CCIINNCCIINNNNAATTII RREEDDSS PPRREESSSS CCLLIIPPPPIINNGGSS JULY 16, 2014 THIS DAY IN REDS HISTORY: JULY 16, 1954 – REDS CF GUS BELL LED CINCINNATI TO A 9-4 VICTORY OVER THE PHILLIES BY DRIVING IN SIX RUNS. BELL WENT 3-FOR-5 WITH TWO HOME RUNS, A DOUBLE AND TWO RUNS SCORED. CINCINNATI ENQUIRER All-Star Game 2015 countdown begins Josh Pichler The first thing to understand about next year's All-Star Game is that it's not a game. It's a five-day convention and sports sensation that will overtake Downtown. Concerts, block parties and a parade will complement Major League Baseball's FanFest, Futures Game, Home Run Derby and the 86th All-Star Game. The event is expected to bring well over 100,000 people to the region – including hundreds of journalists – and beam Cincinnati onto television sets and media platforms across the world. For locals whose only frame of reference is the 1988 All-Star Game, next year's festivities will bear little resemblance to the event that hit town when Marge Schott owned the Cincinnati Reds and Pete Rose was her manager. Players that year came to town on Sunday night, missed a skills competition due to weather and played the game Tuesday. Contrast that with the modern, five-day, fan-driven spectacle. Already, MLB has booked 16,165 hotel room nights for next year from July 11-15 for its contingent of executives, corporate sponsors and guests. That's just a fraction of the expected out-of-town guests. Minneapolis anticipated 160,000 visitors for this year's game, the Minneapolis StarTribune reported. ESPN, which broadcasts the Home Run Derby and "Baseball Tonight" from the host city every year, will have its first planning meeting in August or September, and bring 150 staffers to Cincinnati next July. Phil Castellini, the Reds chief operating officer, said All-Star Game planning will dominate his time the next 12 months. All-Star Game brings MLB restrictions Success in 2015 will require a tightly coordinated effort among MLB, the Reds, and business and public leaders. "In the last 25 years, this event has exploded," said Scott Stiles, Cincinnati's interim city manager. "We are really trying to get our arms around it and make sure that we are prepared." Stiles is part of a local contingent spending time in Minnesota this week. The game was Tuesday, and the group wants to hit the ground running starting Wednesday, when MLB turns its focus squarely to 2015. It's a unique opportunity to market our city that's been energized in recent years by a revitalized urban core. "It's another chance to put Cincinnati on the map, nationally and internationally," said Sharry Addison, co-chair of the Cincinnati Organizing Committee. " 'We're just a city in the Midwest, a well-kept secret.' We keep hearing that. But we have the facilities, the people, the resources to do just about anything." Event's economic impact estimated at $60 million MLB is running this show in conjunction with the Reds, and its footprint will be massive. According to a June Enquirer report, Major League Baseball essentially "owns" the area from just west of Paul Brown Stadium to the Montgomery Inn Boat•house, and in some places north to Seventh and Ninth streets. All-Star Game signage will be everywhere. Global corporations will bring VIP customers into the city for special events. There will be charity brunches and lunches. Restaurants and bars will be packed. MLB estimates the economic impact of the All-Star Game in similar-sized cities at about $60 million. Castellini said the timing couldn't be better. Smale Riverfront Park will be developed all the way to Paul Brown Stadium, and development will continue on new apartments at The Banks. DunnhumbyUSA's Fifth Street headquarters will be finished, and General Electric's new U.S. global operations center at The Banks will be under construction. Meanwhile, the 21c Museum Hotel Cincinnati has opened, and Over-the-Rhine continues its transformation. "It's the best time that we could be hosting it relative to what this city's looked like the last 10 years," Castellini said. "We might have had to wait a few more years to get one, but I think the city's better prepared to put on a good show. It's really going to put Cincinnati in a good light." Castellini, arrived in Minneapolis Saturday, has been to six of the last eight All-Star Games, and has largely focused on how the host cities executed events outside the stadium. New York City hosted a gala on an aircraft carrier. St. Louis had a concert under the Gateway Arch. Pittsburgh put red carpet across the Roberto Clemente Bridge as players were driven into the stadium. "The ballpark stuff isn't easy, but we get our heads around that every day. It's more about how the host city did everything else. How was FanFest? How was transportation? What other things did the city activate outside of the games?" Castellini said. "My observation is when the All-Star Game is hosted