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View Full Version : Favorite Reds Memories/Why are you a Reds fan?



DavidMemphis
05-05-2013, 07:27 PM
I will start this thread by saying that I hope it gets alot of feedback, as I am one that is really into nostalgia, 'moments', and sports happenings/memories. Many people are fans of teams from a certain city, for a certain reason (usually b/c they are from there - or nearby). Other fans are fans b/c when they started watching, that team happened to be winning in that era. I'm kind of a hybrid fan - and have very valid reasons for all of my allegiences. Cincinnati Reds, Dallas Cowboys, Alabama Crimson Tide Football, Memphis Tiger Basketball.

As far as favorite Reds memories, I have several, of course, and will eventually get to all of them. But will start with the one that MADE me a Reds fans. I grew up in Memphis, TN, and my father, who didn't do a ton of things right, DID do some things right. He took me to st. louis in the mid-late '70s to watch the Big Red Machine. Not only that, we went to the hotel, where as a little boy I got to meet many members of that team - Rose, Bench, Morgan, Seaver, among others. We went to dinner at a horrible place called Mont Eagle (my sister's burger was so bad she tried to hide it on the seat so my dad would think she ate it), and then to the game, where George Foster hit a towering home run, and 'this one belongs to the Reds'. I was hooked, and have been ever since.

As i said, I have many many more, but that's where it started for me. I hope many of you read and choose to share yours as well. Go Reds!

cincyredway
05-05-2013, 07:58 PM
Wow great topic, I guess for me there isn't one moment in particular that made me a reds fan, I guess I was just born that way, sometimes I think I take it too serious because my day depends on if the reds win or lose. Growing up I loved Larkin , Davis, sabo, rijo the nasty boys and then into Griffey, Casey and now votto, Bruce, Phillips . But I can remember coming over the bridge and seeing riverfront stadium it was awesome, then scalping tickets, waiting up til almost first pitch so my dad could save 2$ a ticket..lol...but just the smell of hot dogs and beer and watching the home run balls disappear over the fence was awesome.. I love great American ballpark, but riverfront will always b my favorite. Go reds..

Rantly
05-05-2013, 08:28 PM
My dad worked for a company that had a annual Reds "excursion" bus trip for their customers etc. He brought a 1970 yearbook ($1) back and that led to me being a fan. Good time to become a fan by the way. My favorite player was Lee May...was crushed when he was traded but obviously worked out pretty good with little Joe.

DavidMemphis
05-05-2013, 08:33 PM
Good stuff, keep it comin' guys!

EMAW
05-05-2013, 10:57 PM
Dusty Baker was my favorite player as a kid (I am 48) and as Dusty goes I follow his team

Dwarftree
05-06-2013, 08:03 AM
Die hard Reds fan from Germany here. How i became a Reds fan is a bit of a longer story though.

In 1990, the year of my graduation, a lot of friends of mine from my school and me plus a lot of other people from a rival school (we were all friends though) used to meet every sunday in a park, did some picnic and barbecue stuff, drank 1-2 cases of beer (yep we didnīt need to wait till we are 21 in order to gulp down a bottle of beer ;)) and had a fun time. On some sunday a couple of dudes brought some baseball gloves with them. And thats were it all started. We started to play bal. Tbh it was more or less the variation of what we thought baseball would be like. We had no idea. Baseball is still unfortunately not know very well over here. Anyway. Around 10 guys including me got completely hooked to the sport of baseball, met every sunday to play. On one day i stepped into a hole on the grass, completely tilted my right ankle, tearing almost every tendon. Since i couldnīt do anything else plus recently having graduated and was thinking about to what university to go, i basically could stay up all night. I had nothing to do anyway. Due to our park sessions i got completely hooked up to the sport of baseball.

And then there it was. On TV. At 2:00 am in the morning. World Series. The highly favored Oakland Aīs against the underdog Cincinnati Reds. And what else do i have to say? I completely fell in love with the way the guys in red played there hearts out and swept their American League opponent. Never will forget the way Rijo pitched, how the "Nasty Boys" relieved and especially how a dude named Chris Sabo played. (Still my favourite all-time Red). That was just awesome. And from that moment on i knew to what MLB team my heart belongs to. Forever!

