Q: What would be your all-time Cincinnati Reds lineup and batting order? SHAUN, Vandalia.
A: My lineup consists of players I actually covered and it is a lineup I’d proudly take to my all-time favorite umpire, Doug Harvey. Pete Rose (LF), Barry Larkin (SS), Joe Morgan (2B), Frank Robinson (RF), Johnny Bench (C), Tony Perez (3B), Vada Pinson (CF), Joey Votto (1B), George Foster (DH). Starting pitchers Jim Maloney (RHP) and Don Gullett (LHP). The Bullpen would be The Nasty Boys (Norm Charlton, Randy Myers, Rob Dibble). And the manager would be Lou Piniella. Sorry, Sparky.
Q: What do you think about the MLB season starting in Japan? — JIM, Dayton.
A: In two words, it stinks. Isn’t it America’s Pastime? It was Opening Day for the Chicago Cubs, but it wasn’t in Wrigley Field, where it should be. It was in the Tokyo Dome. Instead of taking the CTA ‘Red Line’ to Wrigley, Cubs fans had to take a Boeing 777 ride for 6,274 miles. The rest of the teams open more than a week later. And after playing a regular-season series in Japan, the Cubs and Dodgers return for a week more of spring training. Absurd.
Q: While we know spring training games don’t count, how does a manager get his team’s head straight if it has a bad record? — GREG, Albuquerque, NM.
A: As of this writing, the Cincinnati Reds are on a seven-game losing streak and are 9-15, 12th in the 15-team Arizona Cactus League. But of course, it means nothing. Most managers like their team to finish close to .500 during spring training. Mostly, though, it is to whip their pitching staff into shape, tinker with the roster and give young prospects a taste. The record means nothing, because the regulars rarely play more than three, four or five innings. So most heads should be perfectly straight.
Q: What was the biggest trade on which you had the advance scoop? — GEORGE, Morton Grove, ILL.
A: That would be one I hated. It was when the Reds traded Sean Casey to Pittsburgh for pitcher Dave Williams. I even scooped Casey because when I called to get his reaction, he had no clue he was traded. I thought it was an awful trade and it proved out to be worse than awful. Williams made eight relief appearances and was 2-3 with a 7.20 earned run average. The other scoop didn’t involve a player, it involved finding out that manager Vern Rapp was fired. When I questioned him I discovered that I was the one telling him he was fired. He didn’t know.
Q: In all your years, who was/is the best manager and who is the worst? — JIM, Tipp City.
A: That’s a toughie because the world’s best manager needs players and the world’s worst manager could hold back a good team. An example is Joe Torre. He struggled as manager of the moribund New York Mets, was OK with the Atlanta Braves, struggled with the St. Louis Cardinals, then became a genius with the talent-rich New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers. Sparky Anderson was a good manager, but had thoroughbreds on his roster, then lost 103 games one year with Detroit. The best managing job I ever saw was Lou Piniella in 1990. The worst was Cincinnati’s Vern Rapp who one day sat in the Montreal airport and told me, “We’re gonna win this thing.” A few weeks later he was fired. And I love Tito Francona, but I reserve my assessment of him until after this season.
Q: Which player do you think will be the Reds MVP this year? — JAMES, Campbellsville, KY.
A: If you tell me which player will have the best slash line, the most homers, the most RBI, the most stolen bases, I’ll answer that. OK, Elly De La Cruz is odds-on. But if Matt McLain stays healthy, he might prove to be an MVP. And watch for a big season from outfielder Austin Hays, a man on a mission to make a comeback.
Q: If you had Pete Rose and Rickey Henderson in the same lineup, where are you batting them? — RYAN, Englewood.
A: Anywhere they want to bat, although both would say they wanted to bat leadoff. Henderson was the prototypical leadoff hitter, so I’d bat him first and Rose second. Actually, Rose wouldn’t care, as long as he was in the lineup. Remember, he didn’t care where he play on the field and played every defensive position but shortstop and catcher during his career.
Q: Johnny Bench recently participated in an autograph show in Beavercreek and I wonder if you ever appeared in one? — JEFF, Troy.
A: Yes, several, including RedsFest one year. They all, though, were selling expeditions. I sold and autographed my book, ‘The Real McCoy, My Half-Century Covering The Cincinnati Reds’ (shameful plug). The book, though, is out of print after four editions, but used copies are available on Amazon, some of them already autographed.
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