Joe Nuxhall dies at 79

Joe Nuxhall Tribute Blog - The Reds invite you to please leave your comments here as a tribute to the "Ol' Lefthander" who brought so much joy to people for decades.


Marty on Nuxhall's last show

On Oct. 3, 2004, Joe Nuxhall retired from the Reds radio booth. His guest on the Reds postgame show was Marty Brennaman. These excerpts are from that conversation.

We remember our Cincinnati legend

Hundreds of comments have been left on our online remembrance board for "The Ol' Left-hander," Joe Nuxhall, the beloved Reds announcer who died Thursday night. People from all over the country have posted tributes, many talking about how Nuxhall...

TV shows share Nux's memories

Reds fans can see and hear Joe Nuxhall reminisce about his major-league debut, radio career and Reds history when WCET-TV repeats "Joe Nuxhall, My Life: Baseball on Beyond." Nuxhall recorded the four half-hour programs with WCPO-TV's Dennis Janson in...

How about that! Some of Joe's biggest calls

Concepcion hits it deep to left field ... and Davey got ahold of it. I don't believe it! I do not believe it! I don't believe it! Dave Concepcion has just hit a ball in the red seats in left field! Unbelievable!

Greatest of the greats

To understand how Hamilton and baseball were intertwined in Joe Nuxhall's heart, you had to be in Schwarm Stadium last August.

Speaking on the Ol' Lefthander

"He's one of the greatest human beings I've ever met. He's humble. He always thinks of others first. I know he was a great pitcher, and he's done a lot of other things. But I think everything else is second to him being a great human being."

Passion went far beyond baseball

Marty Brennaman, Joe Nuxhall's old broadcast partner, predicts that Nuxhall's death is going to take time to get over - a long time.

He was 'indicative of everything that is Reds baseball'

On the last day of the Reds' 2007 season, Joe Nuxhall signed 190 books at the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum.

A career of second chances

"Joe Nuxhall," a longtime fan recently wrote to an Enquirer reporter, "is the personification of everything that is good about baseball and, of course, the Redlegs.

'He was a special friend'

For the many who knew him well and the millions who had known him only as a welcome voice on warm summer nights, Joe Nuxhall's passing was more than the loss of a broadcaster or ballplayer of renown. It was the loss of a dear friend.

Nuxhall's opinions grounded in truth

When Joe Nuxhall was asked a question about some baseball matter, he wasn't one of those guys who wet his finger and held it in the air to see which way the wind was blowing. He already knew how he felt, and he'd tell you.

From youngest to elder statesman

Joe Nuxhall, a fixture with the Reds for six decades as a player and radio broadcaster, was remembered Friday as a regular guy who just happened to be a beloved icon for the team and the city.

Marty's last memory: 'A beautiful day'

Marty Brennaman's last day spent with Joe Nuxhall was like so many others - a little golf, a lot of gags.

Family says Nux appreciated fans

The Nuxhall family made sure Friday that the public knew how Joe Nuxhall felt about them.

Nux was a Reds fan talking to other fans

Joe Nuxhall was the only person we ever have known about whom a bad word never, never was spoken. If you can go through an entire life and leave that as your epitaph, you've led quite a life.

Statue a focus for fans' grief

Where would Reds fans gather Friday, to show their grief and say thanks to an old friend?

Nux left impression on stadium sculptor

Tom Tsuchiya spent a fair amount of time with Joe Nuxhall, but it wasn't in a broadcast booth, on a baseball field or on a golf course. It was in a Walnut Hills sculpture studio.

He was just another Joe at the counter

FAIRFIELD - When Janet Evans heard Friday morning that Joe Nuxhall had died, she couldn't get to the Bob Evans Restaurant quick enough.