Btw. The dudes from the park that got hooked to baseball and me founded a real baseball club a year later. That club had its 20th birthday 2 years ago, is playing in the highest German league (plus a couple of other teams in lower and junior/kids leagues) and coincidentally happens to be one of the clubs our very own Donald Lutz played for.

DavidMemphis
05-06-2013, 09:18 AM
Wow, REALLY cool story Dwarftree! Hopefully, you're able to watch alot of Reds games over there. If not, try mlb's gameday audio (I'm old school and grew up listening to baseball - love it on the radio). It's not expensive at all, and you get every team's games with whatever team's announcers you want. It's awesome. Again, great story.

Side note - I found it really ironic that Donald Lutz got his 1st Major League hit on an at-bat that he shouldn't have. It was obvious that he WAS hit by that pitch on the ankle and should have been awarded 1st base then.

RedsBrick
05-06-2013, 10:58 AM
Why a Reds fan? Pete Rose & the BRM! I loved the way Rose played the game and modeled myself after him.

Of course '75, '76 & '90 are epic seasons.

But, unfortunately, a strong memory for me didn't end well. I was living outside of St. Louis (Belleville, Ill) as a kid. My grade school gave away Cardinals tickets for making honor roll. And it was too good to be true that one of the games was a Reds game. I was actually going to get to see my favorite team play in person!

Well, Reds had the lead until a young Keith Hernandez pulled a home run over the right field wall (right in my area!) to give the Cards the lead in the bottom of the 8th. But, alas, the Reds loaded the bases in the top of the 9th with no one out! But the Mad Hungarian shattered my night by striking out the side...a tough task indeed against a powerful team like the Reds. Definitely not a big Cards fan! Ha.

MillerTime58
05-06-2013, 11:01 AM
Grew up in Cincy and was taken to my first baseball in game 1995 by my dad. I think it was the summer of 99 that got me fully on board as a Reds fan...nothing will ever beat the magic of that team. And being so young, I remember treating every game like I do football now...I was really pissed when our 10 game winning streak ended haha. And I definitely cried during the one game playoff. Stupid Al Leiter!

Obviously it was downhill and fast after that for the team, and for my fandom as well. Every year I paid attention less and less, throughout high school and college (01-08). However once I graduated and moved to Blue Ash in 2009, I've gotten back into it and started going to a ton of games, up to 25 last year! I'm definitely happy that the Reds have turned it around now that I can pay attention more haha.

Some of my favorite moments:

-Pokey Reese's 13th inning walkoff HR to beat the Cards in late September '99. I was at this game and it might be the best baseball game I've ever seen in person
-Deion Sanders making a comeback and hitting a HR
-Jose Rijo making a comeback
-Griffey hitting the walkoff inside the park HR against the Cards
-Ramon Hernandez walkoff HR on Opening Day in 2011

-And of course, my greatest sports memory of all-time, is the Jay Bruce walkoff HR to clinch the division in 2010. I was there and the city went NUTS! It was the best

CardsFanBob
05-06-2013, 03:35 PM
Favorite Reds memory. Hmmm.

Maybe when Jimmy Edmonds had back-to-back nights at GAMB stealing Gary Bennett homers? I think that's probably it. ;)

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

CardsFanBob
05-06-2013, 03:39 PM
I will start this thread by saying that I hope it gets alot of feedback, as I am one that is really into nostalgia, 'moments', and sports happenings/memories. Many people are fans of teams from a certain city, for a certain reason (usually b/c they are from there - or nearby). Other fans are fans b/c when they started watching, that team happened to be winning in that era. I'm kind of a hybrid fan - and have very valid reasons for all of my allegiences. Cincinnati Reds, Dallas Cowboys, Alabama Crimson Tide Football, Memphis Tiger Basketball.

