Cincinnati Reds

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Lore & Background

The Reds played in the NL West division from 1969 to 1993, before joining the Central division in 1994. Cincinnati is generally considered to be the most dominant team of the 1970s. During this decade, they won the National League pennant five times, ultimately winning the World Series twice, in 1975 and 1976. The team was colloquially known as the 'Big Red Machine' during this time, and it included Hall of Fame members Johnny Bench, Joe Morgan, and Tony Pérez, as well as the controversial Pete Rose, the all-time hits leader in Major League Baseball. Despite their decorated past, the Reds have struggled in recent years, and currently have the longest drought of not winning a playoff series of any MLB team, with their last win coming in 1995. Overall, the Reds have won five World Series championships, nine NL pennants, one AA pennant and 10 division titles. The team plays its home games at Great American Ball Park, which opened in 2003. Bob Castellini has been the CEO of the Reds since 2006. From 1882 to 2025, the Reds' overall win–loss record is 11,017–10,845–139 (a .504 winning percentage).

In Their Own Story

The 2023 season marked Díaz's ascent to elite status as he became entrenched as the Reds' closer and was selected to the All-Star Game. That year, he appeared in 71 games with a 9–6 record, 3.07 ERA, 86 strikeouts, and 37 saves. However, his trajectory shifted in 2024; while he saved 28 games in 60 appearances, his strikeout totals dropped to just 55 in 56+1⁄3 innings with a 3.99 ERA. The following spring training in 2025 proved disastrous due to a hamstring injury and poor performance upon return, allowing eight runs, including four home runs, in only six innings. A particularly rough outing on April 30 against the St. Louis Cardinals saw him surrender three home runs in one inning, leading to his optioning to Triple-A Louisville.

Reader's Guide

The origins of the modern Cincinnati Reds baseball team can be traced back to the expulsion from the National League of an earlier team bearing the same name. In 1876, Cincinnati became one of the charter members of the new National League (NL), but the club ran afoul of league organizer and longtime president William Hulbert for selling beer during games and renting out its ballpark on Sundays. Both were important in enticing the city's large German population to support the team. While Hulbert made clear his distaste for both beer and Sunday baseball at the founding of the league, neither practice was against league rules at the time. On October 6, 1880, however, seven of the eight team owners adopted a pledge to ban both beer and Sunday baseball at the regular league meeting in December. Only Cincinnati president W. H. Kennett refused to sign the pledge, so the other owners preemptively expelled Cincinnati from the league for violating the new rules even though they were not yet in effect. Cincinnati's expulsion incensed Cincinnati Enquirer sports editor O. P. Caylor, who made two attempts to form a new league on behalf of the receivers for the now-bankrupt Reds franchise. When these attempts failed, he formed a new independent ball club in the spring of 1881 and brought the team to St. Louis for a weekend exhibition. The Reds' first game was a 12–3 victory over the St. Louis club. After the 1881 series proved successful, Caylor and former Reds president Justus Thorner received an invitation from Philadelphia businessman Horace Phillips to attend a meeting of several clubs in Pittsburgh, planning to establish a new league to compete with the NL. Upon arriving, however, Caylor and Thorner found that no other owners had accepted the invitation, while even Phillips declined to attend his own meeting. By chance, the duo met former pitcher Al Pratt, who paired them with former Pittsburgh Alleghenys president H. Denny McKnight. Together, the three hatched a scheme to form a new league by sending a telegram to each of the owners who were invited to attend the meeting stating that he was the only person who did not attend, and that everyone else was enthusiastic about the new venture and eager to attend a second meeting in Cincinnati. The ploy worked, and the American Association (AA) was officially formed at the Hotel Gibson in Cincinnati. The new Reds – with Th

Did You Know?

• The Reds were a charter member of the American Association in 1882 before joining the NL in 1890.
• Cincinnati is generally considered to be the most dominant team of the 1970s, winning the World Series in 1975 and 1976.
• Johnny Vander Meer is the only pitcher in major league history to throw back-to-back no-hitters, in 1938.
• The Reds have the longest drought of not winning a playoff series of any MLB team, with their last win coming in 1995.