Bobblehead Page Update

BOBBLEHEAD PAGE has been UPDATED with Mr Redlegs 2015 All-Star bobblehead. http://t.co/QxrltFGuJO unboxing vid soon #Reds #bobblehead #MLB

— Cincy Fan Zone (@cincyfanzone) August 30, 2014

Big Week for Pete

For the Hit King and all of his loyal subjects, this upcoming week is going to be one to remember, as he will be honored by both the Florence Freedom and the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum.

On Tuesday, September 2, the Florence Freedom will host Pete Rose Night at UC Health Stadium when the Freedom take on the River City Rascals. Rose will be at the game, coaching first base and third base for a few innings. He will also lead off for the Freedom in the bottom of the 1^st inning for pictures before having the Freedom bring in a pinch hitter. He will also throw out the ceremonial first pitch as well as have his number retired during a ceremony that is to take place during the 7^th inning stretch.

Tickets for this game can be bought for as low as $14. Also available for purchase are special packages that include autographed items, pictures, and a meet and greet with Rose himself. Additional information can be found on the Florence Freedom website.

On Friday, September 5, the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum will honor Rose with a bobblehead giveaway. The bobblehead will be free with the purchase of a full-priced admission to the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum or Scotts Great American Ballpark Tour on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays throughout September. The Rose bobblehead will be the last nodder given out by the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum during the 2014 season. General admission tickets for the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum cost $10.

The Rose nodder will most likely be the hottest giveaway of the year for the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum. Every bobblehead supply has been exhausted, and the Rose bobblehead could be exhausted by the end of the weekend, so if you plan on getting one without the help of eBay, you might want to consider visiting the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum early on Friday.

If you are a fan of Rose, then you defiantly want to consider checking out at least one of these two events. Rose’s appearance at the Freedom game could spark some national interest, and the bobblehead could be one of the most valuable nodders the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum has ever given out to guests. Rose fans should also check out the online petition to get him reinstated into Major League Baseball. The petition can be found here.

I already have a Pete Rose bobblehead, so I will not be heading to the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum. However, his appearance at the Freedom game sounds pretty cool, and I might get tickets for that. Hopefully he will be involved with the All-Star game next year when it is at Great American Ballpark, and maybe some day he will take his rightful place in Cooperstown.

Rose for the Hall!

Hang in There Reds Country

The Reds have struggled mightily since the All-Star break, going from NL Central contenders to a team desperate to grab a wildcard spot. Winning has almost been nonexistent for this team, especially during this past week in which the Reds lost seven games in a row.

The Reds’ postseason dreams seemed to be fading fast, and the frustrations they had been battling all season were on full display. Baseball, however, is game that can change in an instant, and a team that was icy one week can become scorching the next. Fans in Cincinnati should know all about this because that is exactly what happened to the Reds earlier in the season.

The Reds looked like they were out of the pennant race in May, but as the summer went on, the team hit their stride and started reeling off win after win. By the All-Star break, they had climbed from fourth in the division to 1.5 games out of first place. They were on the hottest streak of the season and seemed to pull out victories every time they played. Unfortunately, they have tumbled back to fourth, but they still have a shot.

With five weeks left in the season, the Redlegs are six games out in the wild card race. Before the season ends, they play the Pirates and the Cardinals, two teams ahead of them in the wildcard standings, and earning wins over these teams is a must, as it would allow the Reds to climb over them and into a wildcard spot. The door to the wildcard opened up a bit more as Phillips returned to the lineup, and Simon pitched his best game since before the All-Star break on Sunday in a 5-3 Reds’ victory over the Braves.

Coming up next for the Reds is the NL Central cellar dweller Cubs, a team the Redlegs should beat. Should they sweep the Cubbies out of the Queen City and extend their winning streak to five games in a row, a hot streak could be on the horizon, and all of the doubt and disparity surrounding this team will disappear as their chance of playing in October grows. So hang in there Reds Country. This team has climbed up the standings before. They certainly can do it again.

Go Redlegs!

Giovani Bernard Bobblehead "Unboxing"

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone "unboxes" the 2014 Florence Freedom SGA unofficial Cincinnati Bengals Giovani Bernard bobblehead.

WWE SummerSlam 2014 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on WWE SummerSlam 2014.

