Why I'll Always Be A Reds Fan

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

[MJAlltheWay24]

Even if they suck, I will always cheer for and support the Reds. My earliest memories of my Grandpa are going to Riverfront with him. Being allowed to throw peanut shells on the ground was the coolest thing. And I loved me a frosty malt.

[NKYFootballer]

Even if they suck, I will always cheer for and support the Reds. My earliest memories of my Grandpa are going to Riverfront with him. Being allowed to throw peanut shells on the ground was the coolest thing. And I loved me a frosty malt.

 

Speaking of Frosty Malts, do they still sell these at games? I have had a hard time trying to find them this season and last?

[MJAlltheWay24]

Speaking of Frosty Malts, do they still sell these at games? I have had a hard time trying to find them this season and last?

 

They have been very hit or miss over the last couple of seasons down there, part of that is due to UDF no longer being involved with the Reds organization, I believe.

 

They did start selling a Homemade brand "Frozen Milkshake". They aren't exactly a Frosted Malt, but it's about as close as you are going to get. They don't have many vendors carrying them around, but look for a guy/gal with a black bag. They sell them in chocolate or vanilla. I haven't had one, so can't tell you how good they are.

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

On 4/12/2013 at 9:43 AM, Colonels_Wear_Blue said:

So a few weeks back, my cousin and his wife, whom I am very close friends with, lost their 7 month old son to a genetic condition called CHARGE syndrome. He was their first born, and the last 7+ months have obviously been an incredibly difficult time for the two of them.

Well following the funeral, a couple of friends and I decided we were going to get my cousin and his wife a 20-game ticket package for Reds games (they're both BIG baseball fans), in order to give them something to do to help them get out of the house and get back into the process of doing "normal" things together. We assembled the necessary funds, and yesterday my friend Chris called to order the tickets. Chris called me yesterday as I was leaving work to let me know that the tickets had been bought, and the details he followed that with moved me to tears, and I really thought I'd like to share:

He called the ticket office yesterday, and inquired about buying the tickets. As the ticket agent walked him through the buying process, they got to the point where they asked him for his credit card information, and then the mailing address for the tickets. After Chris explained that the tickets needed to be mailed to someone other than himself, the ticket agent joked to him, "Wow, you're getting these for someone as a gift? You're a better friend than I. What's the occasion?" Chris went on to explain a Reader's Digest version of why the tickets were being bought.

After hearing why we were buying the tickets, the ticket agent asked Chris if he could hold for a moment. When the agent returned to the phone, he transferred the call to his manager who went on to inform him that the Cincinnati Reds would be waving all fees associated with the tickets, and that they would cover the sales tax on the tickets themselves - thus reducing the cost of the tickets proportionally. He also asked for some details about the couple (approximate shirt sizes, hat sizes, etc) in order to assemble a complimentary Reds gift basket for the two of them to receive upon arrival at their first game. Furthermore, he asked if they could have our permission to include a personal greeting card in the basket for my cousin and his wife.

Wow...what an incredibly gracious way to treat your fans. What an incredibly gracious way to treat anyone. At this moment, I couldn't be happier to be a Cincinnati Reds fan. They could have lost every game thus far this year, and every one for the rest of the season and I'd still be about the proudest Reds fan you could find. Just thought I'd share.

The first few months of 2022 made it tough to keep my head up about being a Reds fan. And it's hard not to say that I don't sit basically all of that squarely on the shoulders of Bob Castellini. I've told a lot of folks in the past month or so that I wish he'd just have stuck to selling lettuce.

Then yesterday rolled around. It was the 9th anniversary of my cousin's son Tobin dying at just shy of 7 months old. I think about that experience often...I know what I experienced throughout that was only a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of what my cousin and his wife went through emotionally. With that said, though, the experience of trying to be there for my cousin and his wife as emotional, physical and logistical support throughout the pregnancy, through Tobin's life at Children's Hospital (he never left the hospital, so one of his parents was there with him 24 hours a day for all 7 months of his life), and in grieving and mourning the loss of their son still weighs on me emotionally. It was the hardest thing I've ever been through in my life - hands down.

I keep in touch with my cousin very regularly. We probably exchange anywhere between 20 and 200 texts in any given week, depending on what we've got to chat about. Conversation on March 28 is always sparse, but I always make it a point to text him and check in in some way or another. Yesterday I sent him a pretty benign text about Spring Training, but he knew immediately why I was texting. He told me he was doing alright, without my having to ask, and then we exchanged some more texts about the Reds. At one point after he mentioned that the 2nd and 3rd-longest tenured Reds combine for 5 fewer years with the organization than Joey Votto, I replied with a profanity-laced text about Castellini. My cousin replied with, "Don't give up on 'em now," and for whatever reason, it immediately made me think of this thread.

I just thought I'd bring it up again for anyone else who's currently struggling with their Cincinnati Reds fandom.

[CincySportsFan]

1 hour ago, Colonels_Wear_Blue said:

The first few months of 2022 made it tough to keep my head up about being a Reds fan. And it's hard not to say that I don't sit basically all of that squarely on the shoulders of Bob Castellini. I've told a lot of folks in the past month or so that I wish he'd just have stuck to selling lettuce.

Then yesterday rolled around. It was the 9th anniversary of my cousin's son Tobin dying at just shy of 7 months old. I think about that experience often...I know what I experienced throughout that was only a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of what my cousin and his wife went through emotionally. With that said, though, the experience of trying to be there for my cousin and his wife as emotional, physical and logistical support throughout the pregnancy, through Tobin's life at Children's Hospital (he never left the hospital, so one of his parents was there with him 24 hours a day for all 7 months of his life), and in grieving and mourning the loss of their son still weighs on me emotionally. It was the hardest thing I've ever been through in my life - hands down.

I keep in touch with my cousin very regularly. We probably exchange anywhere between 20 and 200 texts in any given week, depending on what we've got to chat about. Conversation on March 28 is always sparse, but I always make it a point to text him and check in in some way or another. Yesterday I sent him a pretty benign text about Spring Training, but he knew immediately why I was texting. He told me he was doing alright, without my having to ask, and then we exchanged some more texts about the Reds. At one point after he mentioned that the 2nd and 3rd-longest tenured Reds combine for 5 fewer years with the organization than Joey Votto, I replied with a profanity-laced text about Castellini. My cousin replied with, "Don't give up on 'em now," and for whatever reason, it immediately made me think of this thread.

I just thought I'd bring it up again for anyone else who's currently struggling with their Cincinnati Reds fandom.

Great story.  And no doubt there are good people involved with the Reds organization.  Bob may even be one himself.  That doesn't excuse his roster moves or on-field operating philosophy.  Good people can still do stupid things.  And that may very well be the situation we're going thru right now.

I don't suddenly hate the Reds, or even despise the new players we've gotten.  I just 100% believe that Bob will not be the owner that will lead us to success on the field.  In the mean time, I hope he (and the rest of the Reds organization) continues to be great off-the-field, in situations like your cousins.

[The Raven]

I will always be a Reds fan because of the memories I have of going to Riverfront with my dad to watch them.   I am trying to share that same tradition with my kids.   I also just LOVE baseball, is and always will be my favorite sport.   I have and will continue to go to as many games as I can.   It's a catch 22 because that puts money in the owners pockets and gives them no reason to change current operating procedures.   But I also feel it is my duty as a fan to support the guys on the field, wether it's a perennial all-star or a late season call up that may be here for his only MLB experience.