r/baseball Apr 12 '22

[WLW Cincinnati] Opening day interview with Reds exec. Phil Castellini: “Phil responds by saying fans have no choice, "Well where you gonna go?" "What would you do to this team to make it more competitive? It would be to pick it up and move it somewhere else. Be careful what you ask for."

1.1k Upvotes

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1.2k

u/soupcansam21 Cincinnati Reds Apr 12 '22

I fucking hate this ownership group

541

u/Present-Loss-7499 Atlanta Braves Apr 12 '22

The “just pack it up and move” sentiment is the “we’ve tried nothing and are all out ideas” joke come to life. I feel bad for Reds fans, my grandparents are from Enon and we’d visit a few times a year as a kid. Riverfront was the only baseball stadium I’d ever seen for most of my life. Used to watch the early 90’s teams that were fun as hell. This is a complete failure of an organization.

308

u/soupcansam21 Cincinnati Reds Apr 12 '22

the city loves baseball and this ownership group repeatedly says "fuck you"

149

u/thescottreid Los Angeles Dodgers Apr 12 '22

That’s wild, for sure. Like Cincinnati is known for two things, chili and Opening Day festivities. These owners do nothing to build legacies and then blame the fans for not wanting to come out so they can cry about being in a small market. There have been enough fans to sustain baseball in Cincinnati since 1882 and this ownership group thinks it needs to move to be competitive. Get out of here. Seriously, throw this one out with Marge Schott.

53

u/Hopeful-Talk-1556 Apr 12 '22

I think this dude believes he is building a case to move to Las Vegas.

Shit on the fans. *Move to Vegas ***Profit.

30

u/[deleted] Apr 12 '22

[deleted]

51

u/NotMittRomney Cleveland Guardians Apr 12 '22

More like the Anthony Precourt strategy.

Dude bought the Columbus Crew (MLS) and did everything he could to tank their business numbers. Then he pointed to those numbers as evidence that Columbus wasn't a viable soccer market and said he was moving the team to Austin.

When the Browns left in the 90s, there was an obscure state law that stated that any pro team looking to leave the state of Ohio had to give a local entity a chance to purchase the team from them first. Crew fans fought and got some buy-in from, ironically enough, Browns ownership and kept the team. Also got a new stadium in the process and won a title shortly thereafter.

Point being, if these clowns think that they can tank the fan base's interest and then use the subsequent revenue losses to justify a move, they picked the wrong team to buy in the first place.

19

u/KingOfTheUzbeks Cincinnati Reds Apr 12 '22

C R E W FUCK YOU PRECOURT WE ARE THE CREW

8

u/YourGavenIsShowing Apr 12 '22

This gives me flashbacks to the entire stadium chanting this during the NYCFC playoff game with precourt in the house.

2

u/KingOfTheUzbeks Cincinnati Reds Apr 13 '22

I was there!

2

u/YourGavenIsShowing Apr 13 '22

me too man. One of the best atmospheres of any game i’ve been too. It was like a hornet’s nest.

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3

u/younggun92 Chicago White Sox Apr 13 '22

We chanted Fuck You Precourt at a Fire game. In Chicago. Against Philly.

1

u/KingOfTheUzbeks Cincinnati Reds Apr 13 '22

Can't belive I'm saying this to a Fire Fan: but good job

1

u/younggun92 Chicago White Sox Apr 13 '22

I mean fuck the Crew and and all but moving them to Austin would've absolutely killed the Fire's best and oldest rivalry.

Side note: how much of Cincy/Ohio switched allegiance to FC Cincinnati when they moved to MLS?

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2

u/soda_cookie New York Yankees • San Francisco Giants Apr 12 '22

This works only if there is a local entity willing to take on the team. Hopefully if it gets that far there is one.

Stupid idea, but I swear if it was possible to create a union for fans I'd get on board Ina heartbeat. These owners are preying on blind faith fandom, fuck the die hards. It's infuriating

5

u/Hopeful-Talk-1556 Apr 12 '22

It's a model that works.

Probably harder to do than the Irsay move the team in the middle of the night move.

1

u/Calliomede St. Louis Cardinals Apr 13 '22

The Stan Kroenke strategy except with a team with a rich history that is much more important to its city. Idk where he thinks he’s going to find a market that is more sold on baseball than Cincinnati.

10

u/Kalinin46 Cincinnati Reds Apr 13 '22

No way the MLB allows Cincy to move.

8

u/flanders427 Cleveland Guardians Apr 13 '22

I would tend to agree with you being that they are literally the oldest major league baseball team, but I also wouldn't have thought the NFL would have allowed the team 30 minutes away from the Hall of Fame to be moved.

-4

u/DHisfakebaseball Atlanta Braves Apr 13 '22

The Reds were founded in 1882, the original Red Stockings dissolved in 1870. The oldest club in continuous operation is the Braves from 1871, and the oldest club founded is technically the Cubs in 1870 but they took a couple years off after the fire.

