Friday, August 31, 2001
Griffey wants louder Cinergy
Envies support in Houston, St. Louis
By John Fay
The Cincinnati Enquirer
HOUSTON — If you show up at Cinergy Field this weekend, Ken Griffey Jr. would like to see a little enthusiasm.
Griffey said in a published report Thursday that the Houston fans were partly responsible for the Astros' success this year and the Reds would benefit from a similar atmosphere.
“I wasn't ripping anyone,” he said. “I wasn't being negative toward the fans. They might not think so, but they do make a difference. Knowing they're behind you gives you that extra little bit of adrenaline, and not just in clutch situations.”
The Reds' last three stops have been St. Louis, Montreal and Houston. St. Louis has the best fans in baseball, Montreal has the worst and fewest, and Houston is somewhere in between. But because they are in first place, have won 11 of 13 and have a new stadium, the Astros are getting great support.
“The fans here and in St.Louis have been great,” Reds pitcher Danny Graves said. “As silly as it may sound, fans cheering makes it easier to win. But if we were in first place, we'd probably have that. You can't blame them for not coming out with the way we've played.”
The Astros fans — 34,220 were at Enron Field Thursday — gave starting pitcher Roy Oswalt a thunderous ovation after he struck out in the bottom of the eighth.
“They just erupted,” Reds outfielder Adam Dunn said. “That was awesome. That's what makes baseball fun.”
Griffey, the anointed savior of Reds baseball, would like to see some of that at Cinergy.
“The fans got excited when (Jose) Rijo came back,” he said. “They got excited for Tony (Perez) and Eric (Davis). I wish we had that type of support.”
Griffey and Dunn have given the fans something to get excited about. They've combined for the best power month by a duo in club history, hitting 23 home runs in August.
“Everyone talks about 2003 and the new stadium,” Griffey said. “We can have that kind of excitement next year.”
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Griffey wants louder Cinergy
