Customer Reviews

The Machine: A Hot Team, a Legendary Season, and a Heart-stopping World Series: The Story of the 1975 Cincinnati Reds

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Joe Posnanski's new book, "The Machine" might be the best baseball book of the year. Like the author, I grew up idolizing the Big Red Machine as a youngster. As a nine year old, I remember listening to Marty and Joe call the Reds games on WLW nearly every night from my small southern Indiana town. The team was unbelievable and Posnanski's book captures the excitement of the Reds 1975 championship quest. It is clear that the author used in-depth interviews with many member of the Machine. He gives the reader fascinating insights into the lives of Sparky Anderson, Joe Morgan, Johnny Bench, Tony Perez, and Pete Rose at the height of their professional success. I found Sparky Anderson's class system interesting - his stars (Bench, Rose, Morgan, and Perez) had their own set of clubhouse and training rules. The rest of the players, who Sparky called his turds, answered to another set of rules (Anderson's) while all the time trying to claw their way into Anderson's favored elite class. The system worked because the four Reds superstars would not allow anyone, including themselves, an overly inflated ego. Pranks, jokes, and razzing kept the Reds a loose bunch of superstars. No one's ego got too carried away.

Posnanski correctly describes the team's slow start in '75 and the desperate lineup adjustment by Anderson - moving Rose from left field to third base, thus free up LF for a young, blossoming George Foster - that sparked the Reds amazing summer run. There has been no team as talented or good as the Reds since 1975 and Posnanski does a masterful job telling the entire season's story. Including a great job describing the infamous '75 World Series. Others may criticize his writing style as too simplistic, but from my perspective, the book reads as smoothly as any baseball book I have ever read. I could not put it down.

Finally, perhaps the most interesting part of the book is Posnanski's insights and discussions with Pete Rose. We all know about Pete's troubled past: the gambling on baseball, the lies, the tax evasion, the time in federal prison. I struggle with my feeling about Rose. One day I hate him for what he has turned into. Other days, (and as I read this book) I remember what an incredible ball player he was. Rose is truly a bigger than life character, possibly the most competitive person to ever play the game. Pete Rose is truly an American tragedy, but Posnanski allowed me to once again see Rose through the eyes of an unspoiled, awe-struck, nine year old. Pete Rose will always be one of the heroes of my youth. Thanks Joe for a great book.

The Big Red Machine was my team from the moment in 1974 when I realized that I couldn't stand Steve Garvey, and loved Johnny Bench. Part of this was due to my older brother being a Dodger fan, and me wanting to root against that brother.

This book brings back many fond memories of 1975, when I had my initiation into the world of baseball nuthood. The writing is user-friendly, but overly simplistic at times, and the pages turn rapidly because the book spends little time dwelling on any topic, and barely goes into any details that haven't been heard before. The reason this book rates only three-stars is that it feels like an appetizer. There's not much meat, and I'm hungry for more details.

This was a very entertaining read, but I was hoping for more.

"Bunch of losers," (Pete) Rose shouted. "We can't lose this game. We will not lose this game!"

It was the top of the sixth inning in the seventh game of the 1975 World Series, and the "Big Red Machine" was running on fumes in Fenway Park. Trailing 3-0 to the Boston Red Sox, the club was lucky to still be batting, since Pete Rose broke up a possible double play by sliding hard into second base. With Johnny Bench on first, Tony Perez stepped into the batter's box to face Bill "Spaceman" Lee; the same Perez who - months earlier - was nearly traded to Kansas City, Boston, Oakland or the Yankees.

"Pete turned from his yelling to watch Tony Perez hit," writes Joe Posnanski, in The Machine: A Hot Team, a Legendary Season, and a Heart-stopping World Series: The Story of the 1975 Cincinnati Reds (September 15, 2009; William Morrow: An Imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers). "Bill Lee began his windup, and then unleashed it one more time, his slow curveball, and Perez saw it, his eyes widened, and he did something funny in his swing. He buckled like a car trying to jump into second gear."

And as the batted ball arced into the sky, a World Series for the ages was poised to take yet another dramatic turn, which already included "The Armbrister Incident" in Game Three, the iconic pose of Red Sox star catcher Carlton Fisk as he watched his Game Six winning homer in the 12th inning at 12:34 a.m. in Fenway Park and three days of rain that only created more intrigue and excitement as both clubs stood toe-to-toe and landed incredible haymakers from October 11 to 22.

