Eric Davis is the most exciting Reds player I've ever watched. He was so fast, unbelievably fast. He had power, could hit 20 to 40 homeruns in a season. He was great defensively. He could catch anything and had a terrific arm. You didn't run on Eric The Red. You just didn't. And my Lord, he could steal a base. The dude was a badass. Baseball was his calling, it found him, he found baseball and the two have been married to each other ever since he was a young man. E.D. played for the Reds in the 80's, played for the World Series Champs in 1990, and came back for a short stint in the late 90's. He played for 18 years, nine of those years were with the Reds. And even though he was a West Coast guy, Cincinnati adopted him and still claims him as one of their own. We loved him when he was here, and loved him when he came back with opposing teams. He'll always be a Red, he was called Eric the Red for this reason. He won Gold Glove awards, the Silver Slugger awards, he was an All-Star several times. He was exactly what every kid that loved baseball should have been. He was an extremely talented baseball player. He almost killed himself in that 1990 World Series with that lacerated kidney injury. He battled colon cancer successfully, and made it back to the major leagues afterwards He was never the same player in the secound half of his career as he was in the first half, but who wouldn't have loved to have the first half of THAT career? He was an amazing young player. And he's always been my favorite Red. My Pop loved him too.
In 2005, Eric had been retired from baseball for about 4 years or so. The Reds organization had decided they were going to put him in the Reds Hall of Fame that year. And so Eric was in town all that week for the ceremony and all the talk shows and media stuff. I was working for a radio station downtown, and the sports director was a guy named Wayne "Box" Miller. He was a local sports marketing and radio guy, and just happened to be very good friends with Eric The Red. I had known that Eric was going to be at the station several times that week, and I wanted to meet him, but I had an extremely busy week that week. So I came in the day after his interview was on the air, and "Box" came and found me. He said "Joe, where were you? I brought Eric out to meet you yesterday". Box and I had had many discussions about Davis, he knew I was a huge fan. And he'd brought Eric around to meet me because that's what friends do. Box was my good friend at the time, we'd sit and talk every day about sports, life, women. I loved that dude. So I thanked Box for what he'd tried to do for me. And so he asked me if I was free to go see Eric the next day. I didn't read too much into it at the time, but I agreed to meet back at the station the next day. So the next day came, and it was the day that Eric was to be inducted in the Red's Hall of Fame. He was at his hotel, with his friends, hanging out in the afternoon by the bar (i don't remember Eric drinking at all by the way). Box and I walked over and there they all were. Now, picture this. Eric Davis, my favorite Red, hanging at the bar with his friends from California, greeting me and Box. I leaned against the bar and listened as they cutup and talked and made fun of each other, told stories as I tried not to stare at Eric the whole time. I spent about an hour there with Eric and Box and their friends, not saying much, but trying to drink it all in, remember it all. I had been in radio for a few years, and had met many celebrities, and realized they were all just dudes with a lot of money, but on that day, for that hour, I was star struck. After an hour or so, we told Eric we had to leave, he spent a minute thanking me for coming by, and posed for a few pictures with me. He is good man. I told him I'd be there for his induction at the game that night, that I was hosting clients at our suite at the ball park, and invited him to come by during the game. We said goodbye and Box and I walked back to the station. I remember thanking Box so many times on that short walk back to the station. Box had made my week.
And that night at the game, I was telling friends and clients about my day, me more impressed with the story than anyone else in the room. And most of the people that were there in the suite with us seemed to think I was telling tall tales...sure, I had spent the afternoon in a bar with Eric the Red on the day that he was being enshrined into the Reds Hall of Fame. Sure, Joe's a bigshot, whatever. And then, around the third inning, the best thing that could've happened, happened. Box and Eric the Red walked right into my suite. And there he was. The whole stadium had just given him a huge round of applause, and had shown their love for our 1990 hero. And he was hanging out in my suite, a short hour later. My clients were thrilled, my friends were impressed and I was amazed by the sheer entertainment of the moment. It really couldn't have been a better day.
