At 9:30 a.m. today, from a spot inside the Reds’ spring training clubhouse, Johnny Bench stood in full uniform and tingled many a spine.
The Hall of Fame catcher gave a rare and rousing motivational speech to a large gathering of Reds players, the coaching staff and other team officials.
You won’t be surprised to discover that Johnny Bench is one of my favorites. Well, more specifically, he’s my favorite Reds player ever, which might not be surprising since we all seem to lean toward our childhood favorites.