Paul Daugherty: Junior Griffey and other Very Important Stuff

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Junior Griffey and other Very Important Stuff

Random junk while waiting for tee time at the legendary Hickory Woods:

Any buzz about Griffey hitting 600? No? How come?
Reds built an ad campaign last year on the March to 600..this year, very little. Fan interest has been minimal as well. Only 5 players ever with 600-plus...only 3 all-natural. Griffey would be No. 4... great chance to take your young, impressionable kid to GASP and say, look, youngun', this is how it's done. You dont have to ingest a pharmacy to be a good ballplayer.

Is it just the general Reds malaise that has curbed your enthusiasm? Sort-of hometown guy, family man, lives clean, all the stuff so important to us here in Middle America. No buzz. Why?

My compadres at 1530 Homer are throwing a "Draft Party'' Saturday at a famous local ribbery. Whoo-hoo... Draft Party is an oxymoron. What do you do at a draft party? Argue 40 times? Debate the importance of sleeve length as it applies to wide receivers?

I'd rather clean out my sinus cavity with a drain snake than watch the Draft.

Saturday Definition of Hell: Four hours in an enclosed space, watching the NFL Draft with Alan Cutler.

On WLW tonight: Senior Griffey, Wayne Krivsky, Jerry Jones, Chad Johnson, Catherine Zeta-Jones. OK, not Chad. Be there or be square.

18 Comments:

at 11:02 AM

Cheviot Sports Authority said...

You are right about the draft party. PHEW! Unless are talking about draft beer. Thats good so long as its fresh and very cold. Anywhere that you would have to listen to Alan Cutler would be hell.
Griffey doesn't give a damn about Cincinnati or the Reds (I know he's a great guy off the field and does a lot of things quietly, not arguing that). He can't wait to get out of here at the end of the season and go home to his boat. He does like GABP because its the best place for him to pad his stats. He could have been KING in this town had he just shown an ounce of desire and passion to win.
ST CSA

at 11:30 AM

Anonymous said...

No explanation as to why the Reds appear so low key on Jr. The "Bobfather's" axing of Kriv and/or Chad losing his pacifier might overshadow it anyway (unfortunately).

More importantly, what's the lowdown on Hickory Woods? I'm missing my $10 after dinner play until it's dark practice rounds at Kingswood since it closed. Need an inexpensive dogtrack in the area (Loveland/Symmes).

at 11:32 AM

Unknown said...

I can't recall the last time the Reds had a leader in the clubhouse.

Is Zeta Jones Jocketty's first effort at bringing a positive attitude to the dugout?

:>)

at 11:49 AM

gonz said...

Love the Cutler line, Doc. That's some super .sig material right there.

at 11:59 AM

Anonymous said...

"Saturday Definition of Hell: Four hours in an enclosed space, watching the NFL Draft with Alan Cutler."

The most true statement ever uttered on this blog.

at 1:39 PM

Anonymous said...

Reading your comments section decreases my fan interest in your blog.

at 2:11 PM

Anonymous said...

Griffey & Dunn were in position to be positive leaders on this team and, for whatever reason, chose not to. I suspect that carried over to other people not feeling right about stepping up >> so we don't really have leaders.

Just my theory and it doesn't explain why the Reds are low-keying it.

at 2:35 PM

jbench5 said...

Doc,

I don't live in Ohio, but watch every game on mlb.tv. It just seems to me this team has had no life or energy and rarely plays with enthusiasm, and it's been the way for the past few years. Because of that, I can't blame the fans for showing little interest, even in a home run chase.

Yes, the chase for 600 is nice. But I was a Reds fan before I was a Griffey fan and I would just as soon see the Reds chase a few wins.

The Reds have talented players, it just seems they have all accepted losing as their lot. Maybe I'm wrong; but that's what it looks like from a distance.

at 4:57 PM

Paul Daugherty said...

1130... Not sure my man Denny Acomb would appreciate the "dog track'' reference, but whatever... it's a decent, tight, affordable track where you can show up almost any day after 5 (league play permitting), walk 9 and be home for dinner, as long as you eat at 730...

at 1:35 AM

Anonymous said...

Doc
It's amazing what year after year after year of losing does to the perception of a team (unless the team is named Bengals). A great local sports philosopher noted "there is golf to be played, and tennis to be served". I look at it as the Reds are encouraging people to get new hobbies.

at 7:48 AM

Michael K Mullen said...

