I saw this question on Twitter, and I happen to be old enough to have a decent list. More or less in order, although some might quibble.
Henry Aaron
Ken Griffey Jr.
Joey Votto
Barry Larkin
Pete Rose
I saw this question on Twitter, and I happen to be old enough to have a decent list. More or less in order, although some might quibble.
Henry Aaron
Ken Griffey Jr.
Joey Votto
Barry Larkin
Pete Rose
cumberlandreds (07-09-2020),reds77 (07-09-2020)
No particular order
Aaron
Mays
Frank Robinson
Al Kaline
Yaz
Bench
Rose
Bonds
Maddox
Seaver
Clemente
Larkin
Morgan
Junior
Votto
Rose
Bench
Concepcion
Schmidt
Morgan
Foster
Griffey Sr
Griffey Jr
Nolan Ryan
Vlad Guerrero sr
Vlad Guerrero jr
Barry Bonds
Manny Ramirez
Pedro Martinez
Jim Thome
Jimmy Haynes
Tim Raines
Mike Piazza
Larry Walker
I got to see a 2018 AA double header that included Vlad Jr, Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio, Pete Alonso, and Jeff McNeil. Vlad went 5 for 7 with a HBP and a BB plus a homer. McNeil seemed the second best.
http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats...inaax_nhmaax_1
http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats...inaax_nhmaax_2
Last edited by klw; 07-09-2020 at 11:04 AM.
M2 (07-09-2020)
klw nice inclusion of jimmy haynes,, he was epic, almost reminded of kevin jarvis
In the second game you even got to see Tim Tebow take a walk. Wow!Originally Posted by klw
I saw a lot of great players live who didn't really do much the day I happened to see them. So with that in mind, here is my list of greats who I remember actually being great when I saw them live:
Eric Davis
Tony Gwynn
Roger Clemens
Barry Bonds
Manny Ramirez
Curt Schilling
Phoenix2 (07-09-2020)
He was the guy the autographs hounds were after and who got the loudest reaction from the fans. It was the first game I took my son to. We had seats in the third row right behind home plate for less than $20 and got a Vlad Jr shirt thrown in with the price of admission. A really good day.In the second game you even got to see Tim Tebow take a walk. Wow!
As far as the greats go, the obvious ones are Griffey, Bonds, etc., but as for individual performances at the point in the career I saw them:
I remember watching Hunter Pence in Single A and thinking he was going to be Willie Mays. In his 80 games in Lexington he hit .338/.413/.652 with 25 homers and played a spectacular center field.
"I never argue with people who say baseball is boring, because baseball is boring. And then, suddenly, it isn't. And that's what makes it great." - Joe Posnanski
Hands down...Willie Mays. Junior the nearest thing to him. Barry's old man Bobby who was a better athlete than his son, who was a better ballplayer. Hank Aaron and Robby.
Barry was the greatest hitter I saw live but roids have destroyed those memories.
99% of all numbers only tell 33% of the story so when looking at the numbers remember that numbers is plural...
Aside from the obvious Reds greats...
Made a point to go last year to an Athletics/Angels game so I could say I saw Mike Trout play live. I think he got on base 4 times out of 5 plate appearances that day.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/b...01806170.shtml
Also saw Barry Bonds...wife and I splurged for Diamond Seats at GABP. Josh Hall pitched (MLB debut?). Bonds, of course, took him deep. Reds won though.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/b...00308020.shtml
As for pitchers, I got to see the Reds beat Tom Glavine and John Smoltz back-to-back at Fulton County Stadium. I was living in Tallahassee then, and drove up for the weekend. One of my greatest baseball highlights.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/b...99406180.shtml
https://www.baseball-reference.com/b...99406190.shtml
Last edited by WrongVerb; 07-09-2020 at 11:30 AM.
Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves. -- Carl Sagan (Pale Blue Dot)
I saw John Smoltz rehabbing in AAA in Syracuse but he wasn’t sharp at all. The best pitcher that night was our own (years later) Drew Storen.
I got to see Bonds in August of 2001 in Montreal. He didn't start but pinch hit late and hit his 55th homer. We had seats about 6 or 7 rows up from the Giants dugout and about 2 rows behind some folks who appeared to be friends or family of Bonds. After the homer he waved and smiled up a girl in that group who I took to be his daughter. It was a sweet moment and something which was made all the more possible by the small Montreal crowd.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/b...00108230.shtml
Last edited by klw; 07-09-2020 at 11:54 AM.
Oh yea, Mike Trout.
I went to Game 2 in 2013 when the Angels opened in Cincinnati and the Trout/Pujols/Hamilton lineup was supposed to score 2,000 runs. The trio went 1-for-12 with a lone Trout double. They finished the series 6-for-38.
"I never argue with people who say baseball is boring, because baseball is boring. And then, suddenly, it isn't. And that's what makes it great." - Joe Posnanski
By 1987, I had moved away from Cincinnati to the East Coast, and only managed to watch Reds games in places like Philadelphia.
A friend and I went to see the Reds and the Phillies play, and Eric Davis was playing Center Field that day. He had a pretty good game, with three home runs, including a grand slam. He drove in six runs through six innings.
I lived in Cincinnati during the days of the Big Red Machine, but Eric Davis impressed me on that day in Philadelphia tremendously.
Great Players I've Seen Play In Person
No Particular Order
Mays
Aaron
Frank Robinson
Bench
Rose
Clemente
Banks
Jenkens
Koufax
Marichal
Gibson
Brock
Seaver
Griffey Jr
Morgan
Votto
Last edited by Ron Madden; 07-09-2020 at 04:14 PM.
Always Red (07-09-2020),Roy Tucker (07-09-2020)
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