Louisville’s unseasonably warm weather Monday and Tuesday likely has gotten you in the mood for spring.
If that’s the case then here’s something else to get you thinking about the next season - baseball.
The 2015 Cincinnati Reds Caravan will make its annual stop here Thursday evening at Louisville Slugger Field, home of the Reds’ top minor-league affiliate (the Louisville Bats). The Caravan, the Major League Baseball team’s yearly tour that allows fans the opportunity to interact with current and former players, broadcasters and members of the team’s front office staff, will be held from 5:30-8:30 p.m.
This year’s event will feature legendary Reds player Joe Morgan (who is now the organization's Senior Advisor to the President of Baseball Operations), long-time broadcaster Marty Brennaman, catcher Brayan Pena, pitchers J.J. Hoover and Scott Williamson (the 1999 National League All-Star and Rookie of the Year), first-round draft pick Phillip Ervin and mascots Gapper and Buddy Bat. In Louisville, as at each of the Caravan stops, the group will field questions from fans and sign autographs.
The Caravan, which features four simultaneous tours, begins Thursday with stops in Columbus and Athens, Ohio as well as Muncie, Ind. and Louisville. In all the Caravan will make stops in five states (Ohio, Indiana Kentucky, West Virginia and Tennessee) and cover 3,300 miles in only four days.
Thursday in Louisville sales representatives from both the Cincinnati Reds and Louisville Bats will be on hand to discuss season tickets and group outings.
The Reds, who are coming off a disappointing 76-86 (14 games behind N.L. Central Division winner St. Louis) 2014 campaign, open the 2015 season April 6 against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Great American Ball Park. Two tickets to that season-opener, as well as two tickets to the T-Mobile All-Star FanFest at the Duke Energy Convention Center during the 2015 Major League Baseball All-Star Week (Cincinnati hosts this year’s midsummer classic), will be raffled off at each of the Caravan stops.
The Louisville Bats will open their season April 9. The Bats, who are coming off a 68-75 season in which they finished last in the International League West, will have a new manager, Delino DeShields, in 2015. This season will mark the Bats’ 16th season as the Triple-A affiliate of the Reds as well as their 16th at Slugger Field. The Bats’ entire schedule, including promotions and special events, can be found at www.batsbaseball.com. Single-game tickets, including the always popular Thunder Over Louisville game and the July 3 game, go on sale March 1.
For more information on the Reds Caravan visit www.reds.com/caravan.
Photo courtesy Cincinnati Reds Facebook Page
