A small part of a special moment
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
Twenty years from now, Jay Bruce will not have any trouble remembering where he was on September 28, 2010. Neither will I.
Who would have ever imagined a 26-year-old small-town sports editor would be in the middle of the Cincinnati Reds' NL Central championship celebration?
Not me.
Some kids grow up wanting to play baseball. For me, once I realized I had bad eyesight – and even worse hand-eye coordination – that dream faded away.
But then, I had other dreams in mind.
I’ve always wanted to cover Major League Baseball. Just the rich history of the men who have written and currently write about the great game was something I’ve always dreamed of doing.
That was my only way of making it to “The Show.”
So this past spring and summer, and now as fall has come upon us, I have been allowed that opportunity to, at times, cover the Reds, and it is something I do not take lightly. You could say it is something of a dream come true...but not quite yet.
But back to Tuesday. Jay Bruce added his mark, not only in the storied history of the Cincinnati Reds, but he hit the first “great” home run of Great American Ball Park.
Bruce’s homer will always be remembered; but his home run to straightaway centerfield was also eerily reminiscent of a famous home run by Hall of Famer Ted Williams – 50 years ago to the day.
Williams’ home run was special due to the fact it was his final home run, in his final at-bat of his career, at Fenway Park.
And that is the word that best describes Tuesday night at GABP … special.
For the 30,000-plus fans in attendance, along with the rest of Reds Nation who watched on TV, the monumental homer by Bruce set free a lot of disappointing moments in recent history for a baseball town that hasn’t seen a winner for 15 years.
When the Reds won in 1995, Bruce was 7 years old. I was 10.
And the way the Reds won – they did it in comeback fashion, winning for the 22nd time in their final at-bat in 2010.
That was special.
But with the celebration taking place in the locker room, I did realize that to these millionaire athletes, who are the best in the world at their craft, it can also be just a game.
That’s the great thing about championship celebrations: seeing grown men celebrate like kids again.
That is special.
I also found out champagne and beer can burn your eyes.
Even that was special.
Then there was Dusty Baker. I was happy for the man who gets complaints for bringing a winner to Cincinnati. I’ve never heard so many people moan about how a first-place team is managed.
Sure, he makes mistakes, but what manager doesn’t?
Baker deserves some credit, too, no matter how much his critics don’t want to admit it. And no matter how much Baker himself tries to deny any of the credit going in his direction, he deserves it.
During a postgame interview, Baker didn’t want to take any of the credit.
“Our guys did it, you know what I mean?” Baker said. “I didn’t do a thing, they did it.”
Baker ended the interview by saying he was ‘going to see his boys.’
Do you think any of the managers during the past 10 seasons could do what Baker did this season?
The answer is easy … they didn’t. Maybe I’m wrong, but name a Reds manager who led the Reds to the playoffs before Dusty Baker and after Davey Johnson?
Baker did it. In fact, this is his third team he’s taken to the playoffs as a MLB manager.
Just the entire night was special. As a reporter, a fan of baseball, and a fan of the underdog.
The Reds are truly “The Comeback Kids.”
Another moment I noticed happened away from the celebration on the field. It was Scott Rolen standing by the dugout entrance, leaning in the doorway, watching the team celebrate on the field. That, too, was a special moment.
Baker summed up the entire season by saying: “2010 playoffs, Cincinnati Reds. It doesn’t get any better than that.
It’s a wonderful thing, isn’t it?”
Not only was it wonderful, it was special.
Stephen Forsha is sports editor of The Highland County Press.[[In-content Ad]]
Who would have ever imagined a 26-year-old small-town sports editor would be in the middle of the Cincinnati Reds' NL Central championship celebration?
Not me.
Some kids grow up wanting to play baseball. For me, once I realized I had bad eyesight – and even worse hand-eye coordination – that dream faded away.
But then, I had other dreams in mind.
I’ve always wanted to cover Major League Baseball. Just the rich history of the men who have written and currently write about the great game was something I’ve always dreamed of doing.
That was my only way of making it to “The Show.”
So this past spring and summer, and now as fall has come upon us, I have been allowed that opportunity to, at times, cover the Reds, and it is something I do not take lightly. You could say it is something of a dream come true...but not quite yet.
But back to Tuesday. Jay Bruce added his mark, not only in the storied history of the Cincinnati Reds, but he hit the first “great” home run of Great American Ball Park.
Bruce’s homer will always be remembered; but his home run to straightaway centerfield was also eerily reminiscent of a famous home run by Hall of Famer Ted Williams – 50 years ago to the day.
Williams’ home run was special due to the fact it was his final home run, in his final at-bat of his career, at Fenway Park.
And that is the word that best describes Tuesday night at GABP … special.
For the 30,000-plus fans in attendance, along with the rest of Reds Nation who watched on TV, the monumental homer by Bruce set free a lot of disappointing moments in recent history for a baseball town that hasn’t seen a winner for 15 years.
When the Reds won in 1995, Bruce was 7 years old. I was 10.
And the way the Reds won – they did it in comeback fashion, winning for the 22nd time in their final at-bat in 2010.
That was special.
But with the celebration taking place in the locker room, I did realize that to these millionaire athletes, who are the best in the world at their craft, it can also be just a game.
That’s the great thing about championship celebrations: seeing grown men celebrate like kids again.
That is special.
I also found out champagne and beer can burn your eyes.
Even that was special.
Then there was Dusty Baker. I was happy for the man who gets complaints for bringing a winner to Cincinnati. I’ve never heard so many people moan about how a first-place team is managed.
Sure, he makes mistakes, but what manager doesn’t?
Baker deserves some credit, too, no matter how much his critics don’t want to admit it. And no matter how much Baker himself tries to deny any of the credit going in his direction, he deserves it.
During a postgame interview, Baker didn’t want to take any of the credit.
“Our guys did it, you know what I mean?” Baker said. “I didn’t do a thing, they did it.”
Baker ended the interview by saying he was ‘going to see his boys.’
Do you think any of the managers during the past 10 seasons could do what Baker did this season?
The answer is easy … they didn’t. Maybe I’m wrong, but name a Reds manager who led the Reds to the playoffs before Dusty Baker and after Davey Johnson?
Baker did it. In fact, this is his third team he’s taken to the playoffs as a MLB manager.
Just the entire night was special. As a reporter, a fan of baseball, and a fan of the underdog.
The Reds are truly “The Comeback Kids.”
Another moment I noticed happened away from the celebration on the field. It was Scott Rolen standing by the dugout entrance, leaning in the doorway, watching the team celebrate on the field. That, too, was a special moment.
Baker summed up the entire season by saying: “2010 playoffs, Cincinnati Reds. It doesn’t get any better than that.
It’s a wonderful thing, isn’t it?”
Not only was it wonderful, it was special.
Stephen Forsha is sports editor of The Highland County Press.[[In-content Ad]]