Reds Save Best for Last

With the exception of the Billy Hamilton nodder and the bobbleheads given out by the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum, there really hasn't been any Reds bobblehead that has been the must have SGA item of the season. That will change this Saturday when the Reds host the Atlanta Braves, as they will be giving out a limited edition Mr. Redlegs bobblehead that celebrates Cincinnati being the host city for the 2015 MLB All-Star Game.

The bobblehead will be free to the first 25,000 fans in attendance, so if you plan on getting one, make sure you arrive early, as this could be the hottest giveaway of the year. The all-star nodder is the last bobblehead the Reds will be giving out this season.

A picture of the bobblehead has been posted on the Reds’ website, and in my opinion, the nodder looks great. Not only does the bobblehead feature the 2015 all-star game logo as well as signify how the Reds will host the 2015 midsummer classic, but it also pays homage to the past all-star games that took place in the Queen City.

This has been the bobblehead game I have been looking forward to the most this season, and this nodder has the potential to be one of the rarest bobbleheads the Reds have ever given out to the fans, possibly becoming as rare as the 2002 Eric Davis nodder. I bought tickets for this game back in May and cannot wait to add this bobblehead to my collection. The only thing that could make this game better would be a Redlegs win.

Go Reds!

Football at the Ballpark

On Sunday, the Florence Freedom have one question for you. Are you ready for some football?

This Sunday, August 17, at 5:05 pm, the Florence Freedom will have “Are You Ready for Some Football Night” at UC Health Stadium when they take on the Joliet Slammers. The giveaway item for this event is a bobblehead of the dynamic Cincinnati Bengals running back, Giovani Bernard. For those of you who do not know who the Florence Freedom are, they are a Frontier League baseball team located in Florence, KY.

This will be the third and final Freedom bobblehead giveaway game of the year. Earlier this year, the Freedom gave out nodders of Shakey Shaw, owner of Shakey’s Pub and Grub, and of John Calipari, head basketball coach for the University of Kentucky. I did not got to these bobblehead games as I did not really care for the Shaw nodder, and I am a Louisville Cardinals fan so getting the Calipari bobblehead would have been sacrilege.

Being a diehard fan of the Bengals, attaining the Giovani Bernard bobblehead is a must, so I will be attending the game. There is a picture of the bobblehead on the Florence Freedom website, and it looks pretty cool.

Tickets for the game can be purchased online or at UC Health Stadium for as low as $10. Members of the eFlock, the Florence Freedom online newsletter club, can purchase tickets for as low as $8. If you are a fan of the Freedom, the Bengals, or both, you definitely want to consider going to this game to get the Bernard bobblehead.

Go Freedom and Who-Dey!

David Fulcher Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes an autographed Cincinnati Bengals David Fulcher bobblehead.

The 115 Million Dollar Man

While one half of Cincinnati rejoiced on Monday, the other half cried out in agony. The reason? Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati Bengals agreed to a six year $115 million dollar contract.

This was a huge shock to fans of the Bengals, myself included. Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever imagined that the Bengals would shell out that kind of cash to lock up Dalton to a contract before he won a postseason game.

As I said in the “The Dalton Dilemma,” I believed that Dalton’s contract should have been based on what he does this upcoming season. Even though Dalton has helped lead the team to three straight playoff appearances in his first three seasons with the team, the Bengals have lost every single time, and Dalton’s performance in the postseason has been underwhelming as he has thrown only one touchdown and six picks.

This contract is very similar to San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s contract. Both were drafted in 2011, and both have guided their teams to the postseason. The huge difference between these two men is that Kaepernick has actually won in the playoffs while Dalton has struggled mightily and has yet to give Cincinnati its first NFL postseason win since 1990. So while many people feel Kaepernick has earned his money, many more feel that Dalton has not, which is why his lucrative contract blindsided many Bengal fans.

This contract also brings with it many ripple effects, mainly what to do with other players on the Bengals such as Vontaze Burfict and A.J. Green. As of now, Burfict and the Bengals have not agreed to a new contract, and the Bengals exercised their fifth year option on Green. Burfict has been one of the best defensive investments the Bengals have had in years, and he is, unquestionably, worth a ton of money. Green has been Dalton’s favorite target ever since the two started their NFL careers together in the Queen City, and it can be argued that Dalton would not have had so much success as the quarterback of the Bengals had it not been for Green. Seeing as how Dalton signed an enormous contract, Green could demand a similar contract should he choose to stay with the Bengals.

