex. And don’t ever call Arlington a suburb of Dallas or Fort Worth.

I committed that gaffe during my weekend visit and a long-time resident took umbrage.

“We have a population of 480,000,” he said. “We have a slogan. . .’We ain’t nobody’s damn suburb.’”

Noted.

—PLAYLIST NUMBER 151: From author Kurt Vonnegut: “Virtually every writer I know would rather be a musician.” (Yes, I would. But I can’t carry a note outside of a shower stall.)

—Kiss An Angel Good Morining (And I do, EVERY morining (Charley Pride), Behind Closed Doors (Charlie Rich), Brandy (Looking Glass), Nights Are Forever Without You (England Dan & John Ford Coley), Runaway (Jeffereson Starship).

—I Keep Forgettin’ (Michael Montgomery), More Than I Can Say (Leo Sayer), Just You And Me (Chicago), Biggest Part Of Me (Ambrosia), Show The People (James Taylor), That’s All Right (Elvis Presley), Running Scared (Roy Orbison), Drive (The Cars), It Was Almost Like A Song (Ronnie Milsap).