2019 Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum Bobblehead Predictions

The Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum's bobblehead season has officially come to a close. 2018 was a good year for Reds Hall of Fame bobbles as new players such as Ernie Lombardi, Johnny Vanderbilt Meer, and Chuck Harmon were featured as bobbleheads. With 2019 being the 150th anniversary of the Cincinnati Reds and the 100th anniversary of the franchise's first ever World Series Championship, the Reds Hall of Fame has a plethora of legends to feature as bobbleheads. So who will the Reds Hall of Fame feature as bobbleheads in 2019? Here are my predictions.

My first prediction is Ted Kluszewski. "Big Klu is one of the most popular Reds players in history, and I am shocked that that he has not been featured as a bobblehead yet. Known for cutting the sleeves of his uniform because they were too tight around his massive arms, Kluszewski belted 279 homers and drove in 1,028 runs. He also helped lead the Big Red Machine to back to back World Series Championships as the team's hitting coach. I could go on and on about Klu's career and why he deserves to be immortalized as a bobblehead.

My second Reds Hall of Fame bobblehead prediction is Lou Piniella. Known as "Sweet Lou" to members of Reds Country, Piniella is without a shadow of a doubt one of the most popular managers in Redlegs history, arguably only second to Sparky Anderson. He took over as Reds skipper in 1990 and led the team to a wire to wire season that was capped off with an improbable sweep of the Oakland Athletics in the World Series. Combine that World Series Championship with his fiery attitude and it is easy to see why the former first base throwing Reds manager would make for an excellent bobblehead.

Third on my list of predictions is Edd Roush. Not only was he a key member of the 1919 World Series Championship Reds team, but he is also in both the Reds Hall of Fame and the National Baseball Hall of Fame. During his first stint with the Redlegs, Roush never batted below .321 and won the National League batting title twice. He played with the team from 1916-1926 before coming back and retiring as a Red in 1931. In my opinion, Roush is a perfect choice that celebrates the franchise's 150th anniversary as well as the 100th of the team's first ever World Series title.

I predict that Fred Hutchinson will be featured as a bobblehead. "Hutch" became one of the most respected managers in Reds history and led the 1961 team to a National League Championship. Under his guidance, players such as Vada Pinson, Pete Rose, Leo Cardenas, Jim O'Toole, and Frank Robinson among others flourished and etched their names into Redlegs history. He is a member of the Reds Hall of Fame and his number, 1, has been retired by the team.

My fifth and final Reds Hall of Fame bobblehead prediction is Don Gullett. He was a key member of the Big Red Machine's pitching staff and helped the team reach the World Series in 1970 and in 1972 and helped them win back to back World Series Championships in 1975 and in 1976. During his nine year career, Gullett had a 3.11 ERA and totaled 921 strikeouts and 109 wins. He is a fan favorite and is an obvious choice to be featured as a Reds Hall of Fame bobblehead.

Those are my 2019 bobblehead predictions for the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame. I believe that these legends represent various generations of the Reds and will help the Reds Hall of Fame celebrate the 150th anniversary of the team. I cannot wait to see who the Reds Hall of Fame will feature as bobbles for 2019 and am excited to add some new bobbleheads of Reds legends to my collection.

2016 Cincinnati Reds Bobbleheads Predictions Part 2

Now that the 2015 season has come to a close for my beloved Cincinnati Reds, I think that now would be an appropriate time for some 2016 predictions. I am not predicting how the Reds will do next season but rather what bobbleheads I think the team will give out to fans. There will be two parts to this post. First will be the bobbleheads that I believe the team will give out, and second will be the bobbleheads that I believe the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum will give during the regular season.

For the most part, the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum tries to incorporate some sort of theme into their bobblehead giveaways. For example, last season was the 25^th anniversary of the 1990 wire-to-wire Cincinnati Reds world championship season and as a result, the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum gave out bobbleheads of players from that team. As far as I know, 2016 is not an anniversary year for the Reds so I have no idea what theme the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum will have with their bobbleheads. Therefore, this list of predictions will have no theme and instead be a hodgepodge of legendary Reds figures.

I predict that the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum will once again give out five different bobbleheads, and the first one to be distributed will be of 1990 Cincinnati Reds manger, Lou Piniella. “Sweet” Lou was one of the most popular managers in Reds history because of his fiery attitude and his guidance of the Reds to the 1990 World Series crown. I could not believe that he was not featured as a bobblehead this past year, and I think that the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum will make up for that by featuring him as a bobblehead in 2016. Hopefully it will incorporate Piniella throwing a base!

Bobblehead number two will be of Johnny Vander Meer. Vander Meer is the only pitcher in history to throw back-to-back no-hitters and was part of the 1940 Cincinnati Reds World Series Championship team. He is without a doubt worthy of a bobblehead.

The third bobblehead will be of Fred Hutchinson. He was one of the most prolific managers in the history of the Reds as he helped usher in a period of winning baseball during a time in which getting into the playoffs was impossible when compared to today’s game, and he set the stage for the glory days of the Big Red Machine. He took the Reds to the 1961 World Series and had his number, 1, retired permanently by the team.

Fourth will be Jose Rijo. He was the MVP of the 1990 World Series, and his dominance on the pitching mound helped secure the fifth World Series crown in franchise history for the Reds. While he was not featured as a bobblehead last year, I believe that the Reds hall of Fame and Museum will make up for that in 2016.

The fifth and final bobblehead of 2016 for the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum will be of Ted Kluszewski. He was one of the most popular players in Reds history and was known for cutting the sleeves off his jersey because his arms were so big. He was a coach under Sparky Anderson during the Big Red Machine era in the 1970’s during which he earned two World Series Championship rings, and his number, 18, was retired permanently by the Reds in 1998. I am shocked that “Big Klu” has never been featured as a nodder, and hopefully the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum rights this wrong in 2016.

Those are my Reds Hall of Fame and Museum bobblehead predictions for 2016. If my predictions are correct, then I will definitely try to head to the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum to pick up every single bobblehead. Even if the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum goes with other Reds figures to immortalize as nodders, hopefully the people they choose will be fresh faces who have never been featured as a bobblehead. As a collector, I always hope for new people to be featured as bobbleheads as it makes collecting much more fun, and with an endless supply of Reds legends, the possibilities for great Reds Hall of Fame and Museum bobbleheads are mindboggling!