1974 Cincinnati Reds season


The 1974 Cincinnati Reds season saw the Reds finishing in second place in the National League West with a record of 98–64, four games behind the NL West and pennant-winning Los Angeles Dodgers. The Reds were managed by Sparky Anderson and played their home games at Riverfront Stadium.
The Reds' second-place finish was really more about the Los Angeles Dodgers improvements more than any perceived failures by
Cincinnati. The Reds' 98 victories were second-best in all of Major League baseball to the Dodgers' 102 victories. The Dodgers had finished in second place from 1970–73, three of those years the Reds won the NL West,. In the offseason, the Dodgers added center fielder Jimmy Wynn in a trade from Houston and acquired future Cy Young Award winning reliever Mike Marshall from Montreal. The Reds added a solid starter in 12-game winner Clay Kirby in the offseason. With All-Star shortstop Dave Concepcion fully recovered from a broken ankle he suffered at mid-season in '73, and All-Star catcher Johnny Bench having big season, the Reds were not going to relinquish their divisional crown easily.
Just as they had done the previous season, the Dodgers started hot and gained a large lead on the Reds in the National League West Division, due largely to their success against the Reds heads-up. The Dodgers won nine of their first 10 games against the Reds. After losing 6–3 to the Dodgers on August 5, the Reds trailed the Dodgers by 7½ games despite a solid 66–45 record. By Aug. 15, the Reds had cut the lead to 1½ games after winning the first two of a three-game set at Dodger Stadium marking 9 losses in 11 games for Los Angeles. In the third game, Wynn hit a seventh-inning grand-slam to break open a tight game as the Dodgers rallied to a 7–1 victory, which helped keep the Dodgers ahead in the NL West. The Reds would get no closer than two games the rest of the season.
Johnny Bench put up one of his best seasons to finish fourth in the NL MVP voting to winner Steve Garvey, runnerup Lou Brock, and Marshall. Wynn was fifth.
The 1974 season also marked the first with future Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Brennaman. Brennaman replaced another nationally known broadcaster, Al Michaels, who moved to San Francisco to take the same position with the Giants.

Offseason

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
PosPlayerGABHAvg.HRRBI
C160621174.28033129
1B158596158.26528101
2B149512150.2932267
SS160594167.2811482
3B150470132.281756
LF163652185.284351
CF150474133.281754
RF8822757.251219

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
PlayerGABHAvg.HRRBI
10627673.264741
8020845.216628
11713527.200216
8412530.240120
5012027.225210
46312.06500
33377.18905
22193.15800
20173.17603
14112.18202
972.28600
662.33313

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGIPWLERASO
3624317113.04183
36230.21293.28160
36212.119113.94103
35186.113123.14141
1485.1443.3842
1678.1433.6837

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGIPWLERASO
617103.7114

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGWLSVERASO
73107143.2453
5712562.1546
403114.0848
221015.4912
242124.3312
80022.0414
100005.405
60008.004

Farm system