Just Play Ball

Baseball has a set of codes that players usually follow. It's the only sport I can think of that pretty much governs itself. Players and coaches should act certain ways and if they don't, expect some sort of retaliation. To me, that is unbelievably stupid.

When the Cincinnati Reds played the Pittsburgh Pirates in Pittsburgh for the first time this season, Derek Dietrich blasted a home run out of the ballpark and into the Allegheny River. He stood there at home plate and watched it sail out of the stadium. Apparently that broke one of baseball's unwritten laws and his next time up to bat, Pirates pitcher Chris Archer threw a ball high and behind Dietrich as a way of retaliation. The umpire issued a warning to Archer and both benches. This upset Reds manager David Bell who came charging out of the mound and was complaining that the Reds can't retaliate against the Pirates. A big brawl broke out after that and players from both teams were ejected and suspended. Is this Major League Baseball or Little League?

Baseball is a game. It is supposed to be fun. I had no problem at all with Dietrich watching his ball fly into the river. I would have done it also. If Chris Archer didn't like Dietrich admiring his home run shot, then Archer shouldn't have thrown a pitch that Dietrich could power out of the stadium. Also, Archer is notorious for celebrating strikeouts and has even moon walked off the mound. What is the difference between watching a home run and celebrating a strikeout? If you can celebrate a K without retaliation, you should be able to celebrate a home run without retaliation.

The whole retaliation aspect of baseball is stupid in my opinion. I watch the sport of baseball because I love the game. I want to see players celebrate when they do something great. What I do not want to see is a petty retaliation that makes everybody involved looked childish. It can seriously hurt a player, and brawls, ejections, and suspensions usually occur as a result. That ruins the game in my opinion as it takes away the opportunity for fans to see some of their favorites play. Just get rid of retaliation and play ball.

Redlegs the Snowman Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes a Redlegs the Snowman bobblehead. 

Double or Nothing 2019 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on AEW Double or Nothing 2019.

Mox is Back

Dean Ambrose's contract with World Wrestling Entertainment appeared to expire on April 30, 2019. Around midnight on May 1, his twitter account,which is notorious for its lack of activity posted, a video of him breaking out of a jail cell, climbing over a barbwire fence, escaping through a city, and training inside a wrestling ring. At the end of the video, the word Mox appears and suggests that Dean Ambrose is no more, and Jon Moxley has returned. 

For those who are unaware, Jon Moxley was Ambrose's name before he joined WWE. He made a name for himself on the indie scene as one of the best talkers in the wrestling industry and was known for his violent and hardcore matches. The fact that he would reuse the Moxley moniker makes sense as he is no longer a WWE employee. What has people excited and adding fuel to the fire on whether or not he joins All Elite Wrestling are the subtle messages hidden within the video. 

Many people claim that Moxley breaking out of the jail cell is symbolic of him breaking free from the "Ambrose Asylum" and WWE. Others are also saying that the pair of dice with the numbers 2 and 5 that are painted on a wall he runs by is a subtle nod to AEW's Double or Nothing pay-per-view which will be held on May 25 in Las Vegas. Las Vegas is also where Moxley currently resides. 

Whether or not these subliminal messages are hinting at an AEW debut remains to be seen. Some wrestling fans are even speculating that this is a big storyline from WWE which oddly does make sense. The production value of the video is top notch, and WWE uncharacteristically gave Ambrose a nice exit from the company. Whatever the case may be, it is clear that the return of Jon Moxley has shaken up the wrestling industry and generated an enormous amount of buzz. So where will Moxley end up once he finally decides to return to the ring? We will have to wait and see. 

All Elite Wrestling Shirt Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes an All Elite Wrestling shirt. 

Money in the Bank 2019 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on WWE Money in the Bank 2019.

2019 Cincinnati Reds Themed Bobbleheads

For the past few years, the Cincinnati Reds have been teaming up with various companies to produce special themed giveaway items that are exclusive to certain ticket packages. Some of these items are bobbleheads and have featured characters from Star Wars, Peanuts, and Marvel among others. So who will the Redlegs team up with this season and what unique bobbleheads will be distributed? Let's take a look.

