The Big Red Machine is the nickname given to the Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....

 baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 team which dominated the National League

National League

The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...

 from 1970

1970 in baseball

-Major Leagues:*World Series MVP: Brooks Robinson*All-Star Game, July 14 at Riverfront Stadium: National League, 5-4 ; Carl Yastrzemski, MVP-Other champions:*Caribbean World Series: Navegantes del Magallanes *College World Series: USC...

 to 1976

1976 in baseball

-Major League Baseball:*World Series: Cincinnati Reds over New York Yankees ; Johnny Bench, MVP*All-Star Game, July 13 at Veterans Stadium: National League, 7-1; George Foster, MVP-Other champions:*Caribbean World Series: Naranjeros de Hermosillo...

, recognized as among the best in baseball. Over that span, the team won five National League West

National League West

The National League Western Division, or NL West, is one of the three divisions of Major League Baseball's National League. It was created in 1969 when the previously undivided National League expanded its membership to twelve teams, positioning half of them in an Eastern division and the other...

ern Division titles, four National League pennants, and two World Series

World Series

The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...

 titles. The team's combined record from 1970-1976 was 683 wins and 443 losses, an average of nearly 98 wins per season.

First mention

The nickname was introduced in a July 4, 1969 article by Bob Hertzel in The Cincinnati Enquirer

The Cincinnati Enquirer

The Cincinnati Enquirer, a daily morning newspaper, is the highest-circulation print publication in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. The Cincinnati Enquirer, a daily morning newspaper, is the highest-circulation print publication in Greater Cincinnati (Ohio) and Northern Kentucky. The...

, but gained prominence in reference to the 1970

1970 Cincinnati Reds season

The 1970 Cincinnati Reds season consisted of the Reds winning the National League West title with a record of 102-60, 14½ games ahead of the runner-up Los Angeles Dodgers. The Reds defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates in three straight games in the 1970 National League Championship Series to win their...

 team, which posted a regular season record of 102-60 and won the National League pennant. Rookie and future-Hall of Fame

National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...

 manager Sparky Anderson

Sparky Anderson

George Lee "Sparky" Anderson was an American Major League Baseball manager. He managed the National League's Cincinnati Reds to the 1975 and 1976 championships, then added a third title in 1984 with the Detroit Tigers of the American League. He was the first manager to win the World Series in both...

 headed the team, which at its peak featured Pete Rose

Pete Rose

Peter Edward Rose , nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", is a former Major League Baseball player and manager. Rose played from 1963 to 1986, and managed from 1984 to 1989....

, Johnny Bench

Johnny Bench

Johnny Lee Bench is a former professional baseball catcher who played in the Major Leagues for the Cincinnati Reds from 1967 to 1983 and is a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame...

, Joe Morgan

Joe Morgan

Joe Leonard Morgan is a former Major League Baseball second baseman who played for the Houston Astros, Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, and Oakland Athletics from 1963 to 1984. He won two World Series championships with the Reds in 1975 and 1976 and was also named the...

 and Tony Pérez

Tony Pérez

Atanasio Pérez Rigal , more commonly known as Tony Pérez, is a former Major League Baseball player. He was also known by the nickname "Big Dog," "Big Doggie," and "Doggie."...

, and was supported by George Foster, César Gerónimo

César Gerónimo

César Francisco Gerónimo Zorrilla , known as César Gerónimo, is a former outfielder in Major League Baseball, who was a member of the famed Big Red Machine of the Cincinnati Reds during the 1970s. He batted and threw left-handed....

, Ken Griffey, Sr.

Ken Griffey, Sr.

George Kenneth "Ken" Griffey is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. He currently serves as Manager for the Bakersfield Blaze, the Reds' Single A minor league affiliate. He is the father of former professional outfielder Ken Griffey, Jr. and former minor leaguer Craig Griffey. He and his...

, and Dave Concepción

Dave Concepción

David Ismael Concepción Benitez , better known as Dave Concepción, is a former shortstop in Major League Baseball. He was born in Ocumare de la Costa, Aragua State, Venezuela...

. The eight players most frequently referenced as members of the Big Red Machine include baseball's all-time hit leader in Rose; 3 Hall of Fame players in Bench, Peréz and Morgan; 6 National League MVP selections; 4 National League home run leading seasons; 3 NL Batting Champions; 25 Gold Glove winning seasons, and 63 collective All-Star Game appearances. The starting lineup of Bench, Rose, Morgan, Pérez, Concepción, Foster, Griffey, and Gerónimo (collectively referred to as the "Great Eight") played 88 games together during the 1975

1975 in baseball

-Major League Baseball:*World Series: Cincinnati Reds over Boston Red Sox ; Pete Rose, MVP*All-Star Game, July 15 at County Stadium: National League, 6-3; Bill Madlock and Jon Matlack, MVPs-Other champions:...

 and 1976

1976 in baseball

-Major League Baseball:*World Series: Cincinnati Reds over New York Yankees ; Johnny Bench, MVP*All-Star Game, July 13 at Veterans Stadium: National League, 7-1; George Foster, MVP-Other champions:*Caribbean World Series: Naranjeros de Hermosillo...

 seasons, losing only 19.

Reds teams of the 1970s

The Cincinnati Reds of the 1970s garnered more World Series appearances than any other team during that decade, with an overall record of 953 wins and 657 losses. They are the only National League team during the last 75 years to win back-to-back World Championships. Before them, the 1921 and 1922 New York Giants are the last NL team to accomplish this feat. Although some of the original players departed the team, some extend the Big Red Machine nickname for two more years until the departures of Anderson and Rose following the 1978 season. The Reds turned around to finish in second place in 1977

1977 in baseball

-Major League Baseball:*World Series: New York Yankees over Los Angeles Dodgers ; Reggie Jackson, MVP*American League Championship Series MVP: None*National League Championship Series MVP: Dusty Baker...

 and 1978

1978 in baseball

-Other champions:*Caribbean World Series: Indios de Mayagüez *College World Series: USC*Japan Series: Yakult Swallows over Hankyu Braves *Little League World Series: Pin-Kuang, Pin-Tung, Taiwan-Awards and honors:*Most Valuable Player...

. The Cincinnati Reds would not return to the World Series until their championship season of , when manager Lou Piniella

Lou Piniella

Louis Victor Piniella is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He has been nicknamed "Sweet Lou," both for his swing as a major league hitter and, facetiously, to describe his demeanor as a player and manager...

 led the team to the team's most recent championship, a four-game sweep of the heavily-favored Oakland Athletics

Oakland Athletics

The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....

, a re-match of sorts from the 1972 World Series

1972 World Series

The 1972 World Series matched the American League champion Oakland Athletics against the National League champion Cincinnati Reds, with the A's winning in seven games. These two teams would meet again in the fall classic eighteen years later...

.

Miscellaneous

The Big Red Machine was part of the rivalry between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates

Phillies–Pirates rivalry

The rivalry between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball was considered by some to be one of the best rivalries in the National League...

. Although the Reds won four pennants in the 1970s, all of them came against both teams (Pirates in 1970, 1972, and 1975, and Phillies in 1976). In 1979, Pete Rose

Pete Rose

Peter Edward Rose , nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", is a former Major League Baseball player and manager. Rose played from 1963 to 1986, and managed from 1984 to 1989....

 added further fuel in The Big Red Machine being part of the rivalry when he signed with the Phillies

Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

and helped them win their first World Series championship in .