700WLW's tribute to Joe Nuxhall

Marty: 'It's been special'
Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Brennaman today remembered his longtime Reds radio partner Joe Nuxhall as one of the most widely loved heroes in our city's rich sports echelon.
Audio: Marty remembers Joe

Marty and Joe: Soundtrack of summer (11/16/2007)
Making the most of second chances (11/16/2007)
Video: Joe Nuxhall remembered (11/16/2007)
Rally urges: Vote for Joe (11/13/2007)
Butler leaders: Get Nuxie into Hall (11/12/2007)

'Regular Joe' touched countless lives
To friends and neighbors, the 'Ol Lefthander was just a regular Joe -- breakfasting at the Bob Evans counter, chatting with everyone he saw, and plowing neighbors’ driveways after a snow.

Breakfast gang cherishes Joe
The "counter culture'' gang that had breakfast each morning with Joe Nuxhall at the Bob Evans restaurant in Fairfield recalls the Ol' Lefthander with a special fondness.

Doc: We've lost an icon
Enquirer columnist Paul Daugherty says Joe Nuxhall was the only person we’ve ever known about whom a bad word was never spoken.

Marty and Joe: Soundtrack of summer
As a broadcaster, Joe Nuxhall matched up with longtime partner Marty Brennaman like burgers with tomatoes at a summer cookout. They will be forever linked, even in Joe’s passing.

See a commemorative slideshow recalling memorable moments and calls from Joe Nuxhall's broadcasting careers.

View a timeline of highlights from Nuxhall's years in Cincinnati.

Jim Borgman's tribute to the 'Ol Left Hander.

• Read Enquirer reporter Kevin Kelly's profile of Joe Nuxhall on his retirement as one of the Reds' primary broadcasters.

• Read Marty Brennaman's open letter to Joe at his retirement.


JOE NUXHALL TRIBUTE NIGHT
Family, friends and fans paid tribute to Joe Nuxhall with a pre-game Ceremony on Sept. 18, 2004, at Great American Ball Park.
• Reds Honor Nuxhall »
• Video: Pre-game Ceremony: 350K
• Audio: Joe's Final Sign-off: Short | Long
• Audio: Joe Calls 1990 World Series »
• Audio: Tom Seaver's 3000th K »

JOE'S CAREER
Joe's 16 seasons as a big-league pitcher included two All-Star appearances and 135 lifetime wins. His broadcasting career spanned three ballparks and more than 7,000 games.
• Joe Nuxhall's Player Page » • Reds Hall of Fame Career Info » • Reds Broadcasters Page »

JOE'S PHOTO GALLERY
Relive Joe's six decades as a player, broadcaster and Reds legend -- from his historic debut as a 15-year-old pitcher to a memorable final season in the broadcast booth.
• Joe Nuxhall Photo Gallery » • Marty and Joe Wallpaper: 640 | 800 | 1024

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING
"Back when I played with Joe, he had already been in the game 20 years. It seemed like he knew everything and everybody, always with a story to tell. Even back then Joe was a walking history book." - Tommy Helms
• More Quotes About Joe »

FRICK AWARD NOMINEE
Joe was nominated for the Ford C. Frick Award, presented annually since 1978 for excellence in baseball broadcasting, following the 2006 season.
• Nuxhall up for Frick Award »

STATUE DEDICATION
On July 19, 2003, a bronze likeness of Joe became a fixture on Crosley Terrace at the entrance of Great American Ball Park.

• Reds Unveil Nuxhall Statue » • Statue Dedication Photos »

THE ENQUIRER/MICHAEL E. KEATING

Joe Nuxhall kisses his wife Donzetta after unveiling a statue of himself in front of Great American Ball Park in 2003. Nuxhall was one of four Reds greats honored with statues when the ballpark opened. The others were Frank Robinson, Ted Kluszewski and Ernie Lombardi.

With many major leaguers off to war, the Reds signed 15-year-old Joe Nuxhall to pitch the 1944 season. He is pictured with manager Bill McKechnie. Nuxhall still holds the title as youngest player ever in the major leagues.