Cincinnati Reds Team History

In November 1889, the Cincinnati Red Stockings and the Brooklyn Dodgers both left the Association for the National League. In the move, the Red Stockings dropped “Stockings” from their name.

The 1919 World Series matched the American League champion Chicago White Sox against the National League champion Cincinnati Reds. Although most World Series have been of the best-of-seven format, the 1919 World Series was a best-of-nine series (along with 1903, 1920, and 1921). Baseball decided to try the best-of-nine format partly to increase popularity of the sport and partly to generate more revenue.

The 1940 World Series matched the Cincinnati Reds against the Detroit Tigers, the Reds winning a closely contested seven-game series for their second championship 21 years after their scandal-tainted victory in 1919. This would be the Reds last World Series championship for 35 years despite appearances in 1961, 1970, and 1972. Bill Klem worked the last of his record 18 World Series as an umpire.

The 1975 World Series of Major League Baseball was played between the Boston Red Sox (AL) and Cincinnati Reds (NL). It has been ranked by ESPN as the second-greatest World Series ever played. Cincinnati won the series four games to three.

The 1976 World Series matched the defending champion Cincinnati Reds of the National League against the New York Yankees of the American League, with the Reds sweeping the Series to repeat. The Reds became (and remain) the only team to sweep an entire multi-tier postseason. The Reds are also the last National League team to win back-to-back World Series. It also marked the second time that the Yankees were swept in a World Series, the 1963 Los Angeles Dodgers were the first to sweep them.

The 1990 World Series matched the defending champions and heavily favored Oakland Athletics against the Cincinnati Reds, with the Reds sweeping the Series in four games. It was the fifth 4-game sweep by the National League and second by the Reds (1976). 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). As of 2014, 1990 was the most recent World Series appearance for both franchises.

Great American Ball Park is a baseball stadium located in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is the home field of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB). It opened in 2003, replacing Cinergy Field (formerly Riverfront Stadium), which had been their home field from June 1970 to 2002. Despite the patriotic tone of the name, the park’s name comes from the Great American Insurance Group, which purchased the park’s naming rights through 2033.

Great American Ball Park was built by the architectural firms Populous (then HOK Sport) and GBBN at a cost of approximately US$290 million. It is located on the plot of land between the former site of Cinergy Field and US Bank Arena; it was known locally as the “wedge”. The limited construction space necessitated the partial demolition of Cinergy Field. It was fully demolished on December 29, 2002.