LOVELAND MAGAZINE

News and Events from the Loveland, Ohio Area

Without fear or favor
Since 2004

Tag: sportsopolis

  • Cincinnati Reds 2024 Opening Day Festivities – Thursday, March 28

    Cincinnati Reds 2024 Opening Day Festivities – Thursday, March 28

    by Chris Ball

    Cincinnati, Ohio – The 148th Opening Day in Cincinnati presented by GE Aerospace is Thursday, March 28 when the Reds take on the Washington Nationals at 4:10 p.m. at Great American Ball Park. Gates open to the public at 2:10 p.m., with pregame ceremonies starting at 3:30 p.m.

    11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. – Reds Community Fund Charity Block Party at The Banks presented by GE Aerospace

    • Free pregame Opening Day Block Party kicks off at 11 a.m. at The Banks on Joe Nuxhall Way, Freedom Way and Walnut Street. 

    • Food and beverages will be available for purchase from Anheuser Busch, Coca-Cola, LaRosa’s, Boone County Distilling, Jim Beam and Tito’s Handmade Vodka. 

    • Live music and entertainment will be provided by Naked Karate Girls & dj etrayn.

    • All proceeds benefit the baseball and softball outreach programs of the Reds Community Fund.

    Noon – Findlay Market Opening Day Parade

    • Grand Marshals: Reds greats Dmitri Young and Pokey Reese will serve as the Grand Marshals of the 105th Findlay Market Opening Day Parade. 

    2:10 p.m. – Gates open to Great American Ball Park

    • Reds Magnetic Schedule: Fans will receive a 2024 Reds magnetic schedule and City Connect car magnet, presented by PNC, while supplies last.

    3:30 p.m. – Pregame Ceremonies Begin

    • Ceremonial First Pitch: Reds Hall of Famer Sean Casey will throw out the Ceremonial First Pitch.

    George Foster will deliver the Official Game Ball (photo by David Miller/Loveland Magazine ©2024)

    • Game Ball Delivery: Reds Hall of Famer & 1977 NL MVP George Foster will deliver the Official Game Ball.

    • Honorary Captain: Reds Hall of Famer Marty Brennaman will serve as the Honorary Captain of the Game, celebrating the 50th anniversary of his debut as a Reds broadcaster in 1974. 

    • National Anthem: Marlana VanHoose from Denver, Ky. will perform the National Anthem. 

    Elly De La Cruz is expected to be the starting shortstop on Opening Day. (Photo by David Miller/loveland Magazine ©2024)

    • Flyover presented by GE Aerospace: The pregame flyover will be performed by two UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters from the U.S. Army Reserves 8-229th Assault Helicopter Battalion out of Fort Knox, Ky. The helicopters feature GE T700 Turboshaft engines.

    • American Flag: A giant 300’ by 150’ American flag will be unfurled during the singing of our National Anthem by members of the Cincinnati Firefighters Local 48. 

    • Honor Guard: Members of the United States Marines Corps, Navy, Coast Guard, Army & Air Force will present colors in our traditional “Parade of Colors.”

    • Rosie Reds: Representatives from the Rosie Reds organization will make the traditional presentation of Opening Day plaques to Reds manager David Bell and Nationals manager Dave Martinez. 

    • Findlay Market Basket: Representatives from Findlay Market will make their annual Findlay Market Basket presentation to Reds manager David Bell.

    Reds manager since 2018, David Bell (Photo by David Miller/Loveland Magazine © 2024

    • Player Introductions: Rosters of both teams will be announced, and players will line the first and third base paths for introductions.

    4:10 p.m. – 148th Opening Day game – Cincinnati Reds vs. Washington Nationals 

    • TV: Bally Sports Ohio and WLWT-TV 5 NBC (John Sadak, Barry Larkin & Jim Day) 

    • Radio: 700WLW and stations on the Reds Radio Network (Tommy Thrall & Jeff Brantley)

    • Scheduled Starting Pitchers: Reds RHP Frankie Montas vs. Nationals RHP Josiah Gray 

    • Kroger First Responder: Cincinnati Police Officer Ben Williamson will be recognized as the Kroger First Responder of the game at the end of the first inning. 