As far as favorite Reds memories, I have several, of course, and will eventually get to all of them. But will start with the one that MADE me a Reds fans. I grew up in Memphis, TN, and my father, who didn't do a ton of things right, DID do some things right. He took me to st. louis in the mid-late '70s to watch the Big Red Machine. Not only that, we went to the hotel, where as a little boy I got to meet many members of that team - Rose, Bench, Morgan, Seaver, among others. We went to dinner at a horrible place called Mont Eagle (my sister's burger was so bad she tried to hide it on the seat so my dad would think she ate it), and then to the game, where George Foster hit a towering home run, and 'this one belongs to the Reds'. I was hooked, and have been ever since.

As i said, I have many many more, but that's where it started for me. I hope many of you read and choose to share yours as well. Go Reds!



By the way, very surprised that a family in Memphis isn't Cardinals fan and instead Reds fans. I don't mean that to be offensive by any means... but I always considered it part of Cardinals country. I know there are TON of Cards fans down there, probably even moreso now with the AAA Redbirds there.

SpiritofStLouis
05-06-2013, 04:05 PM
My root to fandom began in '64. I was growing up in Queens, N.Y. and my Mom, recently divorced, began dating a man (whom she married) from the midwest. Although he was raised in Woodsfield, Ohio (even went to Ohio St. before he enlisted 2 days after his birthday, Dec. 7).

However, his relatives were from Mo. and Ark., so he grew up a Cardinal fan. I was 6 yrs. old and a tad anti social, so the Cardinals seemed a logical choice. That didn't go over well with my Yankee schoolmates and I have the scars to prove it. I did get pretty good with a knife (yes, 6 yr. olds carried knives in Queens back in the 60s).

I naturally gravitated to the football Cardinals (who I still follow in the desert) and the Blues. St.Louis didn't have a basketball team, so I chose whichever team won the rights to this guy I saw play at Power Memorial High School, whose name was Lew Alcindor. Been a Bucks fan (sigh) ever since.

As for my best moment, it's a tough call. I am a sports fan first, a team fan second. I've been fortunate to be at a lot of prolific games, not all involving my favorite teams.

As good as Super Bowl XIII was, the best ever as far as I'm concerned (Pittsburgh 35 Dallas 31), I have to go with the Buckner game in the '86 World Series.

A bunch of us (6) took a limo to the game, 4 Met fans, 1 Sox fan and me. The seats were split 4-2, so I sat with the Sox fan, who was a professional boxer, albeit not a good one.

The best part of the night was, obviously, the last couple innings. My Met buddies got dejected, and left the stadium in the 7th inning to drain the bar in the limo. When the Mets started their comeback and made it close, my pals rushed back to the stadium to get back in, but were denied re-entry.

As bad as I felt for the Sox fan I was with, I have never failed to let the Mets guys forget that they stood outside and missed one of the most historic moments in baseball history.

I was at game 6 of the NLCS against the Mets, but missed the historic game 7 because I gave my tickets to a friend who was a Met fan, as was his kid, who had never been to a game.

Anyway, it's great to read stories from passionate fans, despite the team affiliation. We are all truly blessed to live in a country where we can embrace sports as a significant part of our lives.

Dwarftree
05-07-2013, 03:16 AM
@DavidMemphis: I have mlb.tv on my XBOX 360. Though i hardly watch the 7.00 pm games cause its like 1:00 am in the morning here and i gotta get up early to work :)

DavidMemphis
05-07-2013, 07:59 AM
@DavidMemphis: I have mlb.tv on my XBOX 360. Though i hardly watch the 7.00 pm games cause its like 1:00 am in the morning here and i gotta get up early to work :)

Gotcha. That's another cool thing about the MLB Gameday Audio - you can listen to the game at any time. For instance, if the Reds play a day game (while i'm working), I'll just not keep up with it and avoid seeing or hearing the score, get off work, grab a 12 pack, fire up the grill, and listen to the game that night. One of my favorite pasttimes. Is awesome.

:beerme:

cumberlandreds
05-07-2013, 08:22 AM
Really could make two separate threads from this topic.

