FCC Makes its Mark, Again

Even in losing, Cincinnati wins

On Wednesday night, FC Cincinnati showed how a team can win while losing, which sounds weird anywhere but SoccerWorld. The Miami Messis, winners of the Leagues Cup last week, are now finalists in the US Open Cup this week. Next week, Inter Miami FC will play for the Stanley Cup, the Ryder Cup, the America’s Cup and a couple of cupcakes from Cooper Kupp’s cupboard. Won’t that be fun?

But seriously. . .

The local side had its heart broken at TQL Stadium, but the enduring memory of the evening won’t be the 3-2 L on penalties, or the blown 2-0 lead. It’ll be of 26,000 nutjobs losing their minds for two-plus hours. FCC rocked it. FCC generally does.

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The personality of The Bailey has infected the whole stadium. Never moreso than last night. The fans booed Lionel Messi every time his toe touched leather. The match was superb, even if you care not much about soccer. It reinforced a notion that, more and more, no longer needs reinforcing:

FCC is cool and TQL is where the cool kids hang.

Even in l’il ol’ modest Cincinnati, we like to be cool.

Right now, maybe the biggest thing holding back the MLS from top tier popularity is its tiny TV deal. In June ‘22, the league announced a 10-year partnership with Apple. MLS Season Pass is available on the Apple TV app. Whoopee.

Fox Sports airs 34 regular-season games, eight postseason matches and the MLS Cup until 2026. ESPN is out of the MLS business.

You could have watched the match last night. The Enquirer explained:

CBS Sports Golazo! Network’s live coverage of the game would air on Star64.

Previously, the match was slated to go out exclusively through CBS Sports Golazo! Network, the free 24-hour soccer streaming channel available through the CBS Sports App and Pluto TV, and on CBSSports.com, as well as Paramount+.

Explain to the rest of us what the Golazo! Network is, win a Next World visit from Pele his ownself.

The match last night was wonderful theatre. Imagine if it had been on a big network. LightBeer Joe heads for the Barcalounger after dinner. The Reds don’t start until 9:40. The debate is everywhere else, and out of the question anyway.

Where you gonna go, sports guy?

Maybe to your phone. Maybe to Pluto, which is no longer a planet but is a television network. Maybe Paramount+, if you have it, which probably you don’t. MLS likely missed a huge opportunity to convert eyeballs here last night.

What if the match had been on Fox or one of the ESPNs? Lionel Messi or Vivek Ramaswarmy?

Who, Doc?

Never mind. Point is, the gospel got spread a little further Wednesday night. Winning would have been great. Losing was OK, though. Perfectly OK.

Now, then. . .

THE CLUB SWEPT THE HALOS, thanks in part to Lyon Richardson. He’s the latest Reds Google Guy, right up there with Brett Kennedy, who graduated from the Long Island Ducks to pitch five scoreless innings last Friday night.

The 2023 Google Guy roster includes but is not limited to: Alan Busenitz, Ricky Karcher, Casey Legumina, Silvino Bracho, Jason Vosler, Nick Martini, Richardson and Kennedy.

And youse think David Bell is a bad manager?

His team is in playoff contention with a bunch of rookies, and players known best by their next of kin. Bell is working his bullpen to death, only it isn’t dying. At least not yet. The Reds are keeping pace without India and Fraley, to say nothing of Lodolo. Expected savior Hunter Greene returned to throw in-game BP. The cavalry never came.

And yet, they’ve won 5 of 7.

What’s next are 11 games in 11 days against fellow wild-card hopefuls Arizona, SF and the Cubs. Beginning tonight in Phoenix. Brandon Williamson — not quite a Google Guy, but not exactly Household — will pitch for America’s Team. Aided and abetted by that Rockettes chorus line of Relievers Who Don’t Die.

Props to David Bell. His players are overachieving. He is, too.

THE MEN ARE #10. So says The Athletic, in an interesting ranking of teams’ schedules, based on the QBs they’ll face, barring injuries:

The first-place scheduling rotation delivers the toughest possible combination for the Bengals: games against Mahomes and Allen. The AFC North division schedule could be underrated as Watson and Pickett could plausibly outplay their ratings. Watson was a top-tier quarterback previously. Pickett appears to be rising.

The Men play two Tier 1 QBs (Mahomes and Allen) and seven Tier 2s, including Watson and Jackson twice. Which will make the play of the new starting safeties somewhat vital, yeah?

VERY COOL NEW PHONE THING. . . Something called The Immaculate Grid. It’s a nine-box square in which players cross-match teams and the players who played for each.

What are you talking about, Doc?

I’m great with faces and terrible with names. TML sez ckitout and report back. I usually do no better than 5 correct matches.

PETE, WE HARDLY REMEMBER YE. . . on this day in 1989, I was a 31-year-old sophomore sports columnist at the Cincinnati Post, RIP. Pete Rose was the ex-manager of the Cincinnati Reds, as of 9 or so that morning.

“This is a sad day,’’ Rose barely announced, his voice subdued and cracking. He’d accepted a liftetime ban from baseball, for his admission he bet on the game. The agreement he struck with then-commissioner Bart Giamatti provided that Baseball would “make no formal determination’’ about whether Rose placed wagers on games.

An hour or so after Rose held his presser, Giamatti held his. When asked if he felt Rose bet on baseball, Giamatti said yes.

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The Rose saga has been the single most enduring/compelling and, yes, sad story of my years here. The man ruined himself because he wouldn’t tell the truth. His ban seems quaint now, and more than a little hypocritical.

Rose should have been pardoned when Rob Manfred took office. The Selig-Giamatti alliance was done. The fact Rose wasn’t paroled then reflects poorly on the game. After 34 years, MLB looks petty and small. But hey, the game’s gambling revenues spend, right?

Meantime, Pete is 82 years old and shrinking as 82-year-olds do. The barrel chest and Popeye arms are no longer. Pete doesn’t move well. Time waits for no one, not even Peter Edward Pan, er, Rose.

If he makes it into the Hall, it almost assuredly will be posthumously. If he dies before getting his day, I wonder how Baseball will feel about that. Or if it will feel anything at all.

TUNE O’ THE DAY. . . Not sure how I missed the Stones yesterday, in discussing Best Three-Album Runs for groups and solo acts. They qualify easily with Let it Bleed, Sticky Fingers and Exile on Main Street. Here’s my fave from Exile.