    • altafiber Hometown Hero: US Air Force Chief Master Sergeant Jay Collars will be honored as the altafiber Hometown Hero of the game at the end of the second inning.

    • God Bless America: Retired Cincinnati Firefighter John Winfrey will perform “God Bless America” during the 7th inning stretch.

    Injuries Ravage the Reds in Advance of Opening Day

    Christopher Ball is a longtime Loveland resident and an attorney. He graduated from Loveland High School in 2003 and was a member of the football team before going on to become a coach’s assistant at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. He has been following and rooting for the Reds and Bengals since the early 1990s and has been through the many ups and downs that fandom has wrought over the years.

  • Cincinnati Bengals Apply the Franchise Tag to Tee Higgins

    Cincinnati Bengals Apply the Franchise Tag to Tee Higgins

    Photo by Wikimedia Commons

    Though a Long-Term Deal May Still Be a Possibility, Absent a Holdout, The Bengals Should Have Their Clutch Second Wide Receiver Back In 2024

    by Chris Ball

    Loveland, Ohio – As most expected, this weekend the Cincinnati Bengals applied the franchise tag to wide receiver Tee Higgins. I previously discussed what the franchise tag could potentially mean for the team and for Tee going forward, but the fact that the Bengals chose to use the tag so soon in the offseason leads to some interesting speculation about what the future could bring.

    The franchise tag makes it extremely likely that Tee Higgins will be on this team for at least one more year. However, as early as a few days ago there were reports that both sides were working towards a deal that would keep Higgins in the orange and black for multiple years. But the fact that the team opted immediately resort to the franchise tag so soon after those negotiations even began leads to legitimate concerns that both sides are still miles apart.

     

     

    The absolute worst-case scenario is that the two sides of can’t get a deal done and Tee refuses to report and play under the guaranteed one-year contract he has been given. On the other end the optimistic outlook is that the exercise of the franchise tag allows both sides to continue to negotiate and come to some sort of agreement on a contract that benefits all parties.

    The fact that the franchise tag came so early in the offseason is a legitimate cause to be concerned about how badly the negotiations may be going. And yet, it is hard to see a player as committed as Tee Higgins choosing to abandon the entire 2024 season by sitting out simply because he didn’t get the contract he wanted.

    At the same time, Bengals fans shouldn’t trick themselves into believing that Higgins will fetch some sort of massive haul on the trade market. The tag and trade scenarios simply don’t make sense given the Bengals’ history of avoiding that very situation, and that most teams likely wouldn’t be willing to part with significant picks or players that would make such a trade worthwhile for the Bengals.

     

     

    The Bengals have a surplus of cap space, and they need a proven second option behind Ja’Marr Chase. This gives them more flexibility to keep Tee on the squad for one more year to run it back and give the Bengals the best chance to make it back to the Super Bowl.

    The primary focus now should be ensuring that if the Bengals can’t give Tee Higgins the multi year contract that he wants, that they get him ready for at least one more year with the Bengals to make a run at a championship.

    Christopher Ball is a longtime Loveland resident and an attorney. He graduated from Loveland High School in 2003 and was a member of the football team before going on to become a coach’s assistant at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. He has been following and rooting for the Reds and Bengals since the early 1990s and has been through the many ups and downs that fandom has wrought over the years.

     

  • Reds’ Matt McLain To Miss 5-7 Days Due to Oblique Injury

    Reds’ Matt McLain To Miss 5-7 Days Due to Oblique Injury

    Matt McLain taking a selfie with two fans before going into the Duke Energy Center for Redsfest in December. (Loveland Magazine File Photo © 2024)

    An Early Injury Is Another Reminder of Why The Reds’ Depth Is Critical

    by Chris Ball,

    On Tuesday we learned that their second baseman Matt McLain would miss 5-7 days with an oblique injury, the same ailment that saw him miss time last season. The good news is that McLain’s MRI did not show any significant damage and he isn’t expected to miss opening day.