Now I am not bashing Dalton. In fact, I am one of the few Bengal fans that like Dalton as he has been the most successful quarterback of the Bengals I have seen in my lifetime. However, giving him a contract based on seasons in which his playoff performances were lackluster with postseason victories being nonexistent seems foolish to me. But it is Mike Brown’s money, and he can do with it whatever he wants. All I can do is continue to root for the Bengals and hope they bring the Lombardi Trophy to Cincinnati.

Who-Dey!

Training Camp Tips

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone gives some advice on getting autographs at the training camp sessions of the Cincinnati Bengals.

New Cincy Fan Zone Bobblehead Page

New bobblehead page is now live on Cincy Fan Zone website at http://t.co/o1Zxf8kkzx! Check it out #Reds #Bengals #bobblehead

— Cincy Fan Zone (@cincyfanzone) July 31, 2014

Larkin is Coming Home…Sort Of

One of Cincinnati’s favorite sons is coming back to the Queen City in the form of a bobblehead. Starting this weekend, the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum will be giving away bobbleheads of former Cincinnati Reds shortstop and 2012 Major League Baseball Hall of Fame inductee, Barry Larkin.

The bobbleheads will be free with the purchase of a full price admission to the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays throughout the month of August starting on Friday, August 1. Tickets cost $10 for adults, $8 for students and senior citizens, and $6 for all active and former members of the military. There is a strict one bobblehead per visitor per day rule.

Considering how the Reds gave out Barry Larkin bobbleheads in 2001 and in 2006, I would expect demand for this nodder to be less than that of the Eric Davis nodder that was given out in July. However, Larkin is one of the more popular Reds from the 1990 World Series Championship team, and if you want this bobblehead, I suggest you get to the Hall of Fame and Museum as soon as possible as only 6000 bobbleheads were produced, and the supply might deplete rather quickly.

I have the Barry Larkin bobblehead that the Reds gave out during the 2006 season, so I will not be heading to the Hall of Fame and Museum to get the 2014 edition. Pictures of the 2014 version are online, and it does look like a cool bobblehead, so if you do not yet have a Larkin nodder in your collection, you might want to consider heading to the Hall of Fame and Museum to get one for yourself.

WWE Battleground 2014 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on WWE Battleground 2014 and the potential impact of the show on SummerSlam 2014.

Bengals Training Camp is Almost Here

Have you ever wanted to see your Cincinnati Bengals practice for the upcoming season? Now you can as the Cincinnati Bengals 2014 Training Camp starts Thursday, July 24 at 3 p.m.

Most of the practices will take place on the practice fields located to the west of Paul Brown Stadium. The only practices to take place in Paul Brown Stadium are the two “Family Day” events. The first will take place at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, August 2, and the other will happen on Saturday, August 9 at 3 p.m.

“Family Day” practice sessions feature things for kids such as face painters and balloon artists among other activities, as well as the opportunity for fans to win Bengal prize packs as well as purchase game tickets. Also, the first 1000 kids at the “Family Day” practices will get a free Cincinnati Bengals give-away item.

Training Camp is also a great opportunity for fans to get autographs of their favorite players. At the conclusion of each practice session, groups of players will be available for autographs for 15 minutes. The best time to get autographs is the “Family Day” practices as the entire roster of players is available to sign autographs once practice ends.

Training Camp is always a lot of fun to attend. You get to see the Bengals practice, and it offers a unique opportunity to interact with the players. I have been to the Bengals’ Training Camp three times, once when it was still held at Georgetown College and twice at Paul Brown Stadium, and all three times have been great. It is a fun way to get pumped up for the upcoming season, and I highly recommend attending at least one session.

Who Dey!

Billy Hamilton Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes the 2014 Cincinnati Reds SGA Billy Hamilton Bobblehead.

Ken Griffey Sr. Bobblehead Review

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone reviews the 2012 Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum Ken Griffey Sr. bobblehead.

"Teamless" Pete Rose Boblehead Review

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone reviews the 2002 unofficial "Teamless" Pete Rose bobblehead given out at a celebrity softball game that took place at Riverfront Stadium before it was demolished.

