Published: July 02, 2009 12:38 am      

Ashland night a blast in Cincinnati

More than 200 take trip

CINCINNATI — An appearance from Brandon Webb was about the only thing that would have made Ashland Community Night at Great American Ball Park better for the more than 200 fans who showed up Wednesday night.

Many of the fans who bought their tickets months ago were hoping Webb would be on the mound for Arizona against the homestanding Cincinnati Reds.

“Oh sure, we miss Brandon but everybody understands,” said Marvin Childers, who coached Webb in Little League. “We bought the tickets with that in mind. I have my whole family here.”

Webb has been on the disabled list much of the season with a sore shoulder. For the last three days, he’s been visiting team doctors from the Rangers and Mets and renowned surgeon Dr. James Andrews.

The three agreed Webb didn’t need surgery on the ailing shoulder and that he may pitch again before this season ends. The conservative approach means more rest for Webb, the 2006 NL Cy Young Award winner who has won 56 games in the past three seasons.

Webb’s fans from Ashland would loved to have seem him at the ballpark but understood his situation.

“We were kind of banking on that,” said Ashland Alliance President Jim Purgerson. “I betcha he would have come down here and said hello. We miss him.”

There was plenty of Ashland to be seen on the first Ashland Community Night in Cincinnati. Purgerson said Bart Conway of the Reds’ marketing office contacted him about the possibility of having it back in December.

“I thought it was a great idea,” Purgerson said. “He’d done his homework, too. He knew where Brandon was from and talked about making the game during one of the games when the Diamondbacks were in town.”

But even with an absent Webb, Ashland was well-represented.

Boyd County High Schools’ Navy JROTC presented the colors and Nashville recording artist Stephen Salyers gave a stirring rendition of the national anthem. Also, Ashland American Little League President Michael Baer and his two sons presented longtime Reds scout Gene Bennett, who is from Portsmouth, with a plaque and banner.

Ashland’s fans were mostly sitting together down the third base line with half-price tickets and soaking up the atmosphere on the comfortable evening.

Andrew Greene, a longtime Reds’ fans, was in a row with his wife, Pat, and two children, Maddy and Spencer, and with his brother, David Greene, hiswife, Susie, and their children, Zach and Hannah. They came to Cincinnati on Tuesday and made a day of it at King’s Island.

“We’ve had a great time,” he said. “As soon as I got an e-mail from the alliance, I got my tickets. This is a good thing, something good for the community. I hope they do it every year.”

Greene said he’d like to have seen Webb pitching, too.

“I was kind of excited with the chance of him here being part of it,” he said. “I don’t know him real well but have always been impressed. He’s never forgotten where he came from.”

Salyers, who has performed the national anthem at many other venues, was singing in GABP for the first time.

“It’s awesome, I’m so excited,” he said. “The national anthem means so much more to people than ever before. I want it to hit home.”

Salyers said he practiced nearly 90 minutes “in the car” to make sure he had it down. His performance showed he was ready for the show.

“Wasn’t that just a great job?” Purgerson said. “He was fantastic.”

Salyers was so busy signing autographs in the “Ashland section” he barely had time to watch the game. “I’m a big Reds’ fan and an even bigger Brandon Webb fan. I’m sorry he wasn’t here.”

Boyd County’s JROTC color guard unit, under Master Chief Jim Sandlin, said this was the second time they had been at a Reds’ game this year. They also presented colors on April 29.

“We’ve done it the last seven or eight years,” he said. “If you do it, you want to make sure you do it right.

“They’ll announce us at 6:57.30 and at 6:58 he’ll be singing.”

The JROTC unit was right in step. Three of them were presenting the colors at the Reds’ game for the first time. The unit included Timmy Monn, Robert Whitaker, Leann Gumm, Robert Nolan, Bo Scappiticcio and Blake Porter. This was the fourth time Nolan had presented colors at a game.

“Community service is our big thing,” Sandlin said. “I want them to be good Americans, good citizens.”

MARK MAYNARD can be reached at mmaynard@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2648.