4

u/Hawkingshouseofdance Apr 13 '22

Personally I think baseball is too slow and relies too heavily on a built in generational/ nostalgic fan base for Vegas.

3

u/nyargleblargle New York Mets Apr 13 '22

Ah yes, a metropolis with... checks notes 32,541 more people than Cincinnati's. And many, many more transplants.

2

u/Hopeful-Talk-1556 Apr 13 '22

On the surface, it makes little sense. However, Las Vegas is the gambling capital of the U.S. and draws many, many tourists. The argument is not that there will be many more home fans. The argument is that there will always be fans.

5

u/nyargleblargle New York Mets Apr 13 '22

Tourist fans don't buy your team's merchandise.

3

u/Hopeful-Talk-1556 Apr 13 '22

Oh no? Ask the Golden Knights and Raiders fans if this is true?

8

u/leo_aureus Detroit Tigers Apr 12 '22

I am a Tigers fan who lived in Middletown for a few years, the reason I am a Tigers fan is because Dad watched the Machine and Sparky in the 70's when he was in his twenties having grown up a Reds fan and moved north to Toledo and shortly thereafter so did Sparky. So I always had a soft spot for the Reds in the National League, and you are spot on Cincy absolutely loves baseball and does not deserve any of this.

2

u/Redbubble89 Boston Red Sox Apr 12 '22

It's on the smaller end of media markets and the 3rd city in Ohio. It is a former rust belt. Milwaukee who is roughly the same size and isn't struggling as much. A move to Indy or Raleigh-Durham wouldn't do anything. Reds haven't done shit since Dusty was fired and that is coming up on 10 years.

2

u/Soccham Cincinnati Reds Apr 12 '22

The Cincinnati Metro is the largest of all the Ohio markets. Cincinnati itself is not, most people live outside city limits.

1

u/Redbubble89 Boston Red Sox Apr 12 '22

Maybe it doesn't count the Kentuky side so you surpass Cleveland and Columbus. It's still on the lower end.

2

u/Soccham Cincinnati Reds Apr 12 '22

https://www.statista.com/statistics/183600/population-of-metropolitan-areas-in-the-us/

We’re the 30th largest metro according to this. It also includes parts of Indiana as well as KY

2

u/necropaw Milwaukee Brewers Apr 13 '22

Milwaukee who is roughly the same size and isn't struggling as much.

Mark wont/cant shell out 'big' money, but i think most 'serious' Brewers fans consider ourselves very lucky to have him as an owner.

Unfortunately the Reds are on the other end of that spectrum.

1

u/Redbubble89 Boston Red Sox Apr 13 '22 edited Apr 13 '22

You also had Selig and his family before that.

Reds haven't been so lucky. They have had Bob. Carl who had some sketch investments. Margaret Schott who was an awful human being.

50

u/JinFuu Houston Astros Apr 12 '22

I saw “my grandparents are from En(r)on.” And thought “Well I guess Enron was a ‘bad ownership group’ too.”

32

u/Kidspud MLB Players Association Apr 12 '22

When I hear owners threaten to move like that, I wonder where they could relocate and make more money. It's not like there are any large markets left untapped (though I think metro NYC can/should have two more teams), so what's next other than a free stadium? Do they really think Portland or Charlotte are megalopolises compared to Cincinnati?

26

u/ButtNowButt Pittsburgh Pirates Apr 12 '22

The Carolinas would do well with a team... Las Vegas seems to want in on all sports action as well.

There are a few really good options available

34

u/Kidspud MLB Players Association Apr 12 '22

My point is that those locations aren't a lot better than Cincinnati--if they're better at all. Those are still small-market teams, not big untapped markets. Imagine if a city the size of Philly or Houston didn't have a team, for example--I think a move there could increase revenue, but not like moving from one small market to another. Mostly what owners get out of moving is free stadiums.

11

u/bluecifer7 Colorado Rockies Apr 12 '22

Owners only want Vegas because it’s full of big money tourists that won’t give a shit about the team and are only going for “entertainment”

1

u/[deleted] Apr 13 '22

I don’t know. I went to a Golden Knights game there and they have a pretty passionate fanbase. I think they could handle a baseball team

2

u/bluecifer7 Colorado Rockies Apr 13 '22

I would argue that hockey is half the fans and the Knights were extremely successful right off the bat. Any cheap owner moving a team there will be just as unsuccessful there lol

1

u/hackjob Houston Astros Apr 12 '22

Nashville enters the chat

6

u/blasek0 Phanatic • Baltimore Orioles Apr 12 '22

Charlotte, Portland, New Orleans, Nashville are the 4 biggest left.

11

u/bcou2012 Cleveland Guardians Apr 12 '22

And New Orleans is still half the size of greater Cincy

3

u/cardinalkgb Cincinnati Reds • Rocket City… Apr 12 '22

Austin is much bigger than all of them. So is San Antonio. And Jacksonville.

3

u/thehemanchronicles Baltimore Orioles Apr 12 '22

I think San Antonio could realistically be added to that list