By John Erardi
The Cincinnati Enquirer

It wasn't easy, but somebody had to do it.

I am referring to the choosing of the Top Five Most Memorable Moments at Riverfront Stadium/Cinergy Field, as they appear in this section.

The rule of thumb I used for choosing/ranking them - as well as for all of the Enquirer's Top 100 (see full list) - is that postseason moments receive added weight. That is because these moments usually occur when the lights are the brightest.

Despite that, a non-postseason moment ranked No.1 with us, largely because it is arguably the crowning achievement in the stadium's history. (Although I do think a strong, persuasive case can be made for flip-flopping No.1 and No.2 on our list. You be the judge.)

I tried to present each of the five moments in narrative fashion, so that if you were there or if you saw it on TV, there is still some suspense in it for you. And if you weren't there or didn't see it on TV, hopefully you will feel like you were there.

My only regret in this experience is that I don't have a crystal ball to see what is going to happen at the stadium today, both in the game and afterward.

Certainly, the closing night of Crosley Field 32 years ago - back-to-back home runs by Johnny Bench and Lee May in the eighth inning to beat the Giants' Juan Marichal, 5-4 - would be Top 10 material for that ballpark.

The best case you probably could make for underranking on my part is that of Tom Browning's perfect game. It cracked my Top 10 (No.9) but not my Top Five. It's the one ranking I feel uneasy about. Perfect games are rare anywhere but are one-of-a-kind hereabouts.

The Reds are baseball's oldest professional franchise, but a Red hadn't pitched a perfect game in the 119 years before Browning and no Red has pitched one since.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading the Top Five. As always, I welcome your feedback.

John Erardi saw his first game at Riverfront in 1973, has been going there regularly since 1974 and has covered the Reds since 1985 .He is author of "Pete Rose, 4,192" and co-author of "Big Red Dynasty." E-mail jerardi@enquirer.com