Anderson was named Reds manager by GM Bob Howsam. His hiring in October 1969 prompted a headline in the Cincinnati Inquirer asking, "Sparky Who?" The entire Queen City would soon find out.

Gullet was proclaimed to be a future Hall-of-Famer by legendary Tigers and Reds Manager Sparky Anderson but fell short of that prediction due to health issues including a bout with hepatitis.

These three men -- Fisk, Perez, Anderson -- already ... as he gazed out on all those Reds shirts stretched before him on the hillside. He turned to Sparky from the podium and said: "I think ...