Who's your Daddy, America's Team?
Can the Reds ever beat the Brewers? The season depends on it.
The Brewers have The Look. They don’t have the Reds overall talent, their lineup doesn’t compare. Their kids are all right, but no one would say they’re in the rare air of Abbott, McClain, Steer, Benson and Run-DLC.
MIlwaukee is last in the NL in batting average and OPS, 13th in runs scored and 11th in homers. Last night, the Brewers beat the Reds while leaving 10 runners on base and going 2-for-16 with runners in scoring position. Milwaukee might not look like a team capable of running away with the division. It looks entirely capable of beating back anything America’s Team throws at it.
The Reds are 21-20 in one-run games. Against the Crew, they are 0-5. The teams have played 11 games this season. all since June 2. Milwaukee has won nine, including a run of three consecutive shutouts.
If you’re a Reds fan, does that infuriate you. Or does it worry you?
Yes.
There is something to be said for Having Been There. Especially in baseball, where there is no leaving the grind. The Reds blow hot and cold: A 12-game win streak in which they looked ready to rule the world, a 6-game L streak in which they showed they were not. They went into Milwaukee on the tailwind of a 5-game victory march, only to lose an eminently winnable game Monday night.
Christian Yelich (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
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The Brewers best assets are their speed, their defense, their closer, their manager, their ace and their left fielder Christian Yelich, who does nothing spectacular but everything to help win games. Last night, he walked twice, stole a base which led to him scoring the Crew’s first run and won the game in the 9th with a single. Craig Counsell never seems to make a bad decision. Corbin Burnes has started three games this year v. the Reds. The Brewers have won all three. Burnes goes tonight.
The trade deadline offers hope for Cincy, assuming a deal brings a decent starting pitcher. But it’s safe to say that guy won’t be any better than Milwaukee starter Brandon Woodruff, out since mid-April with a bad shoulder, but looking at an early August return. Woodruff was 13-4 last season and is a two-time all-star.
The two teams play again tonight and tomorrow, and that’s it.
Can the Reds overtake Milwaukee? Sure. They have better everyday players. Will they? They haven’t shown that ability yet.
Now, then. . .
AS FOR DEALING INDIA. . . Fans fret over the culture loss should the Reds trade their 2nd baseman. But here’s the thing: The culture that India helped mightily to make can withstand his departure. Good chemistry isn’t a one-man laboratory.
Any trade the Reds make of any substance is going to be painful. They’re not going to get a decent starting pitcher, or even a dependable 7th-inning reliever, for the likes of Nick Senzel, and Senzel is a useful, semi-everyday guy. India is expendable and capable and under team control through 2026. In fact, if the Reds are seeking the likes of Lucas Giolito or Marcus Stroman, they’ll have to part with more than just India.
INTRODUCING THE SADAK FOLLIES, in which we will attempt to chronicle the daily discourse of our favorite Reds TV guy. After De La Cruz hit that monster homer last night, John exclaimed, yet again, ‘‘That ball had a family!’’
Do youse know what that means?
That family had a family!
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Was it a Baseball Family? Is that how the Griffeys came to be? In 1951, the rookie Willie Mays blasted one into the Polo Grounds bleachers and — BAM! — Ken Griffey Sr. was born. The Larkins, the Bells: Do they owe their existences to a couple long home runs?
Are we talking about actual conception here? Was that baseball in flight long enough to have. . . consensual relations? Yes? With what? Another baseball? Randy Johnson once killed a bird in mid-flight by throwing a fastball. Is there a common thread there?
OK. Broadcasters dwell occasionally in shtick. No problem with that. If it’s reasonable shtick and stands the test of time, it becomes part of who that broadcaster is. “Rounding third and heading for home. . .’’
Maybe someday, “That ball had a family!’’ will stand alongside the Rushmore of Reds-ness, right there with “and this one belongs to.’’ First, I’d need to know what the heck it means.
Gee, I hope it looks like this one!
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SAY WHAT? The Bengals want to sell you a gameday cabana. Here’s their pitch:
As we are continuously considering ways to create new, unique experiences in the Jungle, we are thrilled to announce our all-new premium seating option – the Club Cabanas. Have you ever dreamed of watching the game from the comfort of your couch, but in the electric atmosphere of the Jungle? Beginning this season, the Club Cabanas are your opportunity to fulfill that dream. Â
Ten (10) Club Cabanas will be available on our suite level (in-between the 200 level and 300 level) on the west side of Paycor Stadium. Â
Benefits Include:
·       Semi-private area for 6-9 people with 5-7 reserved seats and 1-2 Standing room (Cabana sizes vary)
·       Equipped with a couch and a high-top table and chairs
·       Semi-private TV
·       Access to our Club Lounge and Club member-exclusive events
·       In-seat food/beverage service so you never miss any action
·       $50 of concession credit per seat, per game
·       Parking pass in Hilltop lot
Pricing ranges from $32,000 to $46,000 for the season, depending on Cabana size.Â
The pictures don’t show a roof. They don’t, in fact, show a structure at all. Isn’t a cabana a structure? The pictures asking you to pay $32K and up for one (1) cabana show an IKEA-looking table and chairs, albeit with a fine view of the field.
