The Reds did it! Last night, they clinched the NL Central title in very dramatic fashion. Very suitable though, as it seems the Reds have done everything, win and lose, in dramatic fashion this season. The game was tied going into the bottom of the ninth. Jay Bruce hammered the first pitch he saw out of the park to not only win the game, but to officially send the Reds to the post season for the first time since 1995. Very, very exciting!
I am truly a lifelong Reds fan. While I am too young to actually remember watching the Big Red machine, my family jokes that my first words weren't mama or dada but were Pete Rose and Johnny Bench. I do remember being sad that Johnny Bench was retiring and that at the game where he was honored they gave him a new car. I remember rooting for the Philadelphia Phillies in the early 80's because they had Pete Rose. I remember those really, really bad years of the early 80's where Mario Soto pitching was pretty much the only bright spot. I remember Pete Rose returning to the Reds in the mid-80's and breaking Ty Cobb's record at old Riverfront Stadium. I remember so many years where the Reds were in second place at the end of the season and at the beginning of 1989 Marge Schott (owner) stated that she was tired of being a "bridesmaid". I remember thinking "Careful what you wish for" and sure enough, that was the year that the Pete Rose scandal broke and the Reds finished in fifth place.
But then along came 1990. For the first time in major league history, a team won on Opening Day, thusly beginning the season in first place, and maintained first place throughout the entire season. It was such a magical season, going wire-to-wire, and after beating the Pirates for the NL title, they had an improbable sweep of the Oakland A's to win the Series. I remember being at my high school gym decorating for Homecoming and listening to the game as the Reds finished off the Pirates, and rushing home to be with my sister, because I knew it was no fun for her to celebrate alone. I remember watching game four of the World Series, and I can still see in my mind Todd Benzinger making the final catch of the game and jumping into the air. The Reds again won the Central in 1995, but because I was 21 and in college that year, I really don't remember much about it...too busy having fun to follow along. I do remember that the Reds lost to the Braves, although I didn't remember it being in the NLCS (I thought they had lost in the first round). I do remember following devotedly along in 1999. They were a team that wasn't supposed to go anywhere. But they came together as a team with great chemistry, and heading into the final weekend were all prepared to clinch the wild card spot in Milwaukee. Never happened though, and it forced a one game play off for the spot with the Mets. The game was played in Cincinnati, and I was fortunate enough to be able to go. The atmosphere was amazing, but the game itself not-so-much. Al Leiter pitched brilliantly for the Mets, and the Reds' season came to an end.
This century has not been kind to my beloved Reds. Many years, early on with Ken Griffey, Jr., they would jump out to a lead in April and May, and maybe even into June. But then Junior would wind up injured and other things began to fall apart, and by the end of the season they wouldn't even have a winning record. The last couple of years they couldn't even manage to accomplish the strong start and I would usually declare them "done" by the end of July or early August. Last year though, they had the best September of anyone in the game, and we were cautiously optimistic for what that might mean for this year.
And now that we know that last September was indeed an omen of the fun to come this year. It has yet to be determined who the first round opponent will be or when or where the games will begin, but the Reds will continue playing into next week, and that was the most exciting thing about Jay Bruce's dramatic home run last night.
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