Going, going. . . gone?

Tennis might leave. Would the exodus stop there?

Cincinnati could lose this

The Western & Southern Open is the best-run sporting event in the area and has been for decades. Players love to play in it, tennis fans support it with utter enthusiasm, our little Republic derives much pride from it. Once a year, we’re dancing on the international stage. We do not trip.

The Western & Southern does everything right.

And it still might leave Mason.

The Enquirer reports that the South Carolina billionaire who bought the tournament last August from the US Tennis Association is pondering moving the event to Charlotte. That city is planning a $400 million tennis complex to host it.

When Beemok Capital Group bought the tournament, its CEO Ben Navarro said, "We are committed to providing the best resources to the world’s best players and look forward to elevating the Western and Southern Open experience for players and fans."

Elaborating, a company mouthpiece told the Enquirer on Wednesday that Beemok is "evaluating a number of options as part of a deliberate process relative to its future location before investing in an expansion of the tournament.’’

Uh-huh.

Translation: We’re going to pit Mason/Cincinnati against Charlotte and stage us an honest-to-goodness shakedown.

This is the way of the sports world. Loyalty means nothing. Excellence means less. Money is all.

Where’s Mason going to come up with the money to rival the complex Charlotte envisions?

These are scary times for pro sports in the Republic of Cincinnati, and that has nothing to do with the Reds current .416 winning percentage that some people see as progress.

We don’t like to talk about the Bengals portability. It’s unpleasant, it’s not immediate, it ruins the current feelgood roll. But it’s there, unmistakably.

There is a chance that loyalty will trump money in the Bengals case. There’s a possibility we will come up with the swag the Bengals require (and are legally entitled to) to increase the Bauble Factor at Paycor Stadium.

Pure genius

It’s not quite as dire (or funny) as the Harry-and-Lloyd, “so you’re saying there’s a chance’’ chance. But it’s in the (new) ballpark. We’re gonna be making some interesting choices around here in the next few years. That includes the Reds.

Moving a baseball team is more than hard. Keeping one is no picnic, though, not in a place like Cincinnati. Phil Castellini already has tipped the Club’s hand as to how it feels about taking your loyalty for granted. If we give the Bengals an updated playpen, what might the Reds want? What might their leverage be?

The Oakland As pending move to Vegas proves that moving can happen, even in a business exempted from antitrust laws. Baseball is a game. Until it isn’t.

And don’t think the Powers of MLB and the NFL are going to white-knight us to prevent any move from happening. They don’t care about Cincinnati.

Now, then. . .

SPEAKING OF THE REDS. . . Here’s Joey Votto to MLB.com:

“This is the best time because it’s all new. Watching these guys, a lot of these younger players learn the ropes and adjust and adapt to the game and grow individually, it’s fun. This is where you're going to see the biggest difference year to year in each individual player.’’

Here’s what I do understand: The best spin to put on the current situation is to laud the players’ effort and camaraderie. The 2nd-best spin is to suggest the 2023 crew is “fun’’ because of that effort and camaraderie. The 3rd-best spin is to say what Votto said. All this growth happening, right before our eyes.

If I were the Reds, I’d play it the same way, and I’d make sure our messengers on the payroll toed the line. Nothing wrong with asking your workers to share your public optimism.

Here’s what I don’t understand. As someone who’s neither an employee nor a fan (at least not in the strict sense of the word; I don’t root against the Reds, ever) some of the Club message, I dunno, baffles me.

I’m thinking nothing about 15-21 is fun. That record, extrapolated across 162 games, equals 67 or 68 wins. That would mean that in six of the last eight full seasons, the Reds will have won fewer than 70 games. Maybe my idea of good times is a little more rigid.

And again, there is this: Teams self-praising their effort are invariably losing teams.

I get what Votto is saying. Watching players develop is at least interesting. If we don’t have dreams, we have nightmares. But if Votto is referring to Reds hitters, it gets a little murky.

Arrived

Many on the roster wouldn’t be considered on the front-9 of their careers: Newman, Myers, Ramos and nearly the entire bullpen. Even T.J. Friedl is 27. Jake Fraley will be 28 in two weeks.

In comparison, Fernando Tatis Jr. is 24, so is Guerrero Jr. Acuna Jr. is 25. Bo Bichette is 25, Kyle Tucker 26. Julio Rodriguez is 22. And so on. All young and already stars.

The point isn’t to disparage the Reds players. It’s to suggest that seeing past the lollipops and rainbows can be useful when diagnosing the scrappy local 9.

STICK TO SPORTS. . . I was wise in deliberately avoiding the CNN “town hall’’ with Trump last night. I was unwise in reading about it this morning. All I got for that was a freaking headache.

Yahoo! News:

Trump not only sought to subvert American democracy with bogus claims of voter fraud, he has regularly attacked the judiciary, vowed revenge on his political enemies if reelected, been indicted for tax crimes and found liable by a jury for sexually abusing and defaming writer E. Jean Carroll,

Last night, he also encouraged Congressional Republicans to allow the country to default on its debt. And he maintained that “stars’’ are entitled to grope women. They’ve been doing that for “a million years,’’ he said.

Dog bites man.

My news blackout is back on until further notice.

HUGGS UPDATE. . . Initial reports suggested Bob Huggins would not be suspended from coaching. Actually, he will be suspended for WVU’s first three games next season. And he’ll make an unspecified donation to Xavier’s Center for Faith and Justice and Center for Diversity and Inclusion. 

WTF. . . Two fans at the Small Park last night threw baseballs at Mets LF Brandon Nimmo. “You don’t expect that in Cincinnati, do you?” manager Buck Showalter said after the game. “They threw one, he thought it was some kid who dropped it. So he picks it up, throws it back up there and here comes another one that barely missed him.”

Maybe the fans were angry that Justin Verlander’s $43.3 million salary is more than the combined salaries of the Reds 26-man active roster.

TUNE O’ THE DAY. . . Underrated group from Ohio gets some OG love. Pop-rock masters, especially on this one.