Posnanski goes into the clubhouse, dugout and executive offices, while covering each base on the diamond, to tell a story of fun, feuds and friends, with a neat dose of drama that could have torn average teams apart. Though the Reds ultimately dominated the National League - winning the West Division by 20 games, while notching an incredible 108-54 record, and besting the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-0 for the NL crown - the team was muddling along at 12-11 on May 2 when manager Sparky Anderson asked Rose to move from left field to third base.

Posnanski writes: "More than thirty years later, Pete Rose thought back with wonder to that moment. `Who else would just agree to play third base in the middle of the season?' he asked. `Just like that. Who else? You name one star who would do that. I was an All-Star in left field.'"

On June 8, the Reds had a 32-22 record and a slim 1½ game lead in the division. The club pushed the advantage to seven games on June 30 - 48-28 - and turned the race into a solo victory march by August 25; upping the advantage to 16½ games, while sporting a record of 84-44. And there were changes happening in other aspects of the game as the team was being paced by NL Most Valuable Player Joe Morgan, Rose, Bench and pitchers Don Gullett, Gary Nolan and Clay Carroll.

"Baseball players - most of them anyway - did not lift weights in 1975," writes Posnanski. "Still, the Reds had one of the first Nautilus pullover machines. It was a gift from Arthur Jones, the inventor. Jones had this idea that he could create a machine that would help everyday people build up their muscles without going to a dark gym and lifting enormous barbells for hours.

"He wanted to say that his machine pumped up the Big Red Machine. Of course, none of the players used the thing except to hang jockstraps on it."

And the heavy weight of free agency was about to be hoisted by each player: "The baseball players' union (after the 1975 season) would use a couple of pitchers - Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally - to challenge baseball's `reserve clause,'" writes Posnanski. "The clause basically came down to one sentence that stated if the player and team could not come to terms, then the `club shall have the right by written notice to the Player to renew this contract for the period of one year on the same terms.'"

But none of that mattered as the ball hit by Perez refused to stay inside the field of play. "And it was a home run, a long home run that sailed over the Green Monster, into the black of night, and nobody ever saw it land," Posnanski writes. "After (Perez) hit his home run, the Reds trailed by a run (3-2), but the Machine arrogance had returned."

The Reds tied it in the seventh when Ken Griffey, Sr., walked, stole second and scored on a two-out single by Rose, who would be named World Series MVP. It was a bloop single by Morgan in the ninth that scored Griffey, Sr., from second which gave the Reds a 4-3 win. After reliever Will McEnaney got the final out in the bottom of the inning - Carl Yastrzemski flying out to centerfielder Cesar Geronimo - a wild celebration ensued on the field, but it was missing perhaps the most crucial member of the club; a shrewd strategist who had been with the franchise since 1970.

"(Sparky) walked back into the clubhouse," writes Posnanski. "He did not want to be on the field - that was for the players. He wanted his moment alone. There were tears in his eyes. The Reds were what he had always hoped. Winners."

If you grew up a Reds fan, you'll love this book for the insight it provides into the 1975 season. Also, the writing style is very active, which is enjoyable in a time when most authors have apparently forgotten how to write. The book is full of detail and explained many of the personalities of the Big Red Machine. Overall, one of the best baseball books I've read.

The Machine is an incredible book, especially when one considers that the subject matter, the 1975 Cincinatti Reds and the 1975 World Series, are not exactly subjects lacking in exposure. The Machine makes its mark by putting the focus not just on the stars of the Big Red Machine (Rose, Bench, Perez, Morgan) but by also giving the lesser known Reds of that era their moment in the spotlight as well. Of particular interest is the focus on just how big a divide there was between manager Sparky Anderson and his pitchers, whom he showed very little interest in, and gave them even less respect. For anyone like me, who grew up idolizing The Big Red Machine, or for those just learning about this classic team, The Machine is a great source of information and a wonderful read.

I have been a Reds fan since my birth. I chose my college simply because the Reds where in Cincy. I lived in Columbus after school. I listened to every Reds game in 1975, went to several. This book catches the human side of the Big Red Machine in a way most sports books can not. The author knows baseball and it sows. The fear of failure that losing the 70 and 72 World Series comes thru clear. The consequence of moving Rose to third - a big, big deal at the time, especially since Rose couldn't handle it in 1966, is closely scrutinized. The emergence of Capt Hook, Sparky Anderson s trials and travails, all less know , were show in context with the times and the strong personality he managed to handle. Drama, reality, a time pre-free agency, never to be seen again. The book is a great ride thru all this and more!