My favorite memory is Johnny Bench's HR in the 72 playoffs against the Pirates. Nothing can beat that for sheer excitement. Of course Geronimo catching the last out of the 75 World Series is the culmination of being a fan. I think I leaped with joy when Geronimo did after that final out.
Eric Davis HR in the 1st inning of Game 1 of the 1990 World Series. Set the tone of that series and the last great moments for the Reds until recently anyway.
Just too many good ones for someone who has been a fan for over 40 years. Lots of great personal memories of going to games when I was young and with my dad.

My dad, like many of us, lead me to being a fan. He always liked baseball. He would play baseball with me in my Grannys big front yard. One day my great uncle stopped by and told us about the Reds being on the radio via WSGS in Hazard, Kentucky. My dad got the radio out and tuned to the station for me. I was hooked for life.

cumberlandreds
05-07-2013, 08:26 AM
Gotcha. That's another cool thing about the MLB Gameday Audio - you can listen to the game at any time. For instance, if the Reds play a day game (while i'm working), I'll just not keep up with it and avoid seeing or hearing the score, get off work, grab a 12 pack, fire up the grill, and listen to the game that night. One of my favorite pasttimes. Is awesome.

:beerme:

I'll just add that if you have MLBTV premium you can synch the radio broadcast with the TV broadcast. Pretty cool feature. I still like listening to Marty even though he's gotten really cranky as he's gotten older.

brad1176
05-07-2013, 11:36 AM
I became a Reds fan when I was a kid (as did most of us). I didn't pay much attention to baseball so when my mom was telling me I needed to watch this game because some guy named Rose was about to make history, I wasn't entirely interested. As soon as I began watching though, I became hooked. My parents took me to a game on June 2, 1989. Eric Davis hit for the cycle and the Reds won 9-4. My addiction to baseball grew to epic proportions. The following year the Reds went wire to wire and won the WS. I followed the box scores with fervent passion.

With all of those memories though, by far my favorites have been taking my two little girls to their first Reds games. Watching them experience the game for the first time is priceless. Their eyes would light up when Joey or Jay would come to the plate and they would cheer as loud as a three year old can. I guess watching them enjoy the game takes me back to when I used to watch it as a kid, seeing the game through their eyes.

cumberlandreds
05-07-2013, 01:08 PM
I became a Reds fan when I was a kid (as did most of us). I didn't pay much attention to baseball so when my mom was telling me I needed to watch this game because some guy named Rose was about to make history, I wasn't entirely interested. As soon as I began watching though, I became hooked. My parents took me to a game on June 2, 1989. Eric Davis hit for the cycle and the Reds won 9-4. My addiction to baseball grew to epic proportions. The following year the Reds went wire to wire and won the WS. I followed the box scores with fervent passion.

With all of those memories though, by far my favorites have been taking my two little girls to their first Reds games. Watching them experience the game for the first time is priceless. Their eyes would light up when Joey or Jay would come to the plate and they would cheer as loud as a three year old can. I guess watching them enjoy the game takes me back to when I used to watch it as a kid, seeing the game through their eyes.

I believe that is the last time a Reds has hit for the cycle. Not sure about that but I believe that is right.

Old school 1983
05-07-2013, 01:17 PM
It was in the mid 80s. My moms family is from Cincinnati and my uncles had this history of the reds VHS tape. I sat down with them to watch it and I instantly became fascinated with the BRM. Namely Johnny bench. I was actually him for Halloween one year. But I became hooked soon after watching a game at the local bar/grill where my aunt worked and recognized Pete rose from the video.

My favorite reds moment. Sabos two homers in game three if the 1990 works series.

brad1176
05-07-2013, 02:00 PM
I believe that is the last time a Reds has hit for the cycle. Not sure about that but I believe that is right.

I think you're right, and Davis was the first Red to do it since 1959.

BungleBengals
05-08-2013, 11:12 AM
Unfortunately, I was born in the 90s so I did not get to experience much excitement for professional sports here in Cincinnati. I went to a few Reds games as a kid and remember asking my dad why people were booing Aaron Boone. I also remember the excitement when we got Griffey.

