1969 Cincinnati Reds season

MLB yearly infobox alt‎
name = Cincinnati Reds
season = 1969
misc =

current league = National League
y1 = 1890
division = Western Division
y2 = 1969
Uniform
ballpark = Crosley Field
y4 = 1934
city = Cincinnati, Ohio
y5 = 1882
owners = Francis Dale
general managers = Bob Howsam
managers =Dave Bristol
television = WLW
(Ed Kennedy, Pee Wee Reese)
radio = WLW
(Jim McIntyre, Joe Nuxhall)|The Cincinnati Reds' 1969 season consisted of the Reds finishing in third place in the National League West Division, four games behind the NL West Champion Atlanta Braves. The Reds were managed by Dave Bristol, and played their home games at Crosley Field, which was in its final full season of operation, before moving into their new facility in the middle of the following season.

Divisional alignment

1969 not only marked the 100th anniversary of the original Cincinnati Red Stockings being the first fully professional baseball team, but it also marked the first year of divisional play in Major League Baseball. The Reds (along with the Braves) were placed in the NL West division, despite being located further east than the 2 westernmost teams in the NL East Division, the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals. This was because the New York Mets wanted to be in the same division as the reigning power in the NL, which were the Cardinals at the time (to compensate for playing against the Dodgers and Giants fewer times each season). The Cubs consequently demanded to be in the NL East as well in order to continue playing in the same division as the Cardinals, one of the Cubs' biggest rivals. A side effect of this alignment is that it set the stage for what is considered one of the greatest pennant races - and comebacks in such a race - in MLB history (see 1969 New York Mets season for more info).

Offseason

*October 14, 1968: Jimy Williams was drafted by the Montreal Expos from the Cincinnati Reds as the 32nd pick in the 1968 expansion draft. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/w/williji03.shtml Jimy Williams Statistics - Baseball-Reference.com ] ]

Regular season

eason standings

Notable Transactions

June 5, 1969: Ken Griffey, Sr. was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the 29th round of the 1969 amateur draft. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/g/griffke01.shtml Ken Griffey Statistics - Baseball-Reference.com ] ]

Roster

Relief pitchers

Awards and Honors

* Pete Rose, National League Batting Champion
* Pete Rose, Lou Gehrig Award

References

* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CIN/1969.shtml 1969 Cincinnati Reds season at Baseball Reference]