REDS

Jay Bruce CF
Jeff Keppinger SS
Ken Griffey Jr. RF
Brandon Phillips 2B
Adam Dunn LF
Edwin Encarnacion 3B
Joey Votto 1B
David Ross C
Josh Fogg RHP (1-2, 7.94)

METS

Jose Reyes SS
Endy Chavez RF
David Wright 3B
Carlos Beltran CF
Damion Easley 2B
Carlos Delgado 1B
Fernando Tatis LF
Brian Schneider C
Oliver Perez LHP (6-5, 4.44)

The game is sold out.

I followed the Reds because I was from southwest Ohio. I became a Reds fan because of Barry Larkin. I can’t wait until he’s enshrined in Cooperstown.

My favorite memory of him was one that never happened – when he was named World Series MVP in 1994.

When I was 9 or 10 my friend and I thought we recognized Barry at a Xavier game, watching Byron play. I think this was the winter after Barry’s rookie year. We walked over and very shyly asked for an autograph. He was the nicest guy in the world, and I’ve been a big fan ever since.

Reggie Sanders was my first jersey. I had a huge crush on Jacob Brumfield for no damn good reason, Bret Boone and Sean Casey were also faves of mine.

All the same, whenever I would tell people I was a Reds fan pre-2000, it was “gee, that Barry Larkin…what a player, huh?” And I was always “the big Larkin fan”. And I really can’t complain.

I won’t be around for the game tonight, folks. But enjoy it, pray for Fogg’s financial liquidity, and take care.

by the time i got back into baseball i was in arizona rooting for the dbacks. when i made it back home to indiana barry was at the end of his career. thus i missed almost all of his work. i do know he was a class guy though, and i hope we seem him back in cincy at some point.

He’s the reason I played shortstop for so long… (Now I play 2nd… arm isn’t quite SS material), but man… that guy was always a class act. Always took number 11 whenever I could…

Let’s hope for a win for Barry tonight!

MY dad & I were supposed to go the the perfect game, but my dad got called in at the last minute (he was a cop). He was sooooooo regretful and I was soooooo pissed. I think I still have the unused ticket somewhere.

Was Jose Reyes (with more walks and far fewer strikeouts) before there was Jose Reyes.

at a card shop in Muncie, Indiana in late ‘87-early ‘88. All I know is that it was cold. I paid my $5 and he signed a baseball for me. I saw everyone else’s autographs and wanted mine to be a little special, so I asked him to put #15 on the ball under his signature, because he wore #15 early on in his career and I’d seen a picture or something in a Beckett or SI or Baseball Digest or whatever. Shit, I didn’t know any better - I was like 12. He said, “Who is #15?” I said, “You, I think.” He said, “Oh, no, not anymore,” and smiled a little. Then he went quiet while he was signing the ball and I said, “So…what is it now?” He said, “It’s 11 now” as he was signing. He finished and handed the ball back and shook my hand - guy had big hands. That was that.

Doesn’t sound special, but 20 years later I remember that word-for-word. He’s the only ballplayer I ever met because I was never really into going up to them in public. And I never liked the idea of paying for an autograph. Not long after, I stopped liking the idea of paying for baseball cards. But I still have that ball.

as a reference to Larkin’s career. Amazing.

a true cincinnati moment

And in other news, water is still wet.

...griping about Larkin’s “filibuster.” They think it’s unfair to the Mets’ pitcher.

Awesome.

Larkin could have spoken for another 30 minutes and I would have been fine with that… I was just hoping the fans would stay with it

I like this when the other team does it.

If Keppy scores, the Mets announcers can blame the long time Ollie was sitting.

looked like the one last night to end the game

But BP’s really flashing the leather.

Dunn wuz robbed.

Has a completely ridiculous OBP (.397).

Maybe he should lead off.

Mets announcers think the Reds should have gone with the LLM.

...is no Endy Chavez.

...looks like he’s about ready to puke with exhaustion.

Give your pitcher some time to rest here.

can attest to this, but it’s uncanny how alike Barry and Byron Larkin sound.

That was fast…

Maybe the Mets announcers were right about David Lee Ross vs. Oliver Perez.

Fogg up again already.

He caught that.

Bad call.

thank goodness for the bad call

More putouts per game than any other left fielder in the league. The Mets announcers are wondering how that can be. They want to ask Marty.

But he’s unhappy he didn’t get the runner at 1B.

And that double was the first extra-base hit of Ollie’s career.

And three of them were to BP.

May I suggest getting someone up in the bullpen? Todd Coffey or Gary McJeffsky, perhaps? Jeremy Affeldt?

I know Fogg has only 67 pitches, but he’s had a bit of a workout tonight.

wed have to win to get in the playoffs?

That the Reds go up by one run, and then Dusty switches Dunn out for defensive purposes.

The Mets tie it up, sending it to extras.

Dunn’s spot comes up with men on 2nd and 3rd, two out, and Corey Patterson grounds out weakly 4-3.

The Mets go on to win the game.

Please make an out, Ross…I don’t want to have to run the bases again…

That’s a Quality Start, fella. Nice work.

The day that Daryl Thompson made his debut. He can sure bring it. 95-97 is his usual range.

link

Big strikeout there.

Way to go, Honest Mike!

Giving the Mets brochures for the Dental Plan.

and the crowd gave him no help. everyone was sitting on their hands.

Gameday is frozen on Keppinger’s at bat

Like Adam Dunn is going to be taken out for defensive purposes…

keep it going!

I check in and the Reds start a’stompin ass.

On a 2-run triple by Votto.

...still think the Mets can come back.

If Coffey comes in, I agree with them.

But he saw as many pitches in that AB as the Reds’ three hitters in the first inning.

Sighting

We’re pwning!

but have someone’s ass ready to go the minute someone gets on

heap praise on the wife beater

Dusty’s not taking any chances.

NOT DUNN!

Bako’s still in, so Ross must be out.

woohooooooo

Glad to be wrong with the prediction of doom.

first, i went to the florence mall, and i met david weathers a the food court! he had a bunch of kids with him, and was buying a lot of food.

then i saw batman

then i got to go to the game (thanks to Ash). it was a fun game, but i think larkin’s speech is still going on. BP played some great defense, and the reds scored a lot without hitting home runs. also, their bullpen was pretty good tonight!

whent they displayed Edwin’s hometown on the scoreboard, the people behind us wanted to know what state DR was. but, edwin came out to some latin music, so they decided he must be mexican. then it was said that edwin was going to steal because mexicans are fast. also, there was a not so good cheech accent going on talking about edwin. ash and I thought that all of this was racist.

And Dateline NBC cameramen then appeared.