DODGERS HISTORY

Baseballs first openly all professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings was founded in 1869. The Cincinnati Red Stockings won 130 consecutive games in a row between 1869-1870, before being defeated by the Atlantics. Early stars for the Red Stockings included the Wrights, George and Harry. (In 1871, George Wright took most of his best players to Boston, and founded the Boston Red Stockings, now known as the Atlanta Braves.) The Red Stockings were a charter member of the National League in 1876. At the turn of the century, the Reds, shortened from the Red Stockings so not to be confused with the Boston American League (AL) entry, now shortened to Red Sox. The Cincinnati Reds is a professional Major League baseball team. The Reds are based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The uniform colors is Red and white, trimmed Black. The logo design is a red "C" with the word "REDS" inside. Some of the winnings of the team include nine division titles, one American Association pennants, nine National League pennants and five World Series Championships. Some of the players to make to the hall of fame include Jake Beckley, Johnny Bench, Jim Bottomley and Mordecai Brown. The Cincinnati reds home ballpark is Great American Ball Park. By 1956, the Reds began the most successful portion of their clubs history. Led by National League (NL) Rookie of the Year Frank Robinson, the Reds hit 221 HR to tie the NL record. By 1961, Robinson was joined by Vada Pinson, Wally Post, Gordy Coleman and Gene Freese. Pitchers Joey Jay, Jim O'Toole and Bob Purkey led the staff. The Reds captured the 1961 NL flag, holding off the Los Angeles Dodgers & the San Francisco Giants. However for the Reds, 1961 was the year New York Yankee Roger Maris hit 61 HR and they took the Reds in 5 games in the World Series. The rest of the 1960s were successful on the field, but didn't produce any championships. They won 98 games in 1962 (paced by Purkey's 23) but finished 3rd. In 1964, they lost the pennant by one game. The farm system produced players such as Jim Maloney (the Reds pitching ace of the 1960s), Pete Rose, Tony Pérez, Johnny Bench and Gary Nolan. In 1984 the Reds began to move up, depending on trades and some minor leaguers. In 1984 Dave Parker & Tony Pérez were in Cincinnati uniforms. By the end of 1984, Pete Rose was hired to be the Reds player-manager. From 1985 to 1989 the Reds finished second 4 times. Among the highlights, Pete Rose became the all-time hits leader, Tom Browning threw a perfect game, and Chris Sabo was the 1988 National League Rookie of the Year. In 1989, Pete Rose was banned from baseball by Commissioner Bart Giamatti, who declared Rose guilty of "conduct detrimental to baseball." Controversy also swirled around Reds owner Marge Schott who was accused several times of ethnic and racial slurs. The Cincinnati Reds first season under manager Dave Miley, the Reds jumped off to a surprising start, finishing the first half of the season six games above .500 and in contention for a playoff spot. However, injuries and inconsistent pitching led to a second-half slide, which left them with a 76-86 record at season's end. Despite the decline, however, there were plenty of bright spots. In the final campaign of his 19-year run with the Reds, Barry Larkin hit .289. Ken Griffey Jr., belted his 500th home run on Father's Day in St. Louis before undergoing season-ending hamstring surgery a few weeks later. Danny Graves became the club's all-time saves leader and Adam Dunn led the team with 46 home runs and 102 RBIs.