Hey Paul,

I want to tell you that I really enjoy reading your stuff and listening to your show. It's so great to be back in Cincinnati where everyone is seemingly on the same page and talking about the home teams with a sense of unity that is so characteristic of the Midwest.

I also want to thank you for taking my call last night. It's such an awesome thing to be a tiny spark in the Cincinnati baseball spectacle.

Now in answer to your question, I think the anemic response to Ken Griffey Jr.'s major league milestone has to do with the concept of the individual fame vs team accomplishment.

While it's true that Griffey's Home runs are exciting and marking his progress towards 600 gets attention, it does not distract us from the disappointing fact that we are sadly locked in last place.

Within that context, the individual record is sadly diminished.

I was the guy who called last night and mentioned the idea that the synergy of a team is greater than the sum of it's parts. The media, like the Greek god of strife is always throwing a golden apple into the mix and singling out an individual, but it's always the Team that gets you the win.

I was thinking about the Big Red Machine of yore, and I think the main thing that is missing is leadership on the field.

Their have been facts and rumors of players staying out late, bringing golf clubs into the clubhouse, pursuing other interests like singing, et al.

Wouldn't you think that playing MLB would be thrilling enough?

I wonder if the antics that we hear about today could have occurred when Charlie Hustle was our player manager?

Even so, forgetting the extra curricular stuff. Let's talk about the lack=luster play on the field. Can you imagine players displaying a distinct lack of passion when there was a Pete Rose on the bench?

It seems to me that we are lacking grit, a mental toughness, a lack of hard nosed hustle, and over-all discipline of the game. That's what the people of Cincinnati want to see.

Let New York have it's touted superstars, give me a team average report, but with above averages hearts and I'll beat them every time.

Great teams win championships. Great teams make players great, but not vice versa. To wit, great players do not necessarily make a teams great.

Sure, we need pitching, we need right-handed hitting, we need clutch hitting, but more than anything else, we need that fire in the gut that only happens when individuals learn to play like a team.

So you'll have to forgive us fans for not getting overly excited about the greatness of an individual. I think we'd much prefer a great team.

at 8:02 AM

Anonymous said...

Can't personally see why 600 matters any more than 599 or 601. In addition, Griffey and Dunn are so incredibly boring to watch that you don't care what they do. Sorry, but that's a fact. I'd rather see Freel, Hairston, Hoppper, my grandma in the outfield than that pair.

at 8:41 AM

stopint said...

Brilliant line ...

Saturday Definition of Hell: Four hours in an enclosed space, watching the NFL Draft with Alan Cutler.

at 8:50 AM

Anonymous said...

What does 600 HRs mean to this city? How many of those have been meaningful and helped propel us into the playoffs? Individual records in a team sport just aren't that interesting, especially when the team is/has been/seems to continue to be lousy. Call me when he hits #630 to help this team in a meaningful September game and I'll be there in a flash. Otherwise, I'll be outside soaking up the sun and talking walks with my wife.

at 10:03 AM

Anonymous said...

Mr. Daugherty,

I was wondering the same thing about Griffey. I am a casual sports follower, meaning I tend to pay attention to the headline stories, the Bengals, and of course, your column.
I hadn't followed much baseball this year, and was astounded when I attended a game earlier this month and saw the Home Run stats listed on the scoreboard. Why has there been no hype? I remember the intense national fervor surrounding other home run records.
For whatever reasons, the Reds definitely do seem low-key.

at 10:06 AM

Anonymous said...

Another post to go along with your admission of not being a college football guy....now you don't want to watch the draft.

How did you get this job?

at 1:05 PM

Anonymous said...

Did you see the Reds hall of Fame will be CHARGING ADMISSION DURING MATT MAUPIN'S FUNERAL?

What a joke....

They need to be closed at the least.

at 12:06 PM

Anonymous said...

Griffey seems to understand a home run is not always what the team needs. Since everyone else is slugging for the fences, he sometimes cuts down his swing to find the base hit. Others should be cutting down their swings and let Griffey go for the fences. Also, Griffey probably does not have enough homers left in his career to top Bonds -- and Bonds' use of steroids sort of spoiled any enthusiasm of watching home run hitters. Bonds spoiled it for Griffey and other legitimate home run hitters.

Previous Posts

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Junior Griffey and other Very Important Stuff

18 Comments: