By John Fay
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Redsfest is a John Allen creation - he came up with the idea in 1997 - and each year, Allen walks the floor of the event.

PHOTO GALLERY

Photos of Redsfest

Usually, he's a walking complaints box.

Walt from Westwood can walk right up to the man who handles the day-to-day operations of the Reds and tell him hot dogs at the stadium are too cold or the team's payroll is too low.

Friday night, as the eighth Redsfest opened, even Allen was surprised by the good feeling among fans.

"The comments to me have been very positive," he said. "I'm very encouraged. A lot of the fans were obviously upset by the way the season ended.

"But fans are pretty optimistic about next year. We have seven of eight starters back from Opening Day last year."

It helped that the Reds named Dave Miley, a fan favorite, their manager on the eve of Redsfest.

"The response to Dave has been tremendous," Allen said.

Allen knew it would be a public relations disaster to go into Redsfest without a manager. By hiring Miley Thursday, the Reds switched the emphasis of the event back to baseball.

Redsfest opened with Miley and Don Gullett on the main stage. The first question was about who will play third base for the Reds next year.

Miley didn't give a name; instead he said: "We have a lot of people back at the position. There's going to be competition. Competition is a good thing."

A perfect Hot Stove answer. Fans can debate whether Brandon Larson or Russell Branyan will be at third. Or whether D'Angelo Jimenez should be moved there. Or whether the Reds should bring in a free agent.

That kind of talk is good for the Reds.

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E-mail jfay@enquirer.com