Cincinnati embraced the first pro ballplayers, the 1869 Red Stockings, & since then, the lavish Opening Day celebrations have become a matter of pride for the whole city. The 2003 season was the grandest celebration of Reds baseball that the city has ever seen, thanks to the opening of Great American Ball Park, a $325 million marvel. A national audience tuned in to watch Cincinnati host the Pittsburgh Pirates on March 31, 2003. Here, join an illustrious cast of photographers as they explore the new home of Reds baseball to snap images of the city's annual celebration in full-color. Every page captures the excitement of the fans, the historic Findlay Market Parade, an inside tour of the Ball Park, the field, & the players who made it all possible.

The beginning of a new age of Cincinnati Reds baseball is detailed in full-color splendor through this remarkable new book. Opening Day at Great American Ball Park follows all of the activities of the inaugural Opening Day at Cincinnati's new home for baseball, as the Reds battled the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday, March 31, 2003. Located at 100 Main Street, the new stadium features a grass field and seating for over 42,000 baseball-crazed fans, making it the new standard for ballparks across America. Photos filling every page capture glimpses of the fans, an inside tour of Great American Ball Park, the field, and, of course, the players who make it all possible.

From minor league teams such as the Iowa Cubs and Las Vegas 51s to the major league ball clubs including the Cincinnati Reds and New York Yankees, these fun, engaging books tell the stories of young local boys who dream of stepping to the plate for their favorite baseball franchises. Filled with relatable stories away from the baseball field as well, these coming-of-age tales show the importance of never giving up hope and always believing in dreams. Michael “Fuji” Powers always dreamed of joining the Cincinnati Reds on the field at Great American Ball Park, and now he stands at the plate ready to live his fantasy of hitting a home run. Filled with fun and engaging stories, this relatable coming-of-age story will show children the importance of believing in their dreams and never giving up hope.

Young Fuji Powers, playing minor league baseball in Ohio, gets his wish to play at the home field of the team he idolizes, the Cincinnati Reds.

Chuck Harmons life story symbolizes and transcends our countrys struggle for civil rights and equality. From his humble beginnings as one of the 12 children of Sherman and Rosa Harmon in Southern Indiana, to the pressure of death threats as a Cincinnati player, this gentlemen big leaguer is an example of those African American pioneers who helped make a mockery of hate and injustice with integrity, decency, and iron will. From the stories of an early meeting with Babe Ruth to rooting for his beloved Cincinnati Reds today, Chuck Harmons compelling life story symbolizes all that is good about Americas pastime and its oldest professional franchise. His great-great grandfather fought and died for freedom in the Civil War. Less than 100 years later, Chuck Harmon was still fighting for justice - not with a gun and bayonet, but with a golden glove and hot bat. Chuck Harmon is proud to be called, Cincinnatis First Black Red. This book is an important look at the parallel benchmarks in baseball and civil rights, and Chuck Harmon is one of the quiet patriots who helped make America truly a country where all men and women should expect to be treated equally.

The book, Let There Be Light : A History of Night Baseball 1880 to 2008 will show the evolutionary process that took 50 years ( 1880 to 1930) before minor league baseball adopted the idea of playing baseballat night. After breaking into the minors, it only took five years before the Majors, grudgingly accepted the idea proposed by Leland "Larry" MacPhailand Powel Crosley to light up Crosley Field in Cincinnati, Ohio. The book has over 70 photographs,17 documents, diagrams, charts,and letters andover 90pages of history, stories,and events. Theend result is a historyof modern day lighted baseball fields which provide healthy entertainment to millions of people every year. This is not a book of statistics, but is one which reveals how civilizationand culture develops through hard workand visionary leaders. Thefirst World Series night gamewas played in1971. But, by 1985 every World Series game is playedat night. Night baseball is an eventand is just as exciting as a day game, but much cooler, unless you have anair conditioned stadium. Let's go see a baseball game tonight after work. To see more about the book, text & photos, Go to Google.com & type: Light Baseball Major Bob Payne or the new You Tube , video @ Light Baeball Major Bob Payne

Put on your cleats and batting gloves! The Cincinnati Reds adventure continues with a tour of Great American Ball Park! Join Gapper as he searches for his mascot friends and learns all about the Reds' home field. This journey takes him from the Riverfront Club to the pitcher's mound. Help Gapper find his friends and learn about the home of the world's first professional baseball team, the Cincinnati Reds!

In this ultimate resource guide for true fans of baseball's first professional team, author Joel Luckhaupt has collected every essential piece of Cincinnati Reds trivia, as well as must-do activities, and ranked them from one to 100, providing an entertaining and easy-to-follow checklist for fans to complete in their lifetime. Most Reds fans have taken in a game or two at the Great American Ball Park, have seen highlights of the Big Red Machine, and remember the team's surprising triumph in the 1990 World Series. But only real fans know which 15-year-old took the mound for the Reds in 1944, can name the pitcher who gave up Pete Rose's 4,192nd hit, or remember how many dogs owner Marge Schott owned. 100 Things Reds Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die is the perfect book for any fan of Reds baseball, whether a die-hard booster from the days of Ted Kluszewski or a new supporter of Joey Votto, Johnny Cueto, and Aroldis Chapman.

Cincinnati Magazine taps into the DNA of the city, exploring shopping, dining, living, and culture and giving readers a ringside seat on the issues shaping the region.

On September 11, 1985, with a sell-out crowd of 52,000 fans on hand at Cincinnati's Riverfront Stadium and millions of others watching on television, Pete Rose collected hit number 4,192 of his career and passed Ty Cobb as the all-time career hits leader. As he reached first base, thousands of cameras flashed, his teammates mobbed him, fireworks exploded and the crowd overwhelmed him with a seven-minute standing ovation. Rose was on top of the world. Less than four years later, he would be banned for life from baseball for allegedly betting on major league games, roundly criticized in the press by both fans and fellow players, and then convicted for tax evasion. In 2003, fourteen years after he was made ineligible for the Hall of Fame, Commissioner Bud Selig took up Rose's application for reinstatement, igniting once again an intense debate about his legacy and baseball's long-standing zero-tolerance policy on gambling. This book gathers the available facts of Rose's life and career, as well as the scandals he was embroiled in, leaving the reader a more informed participant in the ongoing discussion.