I sort of followed them here and there, but never really cared. It was hard to since they were never expected to do anything. I became a die hard fan in 2010 when I went to a game on a whim because my friend invited to me to go. It happened to be HOF weekend where the Reds hit 3 HRs and pounced the Rockies 8-1. I was hooked. I have been going to games every year since then. I have found it fun to know the ins and outs of the ballpark and all of the fan interaction the players and announcers participate in. I went to a preseason game for the Bengals and found it extremely boring with no fun games or fan interactions.

My greatest Reds memory would have to be that. Just enjoying games with my dad and soon to be wife. Carrying in a soft sided cooler full of drinks and getting the $1 hot dogs before the game. If I had to pick one game, it would be the Pete Rose Ceremony game where Votto hit a walk off homer in extras to win it.

Although, if I was at last night's game, that would surely be up there.

gilpdawg
05-08-2013, 03:30 PM
Unfortunately, I was born in the 90s so I did not get to experience much excitement for professional sports here in Cincinnati. I went to a few Reds games as a kid and remember asking my dad why people were booing Aaron Boone. I also remember the excitement when we got Griffey.

I sort of followed them here and there, but never really cared. It was hard to since they were never expected to do anything. I became a die hard fan in 2010 when I went to a game on a whim because my friend invited to me to go. It happened to be HOF weekend where the Reds hit 3 HRs and pounced the Rockies 8-1. I was hooked. I have been going to games every year since then. I have found it fun to know the ins and outs of the ballpark and all of the fan interaction the players and announcers participate in. I went to a preseason game for the Bengals and found it extremely boring with no fun games or fan interactions.

My greatest Reds memory would have to be that. Just enjoying games with my dad and soon to be wife. Carrying in a soft sided cooler full of drinks and getting the $1 hot dogs before the game. If I had to pick one game, it would be the Pete Rose Ceremony game where Votto hit a walk off homer in extras to win it.

Although, if I was at last night's game, that would surely be up there.

I was at both of those games. :p

Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk HD

DavidMemphis
05-11-2013, 10:19 PM
Unfortunately, I was born in the 90s so I did not get to experience much excitement for professional sports here in Cincinnati. I went to a few Reds games as a kid and remember asking my dad why people were booing Aaron Boone. I also remember the excitement when we got Griffey.

I sort of followed them here and there, but never really cared. It was hard to since they were never expected to do anything. I became a die hard fan in 2010 when I went to a game on a whim because my friend invited to me to go. It happened to be HOF weekend where the Reds hit 3 HRs and pounced the Rockies 8-1. I was hooked. I have been going to games every year since then. I have found it fun to know the ins and outs of the ballpark and all of the fan interaction the players and announcers participate in. I went to a preseason game for the Bengals and found it extremely boring with no fun games or fan interactions.

My greatest Reds memory would have to be that. Just enjoying games with my dad and soon to be wife. Carrying in a soft sided cooler full of drinks and getting the $1 hot dogs before the game. If I had to pick one game, it would be the Pete Rose Ceremony game where Votto hit a walk off homer in extras to win it.

Although, if I was at last night's game, that would surely be up there.

Really cool stuff. I love how all of our stories vary. (Btw, been a few days since i've been here - i'm an RN in a surgical ward and have been throttled lately). But your story reiterates why I think sports allegiances can be so happenstance. For instance, I'm a Reds fan, for reasons mentioned (my father taking me to st louis where I had the opportunity to meet much of the Big Red Machine, etc), Alabama Crimson Tide football - NOT a bandwagon jumper by ANY means - again, my father took me to games, even practices. I used to sell programs at the games, and had the opportunity and met Bear Bryant as a youth - uh, yea, i was hooked - Roll Tide (i realize u osu fans will begrudge this). Dallas Cowboys - I was VERY young when I watched Super Bowl X with my father, but I kept seeing that star on the helmet, and thought it looked soooo damn cool. Not to mention, Roger Staubach is my favorite athlete of all time. Done there. Memphis Tigers basketball - I grew up with a lot of those guys - was a natural thing. (also have a REALLY cool story about a former Memphis basketball coach - one that may surprise many). Anyway, I don't jump ship. My teams, are my teams. and have been for life as far as i can remember. (nba is a different story as i find it hard to even watch - and there's a story behind that as well). Sorry for the long post, and look forward to more.

