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 25th 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!
