Cincinnati Reds and New York Yankees: History Makes This More Than 3 Games
The New York Yankees will be taking their show on the road to Great American Ball Park next week to face the Cincinnati Reds, a clash of two teams who made the postseason last season and have great history and tradition.
No doubt about it, the Yankees are amongst the most hated franchises in sports but sadly also one of the most loved.
What makes this series more interesting is that these two franchises have quite the history. These teams have met in three World Series, have made trades that have made fans shake their heads, and have two cities who live and die by whether their hometown team got the win that day.
Next week when you watch the games on ESPN be on the lookout for a divided stadium..... I really hope I'm wrong.
Let's take a look at some interesting points between the Reds and the Yankees.
Aaron Bleepin Boone
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Reds fans like myself remember Aaron Boone as a skilled third basemen. Boone spent his first five-and-a-half and only All-Star season with the Reds playing alongside his brother Brett at second and third Base.
Aaron also had the courtesy in his Cincinnati days of having his father Bob be his manager, but all that changed in one day where Bob was fired by the Reds and Aaron ended up getting traded to the New York Yankees.
For that half season Aaron was a member of the Yankees he hit a home run everyone remembers in the 2003 ALCS: the walk-off against Tim Wakefield and the Boston Red Sox in Game 7 to send the Yankees to the World Series and clinch the pennant.
After a rough injury, Aaron Boone became a Major League Journeyman playing for the Cleveland Indians, Florida Marlins, Washington Nationals and Houston Astros.
Denny Neagle For.... Drew Henson?
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The 1999 Cincinnati Reds were something the city hadn't seen in a few years. They were a great baseball team that didn't do anything wrong. A 96-66 record with a rough loss to Al Leiter in a one game playoff for the NL Wild Card that season.
One big move the Reds made was getting Denny Neagle from the Atlanta Braves.
Neagle was a part of the Reds' new attitude that made fans excited to watch the team. Unfortunately Neagle battled injuries that 1999 season but got off to a huge start in the 2000 season.
Neagle was pitching out of his mind to start the 2000 season with an 8-2 record before getting traded for none other than Michigan Wolverine quarterback Drew Henson.
Yes, the same Drew Henson who later was a draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys.
Henson goes on to never play for the Reds, and although Neagle went 7-7 the rest of the season, the Yankees went on to win the World Series that season.
Hal Morris Comes to Cincinnati
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Here's a shocker.... the Yankees got rid of a homegrown minor league prospect. What a benefit he became for the 1990 World Champion Reds.
Hal Morris was a hell of a contact hitter and spent his rookie campaign with the Yankees.
Morris later became a Red and went on to have great success in the early 1990's. Along with a World Series win in 1990, Hal also was second in batting in the 1991 season.... as a Red.
Yes, Reds fans, we finally have one we can say helped us historically.
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Paul O'Neil: A Winner with Both Franchises
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Now I may be a little in over my head talking about Paul here since I was only one year old when the 1990 Reds swept the Oakland A's, but after watching every tape I could from his career, what a fan I became of his abilities.
Paul has quite the resume from his Major League career: five World Series Championships, five All-Star games, and a really interesting fact is that he's the only player to be on three winning teams in perfect games.
Paul ended his tenure with the Reds in 1992 when the Reds traded Paul for Roberto Kelly.
Events
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That was just a list of guys who played for both teams. A list that also includes names like Deion Sanders, Gabe White, Miguel Cairo and Mariano Duncan.
Now let's talk World Series.
1939 World Series: Yankees Sweep Reds
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This was the first time of three that the Reds and Yankees faced off in the World Series. It's definitely a series to forget if you're a Reds fan like me.
The Reds were making their first appearance since the 1919 Black Sox scandal, and at that time, the Yankees only had three World Series titles.
Joe Dimaggio and the Yankees went on to sweep the Reds in heartbreaking fashion.
1961: The Young Reds Go Against Maris & Mantle
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Many people say that the 1961 Cincinnati Reds saved the franchise.
This team lead by Frank Robinson and Vada Pinson helped the Reds clinch the 1961 NL Pennant and go on to face the big bad Yankees.
The Yankees had quite the lineup of their own with an sce in Whitey Ford, as well as arguably the best power hitting combo in history with Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle.
During the 1961 season, Yankee fans were all watching Maris and Mantle attempts at breaking Babe Ruth's single season home run record of 60. Maris ended up hitting 61, even though there was an asterisk next to his name because the season had more games than when Ruth did it in 1927.
With the power of these two, the Yankees once again outplayed the team in every aspect of the game to go on to a 4-1 series victory.
1976: Let's End This on a High Note; Reds Beat Yankees Behind MVP Bench
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The Reds finally had enough. After two rough defeats to the New York Yankees in World Series matchups, Bench and the rest of the Big Red Machine took their second straight World Series title by beating the Yankees every way possible.
Since then well the Reds have only won one; the Yankees have won seven.
So yes this upcoming series has a lot of interesting twists and brings excitement.
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