CINCINNATI (AP) -First baseman Kevin Youkilis knows right where to look when he wants to find his family at Great American Ball Park this weekend.
The Boston Red Sox are making their first visit to Cincinnati since the 1975 World Series, a big occasion in its own right. For Youkilis, it’s a chance to spend a little family time at a ballpark, just like he did as a kid.
The 29-year-old Youkilis grew up in the city, attended the University of Cincinnati and has a lot of close friends and family in the area. When the schedule came out in the offseason, they bought tickets to see Youkilis’ first professional appearance in his hometown.
A group of 140 reserved the party room in center field for Saturday’s game.
“They’ve got the whole deck,” Youkilis said, before the series opener. “It’s almost like a Youkilis family reunion. So it’s pretty exciting.”
The series was a homecoming for several Red Sox. First baseman Sean Casey launched his career with the Reds and is still one of the most popular sports figures in town – he got an extended ovation, stepped out of the batter’s box and raised his helmet before his first at-bat on Friday.
Also, Red Sox starter Justin Masterson graduated from Beavercreek High School near Dayton, a little more than an hour’s drive from Cincinnati.
No one looked forward to it more than Youkilis, who grew up hoping to play for the Reds someday but wound up overlooked by them in the 2001 draft. The Red Sox took him in the eighth round.
“It was more emotional right then, going through the draft,” he said. “Right now, it’s a whole different regime here in Cincinnati and totally different people. There was definitely a little bitterness when it happened, but I can’t complain now. I’ve got two World Series rings and a lot of good stuff in Boston, so maybe it was better that they didn’t draft me.”
Youkilis closely followed the Reds as a youth, trying to imitate the swing of outfielder Eric Davis during Whiffle ball games. His list of favorite players includes Hal Morris, Chris Sabo, Pete Rose and Casey.
Youkilis attended games at Riverfront Stadium and was in the stands for one of the biggest moments in franchise history: Tom Browning’s perfect game on Sept. 16, 1988. The Reds moved into Great American in 2003.
“There’s a lot of memories,” he said. “It’s a little different coming to a park like this – real different. If it was at Riverfront Stadium, it probably would have brought a lot of childhood memories of coming to the games and eating frosty malts and all that good stuff.”
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