Joe Morgan

[J.Mencalice]

One of the finest second basemen in professional baseball of the past 50 years; a principal of the cogs in the Big Red Machine of the 70's that gave Cincy their championships.  Morgan and Rose gave them all the hustle that a team needed for guys to get on base in strategic positions, so that power hitters like Bench and Perez could bring them around.
Joe possessed all the 5 tools that a complete ballplayer strives for to command respect and honors from peers and fans of the national pastime.
His detailed and insightful observations of the game came through as his career in broadcasting shone over the years.  I favored him over Joe G. and Tony K. for his straightforward descriptions and opinions of what was happening on the field without the obvious slanted opinions from the aforementioned pair.
Saddened to hear of his passing after he kinda disappeared from the airwaves over these past ten years due to his progressive health issues.
Tip of the cap to a true baseball professional who truly loved the game that he played with excellence.

[Jersey mike]

An excellent ball player. The Big Red Machine was a great name back in the day, very fitting.

Time comes for us all. I was t shocked to learn Whitey Ford died last week, a little sad but he had a good life, excellent career and was beloved by all in the game from what I could tell....stories and reports and all that.

[Farside]

One of the finest second basemen in professional baseball of the past 50 years; a principal of the cogs in the Big Red Machine of the 70's that gave Cincy their championships.  Morgan and Rose gave them all the hustle that a team needed for guys to get on base in strategic positions, so that power hitters like Bench and Perez could bring them around.
Joe possessed all the 5 tools that a complete ballplayer strives for to command respect and honors from peers and fans of the national pastime.
His detailed and insightful observations of the game came through as his career in broadcasting shone over the years.  I favored him over Joe G. and Tony K. for his straightforward descriptions and opinions of what was happening on the field without the obvious slanted opinions from the aforementioned pair.
Saddened to hear of his passing after he kinda disappeared from the airwaves over these past ten years due to his progressive health issues.
Tip of the cap to a true baseball professional who truly loved the game that he played with excellence.

I couldn't agree more. Except I didn't consider Perez a power hitter. Joe was a great reperesentive of baseball and the Cincy Reds. I was a Big fan of the Big Red Machine and he was a leader on and off the field. I also enjoyed his TV commentary after baseball. RIP Joe Morgan

[J.Mencalice]

Johnny Bench-389 HR lifetime, Slugging % .476
Tony Perez-379 HR lifetime, Slugging % .463
George Foster-348 HR lifetime, Slugging % .480

I'd say that those are three pretty fair power hitters in the same lineup.

That team broke my young Red Sox heart in 1975 in a great and memorable World Series that went the full seven.

[J.Mencalice]

An excellent ball player. The Big Red Machine was a great name back in the day, very fitting.

Time comes for us all. I was t shocked to learn Whitey Ford died last week, a little sad but he had a good life, excellent career and was beloved by all in the game from what I could tell....stories and reports and all that.

"Ball Four" by Jim Bouton is one of the funniest looks and books written about baseball (from the inside).
Whitey and the Mick's wanderings throughout New York and their episodes of skipping curfew are epic.
If you haven't read it, do so, and you'll be rewarded.

[Farside]

Johnny Bench-389 HR lifetime, Slugging % .476
Tony Perez-379 HR lifetime, Slugging % .463
George Foster-348 HR lifetime, Slugging % .480

I'd say that those are three pretty fair power hitters in the same lineup.

That team broke my young Red Sox heart in 1975 in a great and memorable World Series that went the full seven.

Maybe better than Pretty fair for sure He did have back to back years hitting 37 and 40 respectively. Didn't mean he didn't have power but over his carer I personally didn't consider him a power hitter. He had power and averaged about 16HR/yr over his 23 year career. Not shabby at all but Johnny Bench was awesome averaging near 25HR a year over a 16 year career. Winning the HR total w/ 45. He had some POP on his bat. Both these were respected for their power. Loved baseball back in those days.   I had a friend who played for Red Sox behind Mo Vaughn so didn't get in much. He spent about 9 years in the majors. I liked the Red Sox too especially when Yaz was playing.  

[vanagon40]

I spent many weekend evenings at Riverfront in the red [cheap] seats watching the Big Red Machine. A cheap date or night out with the guys, about $3 for a ticket (same price as a movie). Draft beer was not that expensive and the drinking age was 18 (at least for 3.2% beer). Pete and Johnny were my favorites, but loved them all. RIP Joe.

[J.Mencalice]

Just found this fantastic article about Joe and tributes from those who knew the man and the player.
If you are a baseball fan, it'll bring a smile to your face and your brain contemplating his stats when he was at the top of his career.
If you don't love and appreciate the game, please just move away from the screen.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/30100937/baseball-keeps-losing-legends-2020-joe-morgan-the-smallest-mightiest-all

Down to the final four teams with two excellent playoff games on tap for today.
Tampa, Houston, LA, and Atlanta; it's still baseball in October.