Episodes

  • 2024 Bonus Update: Opening Days Since 2018

    2024 Bonus Update: Opening Days Since 2018
    Mar 5 2024
    In this special episode, Dan Carruthers and Randy discuss plans for the 2024 Opening Day celebration of the Cincinnati Reds, the history of Opening Days since 2018 - three of which were indeed strange ones - and their personal experiences on the holiday. Opening Day Eve Party: http://openingdayeve.com/ Official Website for Randy Freking: https://www.freakingoutabout.com Randy Freking’s Book on The History of Opening Day: https://www.amazon.com/Cincinnatis-150-Year-Opening-Day-History/dp/1732749329 Freaking Out About Cincinnati’s Opening Day: https://cms.megaphone.fm/channel/GS1003177798
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    48 mins
  • 2011-2018: The Holiday Explodes!

    2011-2018: The Holiday Explodes!
    Apr 1 2021
    This episode explores the tremendous growth of Cincinnati’s Opening Day “ceremonial holiday” as the Banks entertainment district added to the spectacle. Good Reds teams early in the decade helped, but the growth in the party continued despite several “rebuilding” years. Your host, Randy Freking, is the author of “Cincinnati's 150-Year Opening Day History: The Hoopla Started with a Parade” and co-author of “@Titanicstruggle: The Best of MARTY BRENNAMAN” Get your copies at openingdaybook.com and BestofMarty.com
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    47 mins
  • 2001-2010: The Griffey and Castellini Years: Hope Springs Eternal

    2001-2010: The Griffey and Castellini Years: Hope Springs Eternal
    Mar 31 2021
    This episode explores Opening Days from 2001 to 2010, featuring Ken Griffey’s tenure after he joined the team in 2000, a new ballpark, new owner Bob Castellini, and growing optimism. Your host, Randy Freking, is the author of “Cincinnati's 150-Year Opening Day History: The Hoopla Started with a Parade” and co-author of “@Titanicstruggle: The Best of MARTY BRENNAMAN” Get your copies at openingdaybook.com and BestofMarty.com
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    53 mins
  • Trouble in Paradise and Junior: 1991-2000

    Trouble in Paradise and Junior: 1991-2000
    Mar 30 2021
    This episode explores the craziest decade of Openers, starting with a World Series ring ceremony and advancing through an Easter Sunday debacle, the death of an umpire during an opener, to the arrival of Ken Griffey, Jr. in 2000! Your host, Randy Freking, is the author of “Cincinnati's 150-Year Opening Day History: The Hoopla Started with a Parade” and co-author of “@Titanicstruggle: The Best of MARTY BRENNAMAN” Get your copies at openingdaybook.com and BestofMarty.com
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    51 mins
  • Post Big Red Machine and Marge Schott’s Influence: 1979-1990

    Post Big Red Machine and Marge Schott’s Influence: 1979-1990
    Mar 29 2021
    Relive the Opening Day celebrations as the Big Red Machine was dismantled, Marge Schott became the Mother of Opening Day, and Pete Rose played in his last Opener! Your host, Randy Freking, is the author of “Cincinnati's 150-Year Opening Day History: The Hoopla Started with a Parade” and co-author of “@Titanicstruggle: The Best of MARTY BRENNAMAN” Get your copies at openingdaybook.com and BestofMarty.com
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    44 mins
  • The Rose Years: 1963-1978

    The Rose Years: 1963-1978
    Mar 28 2021
    From 1963 - 1978, the most popular player of the Big Red Machine, Pete Rose, started in each of the 16 years. From Rose’s remarkable debut in 1963, the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr,, the  last Opener in Crosley Field, the introduction of a new parade route to the Riverfront, to Hank Aaron’s historic home run in 1974, these 16 years are perhaps the most interesting Openers in Reds history. Your host, Randy Freking, is the author of “Cincinnati's 150-Year Opening Day History: The Hoopla Started with a Parade” and co-author of “@Titanicstruggle: The Best of MARTY BRENNAMAN” Get your copies at openingdaybook.com and BestofMarty.com
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    50 mins
  • Post War Baseball Boon: 1946-1962

    Post War Baseball Boon: 1946-1962
    Mar 27 2021
    This episode highlights the 17 years following World War II, with a series of “firsts” on Opening Day, from television to the integration of baseball, the first female to throw the first pitch on Opening Day, to the influence of communism on the team’s official nickname. Your host, Randy Freking, is the author of “Cincinnati's 150-Year Opening Day History: The Hoopla Started with a Parade” and co-author of “@Titanicstruggle: The Best of MARTY BRENNAMAN” Get your copies at openingdaybook.com and BestofMarty.com
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • The Roaring Twenties Through World War II

    The Roaring Twenties Through World War II
    Mar 26 2021
    This episode features the historic introduction of the Findlay Market Parade, and the tumultuous Opening Days during the Great Depression and World War II. Through it all, our greatest holiday not only survived, but it also flourished. Your host, Randy Freking, is the author of “Cincinnati's 150-Year Opening Day History: The Hoopla Started with a Parade” and co-author of “@Titanicstruggle: The Best of MARTY BRENNAMAN” Get your copies at openingdaybook.com and BestofMarty.com
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    57 mins