Archive for April, 2007

Todays Dead Ball Player – Barry McCormick

Wednesday, April 11th, 2007

To this day Barry McCormick is somewhat of a baseball enigma, raised on the East End of Cincinnati, near where the American Associations Kelly’s Killer’s played he was first brought to the attention of local star Buck Ewing, who also lived in the “Pendleton” area of the east side, this area was not officially named Pendleton, but was mistakenly referred to that do to the farmer who originally owned the surrounding land. Ewing declared Barry has one of the promising finds of 1895 and later that decade he became known as the supreme glove man on the “Colts” as they were called then, Barry also had the pleasure of participating in two triple plays as ML player and he also could claim to having played in the game that a team scored the most runs in MLB history. On June 29, 1897, he went 6-for-8, including a triple and a home run, and scored five times as Chicago destroyed Louisville, 36-7. The 36 runs remain the most ever scored in a game by a major league team.

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Opening Day Minutia

Monday, April 2nd, 2007

No day says “Cincinnati” like Opening day, because Opening Day is Cincinnati.

Betty Heskamp.

I went to quite a few openers at Crosley Field, when I was in school. If you got a ticket you got out of school, and I hated school.

Pete Rose

Back in those days, if you weren’t I school on Opening Day, everybody just assumed where you were. It was a holiday.

Eddie Brinkman

If you don’t try to get out of school on Opening Day, there’s something wrong with you! It’s right up there with Christmas.

Buddy Bell

Opening Day, it’s finally here and with it comes the season and the demise of the off season hemming and hawing about what will happen. Now we shall see. It beats the crap out of talk.

I remember thinking, This is the place to be. In the starting lineup Opening Day, Cincinnati.

Ken Griffey

Opening day in Cincinnati has a long and storied history, interrupted once in 1935 when the Pirates new ownership felt that the Reds had hogged the event for long enough. This assertion led to the Reds being scheduled to open the season in Pittsburgh as opposed to at home. The Reds owner Powell Crosley and GM Larry MacPhail raised such a stink over the affair, citing the towns devotion the event, parades, local schools closing at 1:30 to allow children to witness the game or parade that celebrated the event. Wrap that argument up in the poor financial era of the depression and color it with the hue of green and we’ll just note that the game was moved back to Crosley Field, where it continues to be played until they torn that park down. (more…)