DavidMemphis
05-11-2013, 10:23 PM
And who can tell me where Roger Staubach grew up and went to high school?

Australian Red
05-12-2013, 07:47 PM
Why am i a fan? Was watching a game one Saturday morning a little bit hung over and reds were playing someone on TV at GABP. Not being a massive baseball fan but a sports love i was really enjoying it and intrigued by how often they play as well as all the little parts of the game like how often to use your pitchers etc. The next day i found myself looking up how the next game went and reading up about the reds. Next thing i know i was hooked following the games live a work and in the process getting my mate hooked as well.

My greatest memory is yet to happen but it's not too far off, Monday September 2nd will be my first reds game. Got tickets booked halfway between home and first 2 rows from the dugout....I hope we win, i'm already buzzing and can't wait for that day to arrive. I'm going to enjoy the proper baseball experience beer and hotdogs and no doubt get some reds apparel for the game!

DavidMemphis
05-12-2013, 09:50 PM
Great stuff Austalian Red! Get a brat too - they're awesome (bratwurst). Another great thing about going to a baseball game in person - you'll see something you've NEVER seen before. Every time.

darrylskale
05-12-2013, 10:00 PM
I started to follow the Reds back in 1961, whether it was due to baseball cards or the fact that at my swim club in Dayton that many fathers had the Reds playing on their Radios.:)

HokieRed
05-12-2013, 10:11 PM
Frank Robinson 1956. Electrifying player. I was six years old. I can remember sitting in the left field stands one afternoon at Crosley. Frank hit one over the screen in left, hit another line drive off the left center field fence that got to the wall as fast as any ball I've ever seen (to this day), and came running in full tilt to catch a ball at his shoetops. I've seen many great players for the Reds but nobody quite like Frank. The trade still hurts.

MrRedLegger
05-12-2013, 11:57 PM
Grew up in Cincinnati. My father would take me and my three siblings to Riverfront Stadium. I do not have many specific game memories from when I was that young, but what I do remember was the walk across the bridges that crossed over the highway. When you're just a boy they seem like they're miles long.

Street performers lined the bridges, maybe a man playing "Pink Panther" on a saxophone, or a drumline banging on buckets. I remember dancing to the music with my sister and two brothers...

And then arriving at Riverfront. Your ticket specified which gate in which you entered, sometimes making it quite a trek to get into the stadium. Once inside, you either went to the blue, green, yellow, or red seats. We always had nosebleeds (red seats) so we walked up and around the seemingly endless ramps. Finally, we'd arrive at our section.

Then the walk through the concrete hallway to the view of the field created a lot of excitement. The sound of the crowd would get louder and louder until you got through. The ensuing scene was turf-and-bleacher grand canyon...majestic.

One game (when I was roughly 15) I ran into Tom Browning who signed a ball for me. The signature is now faded, but I'll always have that ball and that memory.

New York Red
05-13-2013, 08:49 AM
My toddler years were spent in the little town of Germantown, Ohio, in Montgomery County. We made many trips to Reds games (including a bunch during the BRM era). My earliest Reds memory is going to a game with my dad, at Crosley Field. I don't recall a lot of it, but I've always remembered my dad saying, "Son, that's Willie Mays right there". That has stuck in my head all these years later. As an avid baseball card collector and growing Reds fan, my love for baseball skyrocketed quickly.

We attended several games a year up until around 1980 or so when my parents divorced. We were living in Lexington, KY by then and continued to go to occasional games. I continued to play baseball, but got distracted by many of life's other pleasures during my late teen and early twenty years and didn't attend many games. Starting a career, getting married, having kids, getting divorced, etc -- life -- meant some of the other things I loved went on the back burner again for a few years. I ultimately moved to New York on a job transfer, moving me far away from my beloved Reds (and my Wildcats and Bengals).