Posnanski has written an ode to the 1975 Cincinnati Reds, lavishing the sort of attention on one of the modern era's greatest teams (dare we say *the* greatest team?) that would have already been the fodder for dozens of books had Morgan, Bench, Rose, Perez and Co. played in New York or Boston. As it is, most books relating to 1975 dwell on that memorable sixth game--and the Red Sox's magical victory--while relegating the inevitable Cincinnati seventh-game triumph to footnote status. But I come to praise Posnanski, not to stomp sour grapes.

The story of the 1975 Reds is fun. Larger-than-life baseball heroes playing the game better than it's ever been played since. Sure, there's some dirty laundry: the disrespected "turds," the even less respected pitching staff, the slighted Ken Griffey. And Posnanski doesn't whitewash his subjects. Rather, he allows us to observe with humanity and clear-colored glasses the day-by-day unfolding of this magical season, and the wart-by-wart and hit-by-hit blossoming of these unique players. Although I came of age with the Big Red Machine, I met in Posnanski's pages a Bench and Morgan and Perez and Rose and Griffey and Geronimo and Concepcion and Foster I knew only one-dimensionally. These were men who loved the game--each in his own way--and who seduced me and spoiled me into a lifelong love (and respect) for the game and the way they played it.

I can quibble with "The Machine's" repetition of small details (Geronimo almost became a priest, got it) and the general absence of memories and insights from the maligned pitchers (except Gary Nolan) and over-looked "turds" (role players). I can quibble with his final chapter focus on Pete Rose's fall from grace (and smuggly congratulate my younger self for recognzing Rose's self-righteousness long before I knew the meaning of the word "self-righteousness"). But ignore these quibbles. Instead, hear me trumpet this small volume that took me back to a beautiful team that's never gotten the credit it deserved.

The Big Red Machine has gotten a lot of press in its day. Even 35 years later, two books come out at the same time; Game Six and this one, The Machine. Even though I am a lifelong Reds fan, I must say my expectations were not high going in reading this book. I think that is why it was such a delight to read. Joe Posnanski brings a fresh approach to a subject I thought had been done to death. He does an excellent job at taking all the anecdotes and stories I have heard about the Big Red Machine, and told them in such a way as to be entertaining and funny as hell.

I found myself laughing outloud a lot while reading this, not something I do that often. When Rose makes fun of Joe Morgan's height by telling him not to stand close to the bat rack because someone was liable to mistake him for a bat and use him, I was guffawing. The one thing Sparkey Andersen was always given a lot of credit for was juggling the many personalities of the Big Red Machine from Bench and Rose, to Morgan and Perez, and Griffey and Conception. The same can be said for Posnanski. He juggles all their stories, all their perspectives, all their talents.

A well written baseball book is hard to find. I find myself having to read at least ten of them to find one gem and this would be my latest. I think the author's best talent is showing instead of telling. Like when Joe Morgan is talking about how close the Big Red Machine still is and yet he is the only one of them to attend the funeral of Bob Howsam, the man who put them together. Or when Pete staunchly denies being sorry for betting on baseball, and then turns around and signs what is termed an apology ball at the autograph place he works where he signs it "I'm sorry I bet on baseball". Most authors would add their own commentary or make the point with a ton of bricks, but many times Posnanski lets these scenes speak for themselves. He does something most authors don't have the courage to do; give the reader a little credit.

While this book contains a lot of detail for Cincinnati fans, a far deeper and better written book about the 1975 World Series is The Sixth Game by Mark Frost. Frost does a much better job of setting the series against baseball history and what was to come after 1975, especially the impact of free agency. He is also much better than Posnanski in detailing the "warts" on the players, and especially those on management.

This book takes me back to when I was a 12 year old boy with the only worry in world was whether I was going to be able to listen to the Big Red Machine that night. The Cincinnati Reds of the 70's were my baseball heroes. I grew up listening to nearly every game(If you remember very few games were on TV in the 70's). Many of the games mentioned I can vividly remember and I even attended a couple of them. The author has done a very good job of recreating the times and what was going on in 1975. Many things that are related here were not public knowledge then,nor should have been. But now 35 years after the fact give great background information to what made the Big Red Machine tick. Rose,Bench,Morgan and Perez made the Machine go and Sparky Anderson knew what gears to shift it into to make it run at the highest level. More could have been added but I could keep reading about the Big Red Machine infintely. This is a must read for all Cincinnati Reds fans and baseball historians.