1990 World Series Appearance

Lore & Background

The Reds' sweep was the fifth four-game sweep by the NL and second by the Reds after they did it in 1976. It was the second consecutive World Series to end in a sweep, after the Athletics themselves did it to the San Francisco Giants in 1989. It is remembered for Billy Hatcher's seven consecutive hits. The sweep extended the Reds' World Series winning streak to nine games, dating back to 1975.

This also was the second World Series meeting between the two clubs (Oakland won four games to three in 1972). To date, this remains the Reds' most recent World Series appearance, though their most recent playoff series victory came in the 1995 NLDS against the Dodgers. The Reds' win made them the tenth straight unique team to win a championship, the second longest streak in MLB and American sports history after the 1978-87 streak of ten straight years.

In fact, between 1978 and 1990, the Yankees (1977-78), Dodgers (1981, 1988), and Athletics (1989-90) were the only teams to win more than one championship. Athletics manager Tony La Russa and Reds manager Lou Piniella were old friends and teammates from their Tampa American Legion Post 248 team.

Reader's Guide

The Cincinnati Reds won the National League West division by five games over the Los Angeles Dodgers. They set an NL record by staying in first place in the division for the entire season or 'wire-to-wire', which had been done only one other time, by the 1984 Detroit Tigers. The Reds then defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates, four games to two, in the National League Championship Series. The strength of the Cincinnati Reds bullpen and timely hitting led them to a quick sweep of the AL champions.

The Reds' bullpen had three primary members—Norm Charlton, Randy Myers, and Rob Dibble—collectively they were known as the 'Nasty Boys', who wouldn't let the A's score against them in nearly nine innings of work. Media talk of a forthcoming A's dynasty led Reds fans to call their own team the 'dyNASTY.' The Nasty Boys originally referred to five pitchers, with the other two being Tim Layana and Tim Birtsas (though history relates it to the aforementioned three). On his XM show, Dibble still adds these two pitchers into the 'Nasty Boys', stating it was a collective bullpen effort.