I hate to say it’s Typical Bengals, because lately that’s not quite fair or accurate. But if you’re gonna ask folks to pony up five figures just for a place to sit, might you consider dazzling them with renderings that don’t resemble the patio furniture collection from Wayfair?
And what is a “semi-private TV’’?
AND SO IT BEGINS. . . At the team’s annual preseason gathering and Mock TurtleSoupFest on Monday, Mike Brown said this about a new lease for Payjoe:
“We aren't looking to run off. But we have to have something that works for us and works for our fans."
For our fans?
Excuse me, but what works for fans is a team that wins. IKEA cabanas and whiz-bang scoreboards are nice, but no one’s going to be ditching tickets to watch a playoff team because the JumboTron lacks. “Our fans’’ want a credible team.
I might be wrong and I hope I am, but by this time next year, two years before the current lease expires, we’ll be hearing something like this from the Bengals, either on the record or leaked to a favorite media heathen:
Our current stadium is outdated by NFL standards.
We need certain things to ensure we can continue to compete.
We aren’t looking to run off.
But we will, if certain conditions aren’t met.
Meantime, enjoy Joe Burrow and what could be a Super run.
STICK TO SPORTS. . . About this Jason Aldean thing:
By now, everyone knows that Aldean, a country music star, released a tune called Try That in a Small Town whose lyrics and accompanying music video have sparked a bit of controversy lately, mainly because we have it so good in this country we have nothing better to complain about.
Got a gun that my granddad gave me
They say one day they're gonna round up
Well, that shit might fly in the city, good luck
Try that in a small town
OK. First, nobody’s coming for your guns. Gun advocates have been recycling that s—-forever. Hasn’t happened, never will.
The larger point is guys like Aldean pander to their audiences by extolling the virtues of good ol’ wholesome country livin’. Let them city slickers rob liquor stores and live off the guvmint. We all out here in rural America take care of our own.
Aldean reiterated as much, defending his song with this Tweet:
“(The song) refers to the feeling of a community that I had growing up, where we took care of our neighbors, regardless of differences of background or belief," Aldean Tweeted. "Because they were our neighbors, and that was above any differences.’’
Uh-huh.
Data from the Pew Research Center shows this about gun deaths, by state, per 100,000 residents:
In the Top 10: Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas.
More rural than urban, yeah? Lotsa small towns.
In the Bottom 10: Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut.
More urban than rural. Lotsa larger towns.
I don’t care much what Aldean sings about. If he wants to perpetuate a stereotype, OK by me. What would be good, though, would be if he avoided playing concerts in those wicked city venues. Check out his current tour schedule. It’s full of good-sized cities and big towns, and places on the outskirts of large metro areas.
Let’s see Aldean do a 30-stop tour in small places where everyone takes care of each other. Failing that, I’ll look forward to his next single, “Hypocrite’’.
TUNE O’ THE DAY. . . My favorite Gregg Allman tune. There’s not even a second place. He’s with Jackson Browne on this live version. So beautiful.
Always took 'Has a Family' as a call for sympathy for that poor ball that was unceremoniously bashed out of the park. It did have a family after all, and we should be thinking of them during this difficult time. I think it's hilarious-but should only be pulled out for mammoth golf shots like EDLC's last night.
Did you ever see an outdoor concert during that weird tail end of the pandemic? A trend of 'pods' sprang up where instead of a huge GA lawn section of people mixing (and crowding each other) freely, you had sectioned off 'pods'. 10 x 10 roped of pieces of turf where you and only your crew could sit, stand, dance, stow your bags/jackets, etc. In a nutshell-they were amazing. The atmosphere of a huge crowded concert but with an established comfortable space and ample room. I wish we still had them. This is the idea behind these Who Dey Cabanas. Sure it's overpriced for what you get, but there is great value in having your own social space in the midst of a huge crowded event. Don't blame them one bit for productizing this. It may even help pay for whatever improvements need to be done to the stadium--which by the way, just tell me when to vote for whatever keeps the Who Deys. Football is an unnecessary dalliance, but it's also something I greatly enjoy. Ultimately we all vote for our own self-interest.
The Aldean stuff is just another example of the long tradition of country music trashing cities and promoting the moral superiority of rural/small town America. It plays off the victimization that these places have felt since the end of the Civil War. This angst and paranoia against cities and those who inhabit them is cheap pandering from a guy who is from suburban Atlanta-but it obviously sells. If he came to my neighborhood (10 minutes from Fountain Square), he'd see that your ability to rely on your neighbors, let your kids run around the neighborhood, and build a strong community depends on the quality of the people around you--not on the population density.
Your boy Sadak is implying the ball was murdered, therefore no longer having a family. It will not be logged into the halls of Rounding and Belonging, that is for sure. Personally, I wish he’d move on. It’s too much. Too on purpose.
Now then…
Why does Votto play? Would you play him? If so, why? He can no longer hit as evidenced by pretty much every at bat save the sprinkling of HRs. Those are cute, you’re on the interstate bub. With no signs of hitting a rest stop anytime soon.