However, one of my great Reds memories occurred during my years in New York. It was looking like the Reds would win the division in 2010, so I scheduled a quick vacation to come back home -- hoping to see the Reds clinch in person. And sure enough I was there, with great seats on the third base side, the night Jay Bruce hit the walk-off division-clinching homer to deep CF against the Astros. I've attended many, many live sporting events in my lifetime, but few have ever been as exciting as that moment.

I've been back in my homeland of Lexington for a couple years now and am fortunate to be able to catch a few games a season again. Life is back to normal and my love for the game is as strong as ever.

New York Red
05-13-2013, 08:53 AM
Why am i a fan? Was watching a game one Saturday morning a little bit hung over and reds were playing someone on TV at GABP. Not being a massive baseball fan but a sports love i was really enjoying it and intrigued by how often they play as well as all the little parts of the game like how often to use your pitchers etc. The next day i found myself looking up how the next game went and reading up about the reds. Next thing i know i was hooked following the games live a work and in the process getting my mate hooked as well.

My greatest memory is yet to happen but it's not too far off, Monday September 2nd will be my first reds game. Got tickets booked halfway between home and first 2 rows from the dugout....I hope we win, i'm already buzzing and can't wait for that day to arrive. I'm going to enjoy the proper baseball experience beer and hotdogs and no doubt get some reds apparel for the game!
I can't wait to hear your story. :beerme:

New York Red
05-13-2013, 08:58 AM
Die hard Reds fan from Germany here. How i became a Reds fan is a bit of a longer story though.

In 1990, the year of my graduation, a lot of friends of mine from my school and me plus a lot of other people from a rival school (we were all friends though) used to meet every sunday in a park, did some picnic and barbecue stuff, drank 1-2 cases of beer (yep we didnīt need to wait till we are 21 in order to gulp down a bottle of beer ;)) and had a fun time. On some sunday a couple of dudes brought some baseball gloves with them. And thats were it all started. We started to play bal. Tbh it was more or less the variation of what we thought baseball would be like. We had no idea. Baseball is still unfortunately not know very well over here. Anyway. Around 10 guys including me got completely hooked to the sport of baseball, met every sunday to play. On one day i stepped into a hole on the grass, completely tilted my right ankle, tearing almost every tendon. Since i couldnīt do anything else plus recently having graduated and was thinking about to what university to go, i basically could stay up all night. I had nothing to do anyway. Due to our park sessions i got completely hooked up to the sport of baseball.

And then there it was. On TV. At 2:00 am in the morning. World Series. The highly favored Oakland Aīs against the underdog Cincinnati Reds. And what else do i have to say? I completely fell in love with the way the guys in red played there hearts out and swept their American League opponent. Never will forget the way Rijo pitched, how the "Nasty Boys" relieved and especially how a dude named Chris Sabo played. (Still my favourite all-time Red). That was just awesome. And from that moment on i knew to what MLB team my heart belongs to. Forever!

Btw. The dudes from the park that got hooked to baseball and me founded a real baseball club a year later. That club had its 20th birthday 2 years ago, is playing in the highest German league (plus a couple of other teams in lower and junior/kids leagues) and coincidentally happens to be one of the clubs our very own Donald Lutz played for.
Awesome.

I know these threads start here every two or three months, because of so many new members passing through The Sun Deck, but each new one is every bit as enjoyable as the previous ones. They never get old. The stories are always unique and heartwarming. Thanks to everyone who has posted, and those who will in the future.

DavidMemphis
05-13-2013, 09:52 PM
I could not agree more. Another busy week here, so until then, 'this 1 belongs 2 the Reds'. Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbV22cS5GFQ

KC2135
05-16-2013, 03:07 PM
Well I was once young and idolized Ken Griffey Jr,and it was around 94/95 when I really got into watching baseball. So basically I watched and played baseball because of Jr. When he was traded to the Reds, that's the day that I picked my favorite team for life. We all know Jr didn't live up to what he could have, but he did introduce me to all the Reds players through the 2000s, and then on my own i researched The Big Red Machine, heck even the Black Sox scandal. I loved Larkin, Davis, Hatch, and all those guys. I can't say I was born a Reds fan, but they have always been my favorite baseball team since I had one.