Four Reds Shine Bright

What could be better than winning a three-game home series against the division-leading Milwaukee Brewers? Being named to the National League All-Star team the very same day.

Aroldis Chapman, Johnny Cueto, Todd Frazier, and Devin Mesoraco will represent the Cincinnati Reds at Target Field in Minneapolis, MN, on July 15, as all four of these men were named members of the N.L. All-Star team.

This is the first All-Star appearance for everybody but Chapman as he made the N.L. All-Star team in 2012 and 2013. All four of these Reds are very deserving of this honor, and all but Mesoraco were voted in by the players. Mesoraco was named to the team by St. Louis Cardinals and N.L. All-Star team manager Mike Matheny.

Chapman has bounced back brilliantly from his horrifying spring training injury, recording 17 saves so far this season. Cueto has been the ace of the staff and has a record of 8-6 and a 1.99 ERA. Frazier has rebounded after last season’s slump and currently has a batting average of .291 while driving in 47 runs. Mesoraco is excelling in his first full year as starting catcher, as the Punxsutawney Powerhouse has driven in 42 runs while attaining a batting average of .317.

Congrats to these four players as they will make the Queen City proud during the All-Star break. I hope to see all four, as well as more Reds players, make the N.L. All-Star team next season as Great American Ball Park will be the site of 2015’s MLB All-Star Game. 

(On a side-note, I do not have a Devin Mesoraco bobblehead since the Reds have not released one, which is why he is not in the picture. Based on his performance so far this season, I believe the Reds should immortalize him with a bobblehead next season. Make it happen Reds!)

Welcome to Raw is Jericho

The night after Money in the Bank was almost as big as the actual pay-per-view itself. After an almost one year absence, Chris Jericho returned to the WWE on Monday’s episode of Raw.

Y2J‘s Monday night homecoming occurred as the Miz was cutting a promo for his new movie, The Marine 4: Moving Target. After interrupting the former Real World star, Jericho hit the Miz with a codebreaker much to the delight of both the crowd and myself. Just when Jerichoholics thought it could not get any better, WWE showed why they can be masters in both entertainment and surprises.

Following the codebreaker to the Miz, the Wyatt Family entered the ring and stared at Jericho. The intense stare down between the Ayatollah of Rock 'n' Rolla and the Wyatts had the crowd chanting, “this is awesome.” The Wyatts then attacked Jericho, setting up what seems to be a great summer rivalry that will culminate at SummerSlam.

I am a big Chris Jericho fan and was thrilled to see him come back on Monday. He is a master of debuts and returns, and Monday’s episode of Raw proved it. I can’t wait to see how this Jericho vs. Wyatt rivalry plays out during the summer months and hopefully, Jericho can work his magic and help take Bray Wyatt to the next level.

Brokenhearted in Brazil

The hearts of American soccer fans broke all over the world yesterday, as Belgium defeated the United States by a score of 2 – 1 in a World Cup thriller.

The match itself was filled with drama as outstanding goal keeping by Tim Howard of the United States held Belgium scoreless during regulation, sending the game into extra time. During the first period of extra time, however, things took a turn for the worse for the Americans.

Kevin De Bruyne of Belgium scored the first goal of the game during the third minute of extra time to give Belgium a 1 – 0 lead. Nine minutes later, Romelu Lukaku scored a goal to make it a 2 – 0 game in favor of Belgium.

During the second extra time period, a glimmer of hope for American soccer fans was provided by the youngest player on Team U.S.A., Julian Green, as he scored at the 107^th minute of the match. The Americans then began attacking the goal at a frantic pace and almost pulled even with Belgium when Clint Dempsey’s shot was stopped by Belgium goalie Thibaut Courtois at the game’s 114^th minute. Belgium was able to hold on for the 2 – 1 win.

This game was the very definition of a heartbreaker, and it had moments of despair and frustration as well as times of excitement and jubilation. It was an unbelievable match to watch, and it really showed how resilient the American team was. The Men's National Team has nothing to be ashamed about, as they were able to capture the heart of a nation with soccer. Based on their performance in the World Cup, things look pretty bright for the American soccer team as they begin looking toward the next World Cup.