2017 Cincinati Reds Bobblehead Predictions Part 2

Please note that this was written before any bobbleheads were announced.

With Redsfest just around the corner, I thought it would be an appopriate time to share my predictions for the 2017 series of Cincinnati Reds bobbleheads. One post will cover the line of nodders that the team will give away to fans during the season, and another post I will write will discuss the bobbleheads I think the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum will give out during 2017. Please note that these are just my predictions and not an actual list of bobbleheads the Reds are producing. In this post, I will discuss the bobbles that I think the Reds Hall of Fame will hand out to fans this upcoming season.

My first prediction is a bobblehead of Lou Piniella. The legendary manager of the 1990 wire-to-wire World Series Championship team has yet to be immortalized as a Reds bobblehead. To me, that is a huge travesty as the team won its first World Series since 1976 with Piniella at the helm. Since Piniella is more involved with the Reds organization now than in years past, hopefully this is the year Reds fans finally get a bobblehead of “Sweet Lou.”

Another Reds legend I predict that the Reds Hall of Fame will give to fans as a bobblehead is Johnny Vander Meer. Vander Meer is famous for being the only pitcher in MLB history to throw consecutive no-hitters, and he helped the Reds win the World Series in 1940. Vander Meer is another player whose lack of bobblehead from the Reds baffles me. Since he has not been immortalized as a bobble yet, I predict that this is the year we finally see the only man with back-to-back no hitters as a bobblehead.

Third on my list of predictions is Ted Kluszewski. “Big Klu” is another Reds legend who I thought should have had a bobblehead a long time ago. Known for cutting the sleeves off his jersey, Kluszewski was a widely popular favorite among Reds fans. After his playing days were over, Kluszewski became a hitting coach for the Big Red Machine and helped the team win consecutive World Series Championships in 1975 and in 1976.

My fourth prediction is Jose Rijo. The 1990 World Series MVP has yet to be featured as a bobblehead. Rijo’s incredible pitching during the 1990 World Series was key in propelling the Reds over the Oakland Athletics. Reds fans have not forgotten his contributions either as he received a great ovation at the 1990 World Series reunion game in 2015.

My fifth and final prediction is that the Reds Hall of Fame will give out a bobblehead of Aaron Boone. Boone was one of the biggest stars on the team during the late 1990s and early 2000s before he was traded to the New York Yankees. Boone was a favorite of mine when I was a kid, and the popular “Booooooooooone” chant echoed throughout the stadium whenever he came up to bat. The Reds never gave out a bobblehead of him during his playing days, so hopefully the Reds Hall of Fame rights that wrong this year.

Those are my predictions for the five bobbleheads the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum will give out to fans. Should my predictions prove to be true, I will be heading to the Reds Hall of Fame once a month to get each bobble. These are only predictions though, and no official bobblehead giveaway has been announced by the Reds Hall of Fame at the time that I wrote this. Until then, us Reds fans can only speculate and guess what kinds of bobbleheads the Reds Hall of Fame has planned for 2017.

Go Redlegs!