    Still, another preseason injury is a reminder that this Reds team has done plenty to address its depth moving forward. That includes in the infield where Jonathan India’s return means that if someone like McLain goes down, there will be a quality player ready to shift into that spot and ensure the team doesn’t miss a beat in the interim. 

    There are legitimate questions in 2024 about which Reds players get the majority of the playing time and which ones are asked to accept a smaller or a platoon role, or even spend time back in the minor leagues, at least to start the season. Having so many talented guys is not a bad problem to have at the end of the day. However, that is for the most part best expressed if the team is fully healthy. 

    If there are any number of injuries, whether serious or just of the nagging variety, that depth may end up saving the season. That is the ultimate luxury of having players who may be playing out of position at times, but who can slip back into their more comfortable roles, should injuries call for it. 

    That sort of security should make Reds fans feel much better about the upcoming season, even when key guys like McLain get a little banged up.

    Christopher Ball is a longtime Loveland resident and an attorney. He graduated from Loveland High School in 2003 and was a member of the football team before going on to become a coach’s assistant at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. He has been following and rooting for the Reds and Bengals since the early 1990s and has been through the many ups and downs that fandom has wrought over the years.

  • 5 Things To Watch In 2024: Cincinnati Reds Edition

    5 Things To Watch In 2024: Cincinnati Reds Edition

    Elly De La Cruz, Brandon Williamson, and Matt McClain on the Rookies Roundtable at Redsfest in December.

    Photo by David Miller/Loveland Magazine © 2024

    The training wheels are off!

    by Chris Ball

    Loveland, Ohio – Before the 2023 season there were many who believed the Reds might lose 90-100 games after going 62-100 in 2022. Most gave them virtually no chance to even have a relevant season and were simply counting down the days until the Bengals’ season rolled back around. 

    And the beginning of the ’23 season did very little to change those perspectives. There were rumors that the gates were opening and that the Reds were turning their young players loose on the major leagues. And why shouldn’t they? It was a lost season anyways. 

    Matt McClain

    Matt McClain was the first, to be eventually followed by the likes of Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Andrew Abbott and Noelvi Marte. The league likely expected these rookies to take their time adjusting the the big leagues, but they shattered expectations by, in many cases, playing well above their age and experience levels. And no one epitomized this more than Elly De La Cruz. 

    In the eyes of Reds fans Elly was a superstar from the moment he stepped onto the diamond wearing that red helmet. And he soon proved to the world exactly why he was held in such high regard. From the iconic cycle, to stealing home, to the walk off home runs, the man was a human highlight reel for half a season. 

    Elly De La Cruz with a young fan at Redsfest in December.

    And suddenly, the city of Cincinnati went from spending the summer dreaming about the upcoming football season to packing Great American Ballpark and hanging on the edge of their seats all the way through the fall, praying for one of the most improbable postseason berths in recent memory. 

    It may not have come to pass, but there can be no doubt that 2023 gave Reds fans something they haven’t had in quite a while: legitimate hope that the team can contend. But there’s something different in the air this time around. The young core of this team has shown that the Reds’ ability to push for the playoffs, and maybe even more, won’t just be limited to one or two desperate seasons, but rather, could span years of sustained success that could likely make Reds baseball the main event during those hot Cincinnati summers. 

    What are the keys to making that a reality? In 2024 the training wheels are off, the expectations are high, and the fans aren’t just praying for relevance, they are expecting growth, maturation, and most of all, wins. 

    Christopher Ball is a longtime Loveland resident and an attorney. He graduated from Loveland High School in 2003 and was a member of the football team before going on to become a coach’s assistant at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. He has been following and rooting for the Reds and Bengals since the early 1990s and has been through the many ups and downs that fandom has wrought over the years.