I haven't ever gotten a chance to meet Eric The Red again, and I'm sure he wouldn't remember me, but I'll always remember that day. I'll remember that he was just a man, hanging out with his friends, and I was just a fly on the wall. But this man was one that had electrocuted a city for years in a true baseball town, and I was priviledged enough to have a personal connection to it, no matter how insignificant I was to the situation. And I'll always have that memory. I had cheered this guy so many times, and then I cheered him again that night on the most special night of his career. Eric the Red was a badass dude. And I got to hangout with him for a couple hours. How cool is that?
I've attached a picture that I hate, I was about 25 pounds heavier then. But Eric is the picture, not me. I look like Elvis just before he died.
In 2005, Eric had been retired from baseball for about 4 years or so. The Reds organization had decided they were going to put him in the Reds Hall of Fame that year. And so Eric was in town all that week for the ceremony and all the talk shows and media stuff. I was working for a radio station downtown, and the sports director was a guy named Wayne "Box" Miller. He was a local sports marketing and radio guy, and just happened to be very good friends with Eric The Red. I had known that Eric was going to be at the station several times that week, and I wanted to meet him, but I had an extremely busy week that week. So I came in the day after his interview was on the air, and "Box" came and found me. He said "Joe, where were you? I brought Eric out to meet you yesterday". Box and I had had many discussions about Davis, he knew I was a huge fan. And he'd brought Eric around to meet me because that's what friends do. Box was my good friend at the time, we'd sit and talk every day about sports, life, women. I loved that dude. So I thanked Box for what he'd tried to do for me. And so he asked me if I was free to go see Eric the next day. I didn't read too much into it at the time, but I agreed to meet back at the station the next day. So the next day came, and it was the day that Eric was to be inducted in the Red's Hall of Fame. He was at his hotel, with his friends, hanging out in the afternoon by the bar (i don't remember Eric drinking at all by the way). Box and I walked over and there they all were. Now, picture this. Eric Davis, my favorite Red, hanging at the bar with his friends from California, greeting me and Box. I leaned against the bar and listened as they cutup and talked and made fun of each other, told stories as I tried not to stare at Eric the whole time. I spent about an hour there with Eric and Box and their friends, not saying much, but trying to drink it all in, remember it all. I had been in radio for a few years, and had met many celebrities, and realized they were all just dudes with a lot of money, but on that day, for that hour, I was star struck. After an hour or so, we told Eric we had to leave, he spent a minute thanking me for coming by, and posed for a few pictures with me. He is good man. I told him I'd be there for his induction at the game that night, that I was hosting clients at our suite at the ball park, and invited him to come by during the game. We said goodbye and Box and I walked back to the station. I remember thanking Box so many times on that short walk back to the station. Box had made my week.
And that night at the game, I was telling friends and clients about my day, me more impressed with the story than anyone else in the room. And most of the people that were there in the suite with us seemed to think I was telling tall tales...sure, I had spent the afternoon in a bar with Eric the Red on the day that he was being enshrined into the Reds Hall of Fame. Sure, Joe's a bigshot, whatever. And then, around the third inning, the best thing that could've happened, happened. Box and Eric the Red walked right into my suite. And there he was. The whole stadium had just given him a huge round of applause, and had shown their love for our 1990 hero. And he was hanging out in my suite, a short hour later. My clients were thrilled, my friends were impressed and I was amazed by the sheer entertainment of the moment. It really couldn't have been a better day.
I haven't ever gotten a chance to meet Eric The Red again, and I'm sure he wouldn't remember me, but I'll always remember that day. I'll remember that he was just a man, hanging out with his friends, and I was just a fly on the wall. But this man was one that had electrocuted a city for years in a true baseball town, and I was priviledged enough to have a personal connection to it, no matter how insignificant I was to the situation. And I'll always have that memory. I had cheered this guy so many times, and then I cheered him again that night on the most special night of his career. Eric the Red was a badass dude. And I got to hangout with him for a couple hours. How cool is that?
I've attached a picture that I hate, I was about 25 pounds heavier then. But Eric is the picture, not me. I look like Elvis just before he died.
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