Lefty swinging 2B Joe Morgan was a key cog in the Big Red Machine. In his 8 years with the Reds, he eclipsed 20 homers and 50 stolen bases in a season three times! Morgan won back to back N.L. MVP Awards in 1975 and 1976. In 1975, Morgan played in 146 games in which he was 163 for 498 (.327 avg, .974 OPS) with 107 runs scored, 17 homers, 94 RBIs and 67 stolen bases. He walked 132 times and he only whiffed 52 times in 1975. In 1976, Morgan played in 141 games for the Reds and he was 151 for 472 (.320 avg, 1.020 OPS) with 113 runs scored, 27 homers, 111 RBIs and 60 stolen bases. He walked 114 times while only whiffing 41 times in 1976, as Morgan had an awesome eye at the plate. Morgan played in 1,154 games in his 8 years with the Reds and he was 1,155 for 4,008 (.288 avg, .885 OPS) with 816 runs scored, 152 homers, 612 RBIs and 406 stolen bases. Morgan is #4 all-time in Reds’ history in OPS with a .885 mark. He is also #10 in runs scored (816), #2 in stolen bases (406) and #5 in walks (881) in Reds’ history. Morgan made the N.L. All-Star team all 8 seasons with the Reds. He also won 2 N.L. MVP Awards and he won 5 Gold Gloves with the Reds. Morgan was elected into Baseball’s Hall of Fame in 1990 on the strength of his time with the Cincinnati Reds.

37-year old righty reliever Danny Graves might not have had the best stuff, but he got the job done more often than not for the Reds. Graves pitched in 465 games (30 starts) in his 9 years with the Reds and he was 39-43 with 182 saves, a 3.94 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. He had at least 30 saves 4 different years and he also made the N.L. All-Star team twice with the Reds. His best season with the Reds came back in 2000. He pitched in 66 games (0 starts) for the Reds in 2000 and he was 10-5 with 30 saves, a 2.56 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Graves is the Reds’ all-time leader in saves with 182 and he’s also #5 in games pitched with 465.

Hall of Fame right starting pitcher Tom Seaver came to the Reds after his time with the Mets. Seaver pitched six years with the Reds. He pitched in 158 games (all starts) with the Reds and he was 75-46 with a 3.18 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. Seaver missed a lot of bats with the Reds as he only gave up 921 hits in his 1,085 2/3 innings with the Reds. Seaver’s best year with the Reds came in 1981 when he finished 2nd in the voting for the Cy Young Award. He pitched in 23 games (all starts) for the Reds in 1981 and he was 14-2 with a 2.54 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP. Seaver went into Baseball’s Hall of Fame in 1992 and he is currently #18 in major league history in wins with 311 of them.

The Big Red Machine of the 1970’s was one of the best teams I have ever seen and catcher Johnny Bench was a big part of it. He was a great power hitter and he had a howitzer attached to his right shoulder as he stopped opposing running games at will. Bench burst onto the scene in 1968 with the Reds when he won the Rookie of the Year Award, while also making the All-Star team and winning a Gold Glove. Bench played in 154 games in 1968 with the Reds and he was 155 of 564 (.275 avg, .743 OPS) with 67 runs scored, 15 homers, 82 RBIs and 1 stolen base. It didn’t take long for Bench to step up his play to the next level as he was the N.L. MVP in both 1970 and 1972. In 1970, Bench played in 158 games in which he was 177 of 605 (.293 avg, .932 OPS) with 97 runs scored, 45 homers, 148 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. He was almost as good in 1972 when he played in 147 games for the Reds in which he was 145 of 538 (.270 avg, .920 OPS) with 87 runs scored, 40 homers, 125 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. Bench wound up playing 17 seasons for the Reds in which he made it to the All-Star team 14 times and he also won 10 Gold Gloves behind the plate. Bench played in 2,158 games in his career and he was 2,048 for 7,658 (.267 avg, .817 OPS) with 1,091 runs scored, 389 homers, 1,376 RBIs and 68 stolen bases. Bench is #4 in Reds’ history in games played with 2,158. He is also #5 in hits (2,058), #4 in runs scored (1,091), #4 in doubles (381), #1 in homers (389), #1 in RBIs (1,376) and he’s #4 in walks (891) in Reds’ history. Johnny Bench played his whole career as a Cincinnati Red and that’s how he went into Baseball’s Hall of Fame in 1989.

Shortstop Barry Larkin played his whole career with the Cincinnati Reds. He played in 2,180 games in his 19 years with the Reds and he was 2,340 of 7,937 (.295 avg, .815 OPS) with 1,329 runs scored, 198 homers, 960 RBIs and 379 stolen bases. Barry Larkin was at his best for the Reds in 1995 and 1996 when he won back to back MVP Awards in the N.L. Larkin played in 131 games in 1995 in which he was 158 of 496 (.319 avg, .886 OPS) with 98 runs scored, 15 homers, 66 RBIs and 51 steals. He was even better in 1996 when he played in 152 games in which he was 154 of 517 (.298 avg, .977 OPS) with 117 runs scored, 33 homers, 89 RBIs and 36 stolen bases. Larkin played in 12 All-Star Games, won 8 Silver Slugger Awards and 3 Gold Gloves for the Reds. He is #3 all-time in Reds’ history in games played (2,180). Larkin is also #3 in runs scored (1,329), #2 in hits (2,340), #2 in doubles (441), #9 in homers (198), #6 in RBIs (960), #3 in walks (939) and he is #3 in stolen bases (379) in the history of the Cincinnati Reds. Whether Larkin gets in Baseball’s Hall of Fame or not he is one of the best players in the history of the Cincinnati Reds.

UPDATE: (1/9/2011) - Barry Larkin has been elected to Baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York as he got 86% of the vote from the Baseball Writers of America.