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Cincinnati Reds
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Baseballs first openly
all professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings was founded in
1869. The Cincinnati Red Stockings won 130 consecutive games in a
row between 1869-1870, before being defeated by the Atlantics. Early
stars for the Red Stockings included the Wrights, George and Harry.
(In 1871, George Wright took most of his best players to Boston, and
founded the Boston Red Stockings, now known as the Atlanta Braves.)
The Red Stockings were a charter member of the National League in
1876. At the turn of the century, the Reds, shortened from the Red
Stockings so not to be confused with the Boston American League (AL)
entry, now shortened to Red Sox. The Cincinnati Reds is a professional
Major League baseball team. The Reds are based in Cincinnati, Ohio.
The uniform colors is Red and white, trimmed Black. The logo design
is a red "C" with the word "REDS" inside. Some
of the winnings of the team include nine division titles, one American
Association pennants, nine National League pennants and five World
Series Championships. Some of the players to make to the hall of fame
include Jake Beckley, Johnny Bench, Jim Bottomley and Mordecai Brown.
The Cincinnati reds home ballpark is Great American Ball Park. By
1956, the Reds began the most successful portion of their clubs history.
Led by National League (NL) Rookie of the Year Frank Robinson, the
Reds hit 221 HR to tie the NL record. By 1961, Robinson was joined
by Vada Pinson, Wally Post, Gordy Coleman and Gene Freese. Pitchers
Joey Jay, Jim O'Toole and Bob Purkey led the staff. The Reds captured
the 1961 NL flag, holding off the Los Angeles Dodgers & the San
Francisco Giants. However for the Reds, 1961 was the year New York
Yankee Roger Maris hit 61 HR and they took the Reds in 5 games in
the World Series. The rest of the 1960s were successful on the field,
but didn't produce any championships. They won 98 games in 1962 (paced
by Purkey's 23) but finished 3rd. In 1964, they lost the pennant by
one game. The farm system produced players such as Jim Maloney (the
Reds pitching ace of the 1960s), Pete Rose, Tony Pérez, Johnny
Bench and Gary Nolan. In 1984 the Reds began to move up, depending
on trades and some minor leaguers. In 1984 Dave Parker & Tony
Pérez were in Cincinnati uniforms. By the end of 1984, Pete
Rose was hired to be the Reds player-manager. From 1985 to 1989 the
Reds finished second 4 times. Among the highlights, Pete Rose became
the all-time hits leader, Tom Browning threw a perfect game, and Chris
Sabo was the 1988 National League Rookie of the Year. In 1989, Pete
Rose was banned from baseball by Commissioner Bart Giamatti, who declared
Rose guilty of "conduct detrimental to baseball." Controversy
also swirled around Reds owner Marge Schott who was accused several
times of ethnic and racial slurs. The Cincinnati Reds first season
under manager Dave Miley, the Reds jumped off to a surprising start,
finishing the first half of the season six games above .500 and in
contention for a playoff spot. However, injuries and inconsistent
pitching led to a second-half slide, which left them with a 76-86
record at season's end. Despite the decline, however, there were plenty
of bright spots. In the final campaign of his 19-year run with the
Reds, Barry Larkin hit .289. Ken Griffey Jr., belted his 500th home
run on Father's Day in St. Louis before undergoing season-ending hamstring
surgery a few weeks later. Danny Graves became the club's all-time
saves leader and Adam Dunn led the team with 46 home runs and 102
RBIs.
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