Nichelle Robinson was born in Cincinnati Aug. 24, 1965, but Frank Robinson's daughter hasn't been back since she was three months old.
That's when the Reds unceremoniously traded the Hall-of-Fame outfielder to Baltimore. But Nichelle is looking forward to the return trip in May when the Reds finally retire her father's No. 20.
''He loved it there. He had some great years,'' Nichelle said Monday night from California. ''It's an important place in our family.''
But when it comes to Robinson and the Reds, it's never easy. He is delighted by the honor, it's just that he wished he was informed officially by the Reds instead of by a reporter on Monday.
Yet it's nothing like 1982, when no one in the organization acknowledged his election to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The jersey ceremony still won't erase the pain.
''Nothing. Not a telegram. Not a call,'' Robinson said. ''It hurt then. It hurts now. It always will. But you've got to understand. That has nothing to do with the fans or the city. They were great. That's just individuals running the ball club at the time.''
Robinson said he remembers the moment he picked up the phone and Reds' official Phil Seghi told him he was traded, ''like it's happening right now. It took me a few weeks to get over.
''This was the organization that brought me up. The Reds took the rough edges off a pretty good young Frank Robinson, but it was the Baltimore Orioles who benefited.''
John Murdough, the club's long-time traveling secretary, remembers youth benefiting when Robinson played in Cincinnati. Robinson would give balls and gloves to kids, and coached a youth basketball team for which he supplied the uniforms.
''Believe me, fond memories,'' Robinson said. ''It's quite an honor. A great feeling.''
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