The first themed bobblehead of 2019 is a Game of Thrones Queen Rosie bobblehead. Last year the Reds and Game of Thrones gave out a King Redlegs bobblehead, and it was a very good looking bobble. The Queen Rosie bobble looks just as good and will make a fine addition to anybody's bobblehead collection. This will be given out during the 5/15 game against the Chicago Cubs.

The next themed bobblehead is of Woodstock. He is the little yellow bird from the Peanuts comic strip and cartoon. The previous years have seen the Reds give out bobbleheads of Charlie Brown and Snoopy. This bobble will be given out on the 5/19 game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

It wouldn't be baseball season without a Star Wars themed giveaway, and the Reds are teaming up with the juggernaut movie franchise on 5/31 against the Washington Nationals when they give out a bobblehead of Darth Vader. The bobblehead features Vader standing on a Reds baseball and continues the partnership that Star Wars and the Redlegs have had for the last few years.

The fourth themed bobblehead giveaway of the year is the one I am looking forward to the most. For the third straight year, the Reds and Marvel are teaming up to distribute a bobblehead with the 2019 season featuring a Black Panther bobble. This will be the fourth Marvel bobblehead the Reds have given to fans with the previous three being Rocket Raccoon, Iron Man, and Captain America. Im a big super hero fan and have all three in my collection, and I will definitely be getting tickets for this game. It will take place on 6/14 when the Texas Rangers come to town.

The fifth bobble is of All-Star-Sam, the bald eagle. This is a joint promotion bobblehead between the Reds and the Cincinnati Zoo. Last year's zoo themed bobblehead was of Fiona the hippo. This will be given out during the 6/18 game against the Houston Astros.

The next themed bobblehead game is on 7/19 when the Redlegs take on the St. Louis Cardinals and ties in Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. In honor of the 30th anniversary of "Off to See the Lizard," this bobblehead will be of the Lizard.

The last themed bobblehead the Reds will give out in 2019 will be in conjunction with the Grateful Dead. Members of Reds Country who are also Deadheads will get a kick out of this bobblehead as it will be of the Dancing Bear. This will be given out on 8/16 when the Reds host the Cardinals.

Those are the themed ticket package bobbleheads the Reds will give out during the 2019 season. Ranging from Star Wars to the Zoo, there is sure to be a bobblehead that will capture the interest of every Reds fan. I'm looking forward to the Black Panther bobblehead the most. More information on these bobbleheads can be found the Cincinnati Reds website.

Harry Wright Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes a 2018 Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum Harry Wright bobblehead.

Double Video Weeks

This is a quick update on the Cincy Fan Zone website. If you are a frequent visitor of my website or my YouTube channel, you know that I publish one video a week. This has been the case ever since I first started Cincy Fan Zone in 2014. I thought having one video a week and one post a week supplied the Cincy Fan Zone website with ample content, and it was easy enough for me to manage. However, there will be a few times this year in which there will be two videos a week. 

I enjoy making wrestling pay-per-vew review videos for WWE shows such as the Royal Rumble and Wrestlemania. Those are published the night of the pay-per-view. Other videos are usually published on Tuesdays. With WWE slowly releasing their pay-per-view schedule this year, I have had to rearrange and reschedule various videos on my website every time a new pay-per-view was announced. For a one-man crew, it is a very time-consuming process. At the time that this post was written, WWE just released the rest of the pay-per-view schedule for 2019, and if I were to keep up with the one video a week schedule, it would have required a massive reshuffling of videos. 

Bobblehead unboxing videos would have been pushed back even more, and the bobblehead collection recap video would most likely not have been published until August or September. That would have thrown 2019 bobblehead unboxing videos further down the schedule as well. To save myself time and to ensure that the 2018 bobblehead recap video actually gets published before 2020, there will be a few weeks in which Cincy Fan Zone will have two videos published. To compensate for that, there might be a few weeks in which no new content is published. This is to provide balance and not overwhelm frequent Cincy Fan Zone visitors, and it is also a way to give myself a break.

Thank you for your understanding and for continuing to visit the Cincy Fan Zone website. 

Los Rojos Eugenio Suarez Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes a 2018 Los Rojos Eugenio Suarez bobblehead.