Who were the great 8 Cincinnati Reds?

It stands uncontested as the most famous lineup in Reds history: Johnny Bench behind the plate, an infield comprised of Tony Perez at first base, Joe Morgan at second base, David Concepcion at shortstop and Pete Rose at third base with an outfield comprised of Ken Griffey in right, Cesar Geronimo in center and George Foster in left. It is this group that powered the Big Red Machine to consecutive World Championships in 1975 and 1976 and it is this group that made the Machine one of the greatest teams the game has ever seen.

The fabled Great Eight starting lineup was born out of a favor a manager asked of his team captain. It was May 2, 1975 and the Reds were scuffling along with a 12-12 record and manager Sparky Anderson sensed the need for a change to spark the club. Nothing had worked terribly well to that point of the season but Sparky was particularly unhappy with the weak hitting of third baseman John Vukovich. With none of the Reds hitters producing terribly well, Vukovich’s struggles were magnified. Spending far too much time on the bench was George Foster, a player Sparky felt was primed for a breakout season.

And so it was that Sparky approached Pete Rose, the player Anderson had named team captain in 1970, and asked if the two-time Gold Glove-winning outfielder would be open to moving to third base. Without hesitation, Rose agreed and the next night, after spending the better part of the day fielding grounders at the position off the bat of coach George Scherger, Pete Rose became the Reds new third baseman. The left field position he vacated was soon filled by Foster, a move that completed the Great Eight.

One of the enduring myths surrounding the Big Red Machine is that Sparky Anderson rubber stamped his lineup card before each game with the names of Rose, Griffey, Morgan, Perez, Foster, Bench, Concepcion and Geronimo and forgot about them. The reality is that from its inception on May 9, 1975 through the end of the 1976 season, the Great Eight lineup only took the field as a unit in 63 regular season games. Sparky regularly inserted different players into the lineup both to rest his stars and to keep his bench players fresh. The postseason was a different story as the Great Eight started each of the Reds’ 17 playoff and World Series games in 1975 and 1976.

But on those comparatively rare occasions when the Great Eight were in the same lineup, the results were devastating for the opposition. When postseason games are added to the regular season total, the Great Eight started a total of 80 games together in 1975 and 1976. The Reds record in those games was an astonishing 64-16, an .800 winning percentage that projected over a 162 game schedule produces a record of 130-32.

The run of the Great Eight was as brief as it was dominating. Following the 1976 season, the greatest lineup in the history of baseball was broken up when Tony Perez was traded to the Montreal Expos.

On your next trip to the Reds Hall of Fame & Museum presented by Dinsmore, be sure to stop by the Great Eight Exhibit featuring bronze statues of all eight legendary players. The statues are arranged in celebration of a Reds victory, giving you the opportunity to pose for a celebratory photo amongst the most iconic lineup in Reds history.

They show up every other year for the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame weekend. They are older, heavier, grayer and they walk a lot slower.

But when they put on the Hall of Fame red sports coats, it’s 1975 again.

The needling starts. They get on each other like they’re back in the clubhouse at Riverfront Stadium. Pete Rose wonders aloud how Tony Perez’s hair is still black. “Shoe polish,” a teammate offers. Waistlines are mentioned. Old stories are told and disputed. 

No subject is off limits, including mortality. In his Hall induction speech, Rose turned to Perez and asked: “How the hell are we still alive, Doggie?”

We’re talking about the Great 8, the most iconic members of the most iconic team in Cincinnati history: Rose, Perez, Joe Morgan, Johnny Bench, Ken Griffey Sr., Cesar Geronimo and George Foster, David Concepcion — the starting eight position players of the 1975 and ’76 World Championship teams. 

All eight are in the Reds Hall of Fame. Perez, Morgan and Bench are in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Rose infamously has been kept out by his misdeeds. Perez, Morgan, Bench, Concepcion and Rose have had their numbers retired. Bench, Rose, Perez and Morgan have statues on the plaza outside Great American Ball Park.

It’s been 42 years since the Reds swept the New York Yankees for the second world title. You have to be close to 50 to have any memory of that team playing. Yet, the Big Red Machine and Great 8 can still draw a crowd.

“They are, by far, the strongest draw we have,” said Rick Walls, executive director of the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum. “The Great 8 is different than other teams. People want to see them, be around them, get their autographs.” 

The ’75 and ’76 Reds were great all-around teams. The pitching was underrated. You don’t win 210 games over two years with just eight players, but the lineup is what made the team stand out from a historical standpoint. Half of the lineup (Morgan, Rose, Bench and Foster) won MVP awards. 

“When I speak, people come up and say, ‘I’m a Dodger fan’ or ‘I’m a Cardinal fan,' but man, we really respected you guys,” Bench told the Palm Beach Post recently. “And it was Perez, Morgan, Concepcion, Rose, Foster, Geronimo, Griffey and you.’ They want to say the lineup. I mean, they know the lineup to this day, and that sort of in itself is pretty amazing and pretty special for all of us.”

Here’s a look at what the players from the Great 8 are to up:

• Bench, 70: He’s settled in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., where he is raising his sons — Justin, 12 and Josh, 9 — from his fourth marriage as a single father. His older son, Bobby, 28, works Reds games as part of the video crew. Bench was the subject of a Sports Illustrated “Where Are They Now” story early this year. 
• Concepcion, 70: He has a farm and trucking business in his native Venezuela, but he’s been living in Miami because of political turmoil in Venezuela. 
• Foster, 69: He’s the only one of the eight who makes his home in Cincinnati. He is a regular at spring treating, signing autographs for his charity.
• Geronimo, 70: He lives in his native Dominican Republic. He’s on the board of directors for D.R. Sports & Education Academy.
• Griffey, 68: He is the youngest of the eight. He’s retired after a long coaching career. He lives in suburban Philadelphia. 
• Morgan, 75: He is the only one of the eight employed by the Reds. He’s a senior adviser to baseball operations. He also frequently drops in as the third man in the booth on TV broadcasts. Morgan battled health issues in 2017. He had complications from a knee replacement and had a bone-marrow transplant from an illness he has not disclosed. Morgan lives in the San Francisco area. 
• Perez, 76: He was a special assistant with the Miami Marlins until he was let go when new ownership took over. He is the subject of a new book — From Cuba to Cooperstown — by former Enquirer sports writer John Erardi. Perez splits his time between Miami and San Juan, P.R.
• Rose, 77: He’s the oldest of the eight. His off-the-field troubles continue to affect his life. He lost his job with Fox Sports and at a Las Vegas casino. Earlier this year, he filed court documents saying that he is "in poor health and disabled” in a divorce struggle between Rose and his estranged wife, Carol. But Rose still appears on the autograph circuit. Rose lives in the Los Angeles area. 

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