Rival Teams

[Brad Harris]

What teams do you consider to be the Reds' "rivals" these days? What about historically?

[redlegsfan21]

Well, I think that Reds fans would consider the Cubs to be our rivals. The geography makes this rival. I don't think there is another team in which we truly want to beat.

Historically, it has to be the Los Angeles Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, and New York Mets.

[timothy]

I'd say the Cubs too... thanks to Marty brennaman for that of course... but other than that, there's really is not much of a rivalry going on, even with the Cubs in my opinion.

I do like the Reds- Indians game every year now... I look forward to those...

[gman5431]

Historically the answer is simple, the LA Dodgers. However, ever since the realignment of the 90s, now they only play LA twice a season. The Pirates were also a good rival of the Reds, but that has also disapated to a certain extend because neither team has been very competitive over the past decade. Also, the Mets were a rival in the 70s to a certain extent, but not on the same level as the Pirates and LA. The Indians is a contrived rivalry due to interleague play. While i do think it is a great idea to play a home and away every year instead of an extra series against some other random AL team, to consider a team in a completely different league as your rival seems pretty inapporpriate to me.

G Man

[gman5431]

I dont consider the Cubs as our rival. They are heated rivals with the STL Cardinals. They have always been so horrible and rarely in contention that they were never a rival with Cincy, or at least that never developed. In the past few years Chicago has been good but Cincy hasnt really been in it and if you ask any Cubs fan who their rival is they will say STL.

G Man

[redlegsfan21]

I dont consider the Cubs as our rival. They are heated rivals with the STL Cardinals. They have always been so horrible and rarely in contention that they were never a rival with Cincy, or at least that never developed. In the past few years Chicago has been good but Cincy hasnt really been in it and if you ask any Cubs fan who their rival is they will say STL.

G Man

Rivalries are not always mutual. You have to ask yourself, what is the one team you really want to beat more than any other team and to me, that team is the Cubs.

[gman5431]

Rivalries are not always mutual. You have to ask yourself, what is the one team you really want to beat more than any other team and to me, that team is the Cubs.

Thats based on what has happened in the past 4-5 years. True rivalries develop overtime and my point is that in the past the answer was the Dodgers and Pirates. Right now a poll may show the Cubs are the Reds "rival" because they won the division last year and are again this year. However, if the Brewers had won last year and were leading this year then i bet they would be our "rival."

G Man

[redlegsfan21]

Thats based on what has happened in the past 4-5 years. True rivalries develop overtime and my point is that in the past the answer was the Dodgers and Pirates. Right now a poll may show the Cubs are the Reds "rival" because they won the division last year and are again this year. However, if the Brewers had won last year and were leading this year then i bet they would be our "rival."

G Man

Not for me, I base the Cubs-Reds rivalry based on the geography and the diversity of fans that show up to the Reds-Cubs games. You can only base a rivalry on records if both teams were battling for the division. I think that most Reds fans would say they hate the Cubs and their fans (I almost agree with this statement, I discovered intelligent Cub fans) and this hate has been brewin' for a while, long before Marty went on his rant.

[gman5431]

Not for me, I base the Cubs-Reds rivalry based on the geography and the diversity of fans that show up to the Reds-Cubs games. You can only base a rivalry on records if both teams were battling for the division. I think that most Reds fans would say they hate the Cubs and their fans (I almost agree with this statement, I discovered intelligent Cub fans) and this hate has been brewin' for a while, long before Marty went on his rant.

Based on geography, Pittsburgh is closer and STL is more or less equal distant as ChiTown. Marty's rant did little to create a rivalry or hate, but most of what he said had a point, Pirates fans are quiet and few and far between, STL fans are informed and smart knowledge baseball people and Cubs fans are largely ignorant drunkards who believe they can act that way because "everyone adores their loveable losers." Of course these are rash generalizations, but i have found them to be true more often then not. At this point in time i dont feel like the Reds have a true rival, mostly because they havent been in contention.

G Man

[redlegsfan21]

Based on geography, Pittsburgh is closer and STL is more or less equal distant as ChiTown. Marty's rant did little to create a rivalry or hate, but most of what he said had a point, Pirates fans are quiet and few and far between, STL fans are informed and smart knowledge baseball people and Cubs fans are largely ignorant drunkards who believe they can act that way because "everyone adores their loveable losers." Of course these are rash generalizations, but i have found them to be true more often then not. At this point in time i dont feel like the Reds have a true rival, mostly because they havent been in contention.

G Man

Actually Wrigley Field and PNC Park are both 257 miles away from Great American Ball Park.

[Brad Harris]

Not for me, I base the Cubs-Reds rivalry based on the geography and the diversity of fans that show up to the Reds-Cubs games. You can only base a rivalry on records if both teams were battling for the division. I think that most Reds fans would say they hate the Cubs and their fans (I almost agree with this statement, I discovered intelligent Cub fans) and this hate has been brewin' for a while, long before Marty went on his rant.

Agreed. Of course I spent a dozen years living in Missouri, too. Much as Lee Elias deserved his firing, that didn't make him wrong. ;) I'm disgusted that everytime I attend a Cubs-Reds game at GAB there's as much blue as red in the crowd. Of course, we have only ourselves to blame for that, but still...it doesn't help. :laugh

[gman5431]

MOST rivalries, especially in baseball exist with the fans only anyways. Any rival of the Reds currently is contrived to a certain extent. With the way players move around these days and the fact the Reds havent been truly in it in a while makes it a moot point.

G Man

[Florida White Sox]

MOST rivalries, especially in baseball exist with the fans only anyways. Any rival of the Reds currently is contrived to a certain extent. With the way players move around these days and the fact the Reds haven't been truly in it in a while makes it a moot point.

G Man

Agreed.

Cubs/Reds - Only because the Cubs have so many fans due to WGN.

Mets/Reds - Not so much now, but to some extent up until the 1986 Ray Knight/Eric Davis brawl.

Pirates/Reds - When, 1970-1979? And that was only in the playoffs.

Cardinals/Reds - Contrived

Indians/Reds - Overly contrived and hyped out of the stratosphere. Nothing there...

Dodgers/Reds - Historically, across several decades, yes.