by a smaller, Midwestern-sized type town, it is the thing happening. It's like when the World Choir Games were here. You couldn't go anywhere in Cincinnati and not know the World Choir Games was in town." Corps of volunteers to reach 2,500 people While the Reds and MLB do their planning, Addison's team of volunteers, which will eventually grow to about 2,500 people, is tasked with making sure Downtown shines next July. The Cincinnati Organizing Committee, co-chaired by Melanie Chavez of Chavez Properties, expects to raise about $1 million and reports to the Greater Cincinnati Convention & Visitors Bureau and its CEO, Dan Lincoln. This isn't Addison's first rodeo. She has helped organize events including the 1987 World Figure Skating Championships, 1988 All- Star Game and 1997 NCAA Women's Final Four. The host committee's responsibilities include entertainment and hospitality. That means working with the convention and visitors bureau to create physical and digital Downtown guides for visitors, and promoting them at the airport, around the city and at restaurants, bars and hotels. Expect a social media center Downtown and possibly a zip line. The goal is to delight visitors who, Addison adds, aren't just defined as out-of-town guests. "During the World Choir Games we found that many people from the outlying suburbs in Cincinnati had not been Downtown for years," she said. "They got down here and said, 'How did this all happen?' " The expected crush of people is top of mind for Stiles, who has designated Assistant Fire Chief Edward Dadosky to lead the city's planning. Stiles is also starting to budget for things like police overtime and other expenses the city may incur, and already thinking about managing street closures and traffic flow. Stiles admits to some nerves, but also plenty of excitement. His expectations are sky high for the city. "Cincinnatians should watch the game up in Minneapolis and envision all the great fun that's going to go along with us hosting it next year." ■ Clues from 2014 All-Star Game A look at this year's events in Minneapolis illustrates why the All-Star Game is really a convention: • Friday: All-Star FanFest all day. (Think Redsfest but bigger). Movie night at the ballpark. • Saturday: All-Star FanFest all day. All-Star concert with Imagine Dragons and Atmosphere. • Sunday: Color Run MLB All-Star 5K. All-Star FanFest all day. Block party, concerts, All-Star Futures Game, celebrity softball game. • Monday: All-Star FanFest all day, block party, concerts, Home Run Derby. • Tuesday: All-Star FanFest all day, block party, All-Star Game red carpet parade, concert, All-Star Game. What music do All-Stars walk up to? Ben Goldschmidt The All-Star Game features the best of the best in MLB, but does it feature the best walk up music? Here's a look at what the pros walk up to (Reds in bold). Yadier Molina * St. Louis Cardinals - National C * Sigan Bailando - Wisin & Yandel Paul Goldschmidt * Arizona Diamondbacks - National 1B * Linkin Park - One Step Closer Troy Tulowitzki * Colorado Rockies - National SS * Ace of Base - The Sign Aramis Ramierz * Milwaukee Brewers - National 3B * NO MUSIC BY CHOICE Andrew McCutchen * Pittsburgh Pirates - National OF * Ellie Goulding - Lights (Bassnectar Remix) Johnny Cueto* Cincinnati Reds - National P * Wisin y Yandel - Siguelo Carlos Gomez * Milwaukee Brewers - National OF * Young Dro - Shoulder Lean Yasiel Puig * Los Angeles Dogers - National OF * DJ Snake & Lil Jon - Turn Down For What Todd Frazier * Cincinnati Reds - National 3B * Frank Sinatra - Fly Me to the Moon Matt Wieters * Baltimore Orioles - American C * Sam Hunt - Raised On It Miguel Cabrera * Detroit Tigers - American 1B * Jay Z - Ni**as In Paris Alfredo Simon * Cincinnati Reds - National P * Don Omar - Dile Robinson Cano * Seattle Mariners - American 2B * Jay Z - Tom Ford Derek Jeter * New York Yankees - American SS * Young Money feat. Drake - Trophies Jose Bautista * Toronto Blue Jays - American OF * Drake - Trophies Mike Trout * Los Angeles Angels - American OF * Drake - Started From the Bottom Adam Jones * Baltimore Orioles - American OF * Young Jeezy - Lose My Mind Nelson Cruz * Baltimore Orioles - American DH * Alex y Fido - Rescate Feat. Daddy Yankee Aroldis Chapman * Cincinnati Reds - National P * Wake Up - Rage Against The Machine Clayton Kershaw * Los Angeles Dogers - National P * We Are Young - Fun Tyson Ross * San Diego Padres - National P * Mastermind - Deltron 3030 Jordan Zimmerman * Washington Nationals - National P * Brantley Gilbert - Hell On Wheels Adam Wainwright * St Louis Cardinals - National P * Alabama - Song Of The South Devin Mesoraco #1 * Cincinnati Reds - National C * Gary Allan - Right Where I Need to Be Devin Mesoraco #2 * Cincinnati Reds - National C * The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band - Fishing in the Dark Selig: Reds can have Pete Rose in All-Star festivities C.