Monday night’s Cincinnati Reds vs. Miami Marlins game featured the 10th annual Reds Community Fund Telethon, presented by PNC Bank and made possible by Bally Sports Ohio. The fundraiser generated more than $230,000 thanks to the incredible support of Reds fans throughout the region.
Bally Sports Ohio’s production staff and on-air talent helped bring the telecast to life, highlighting many of the Reds Community Fund’s key programs and stories, as well as promoting a gift package featuring a 1920s Reds replica jersey, Reds aviator sunglasses and other gifts for a $100 donation. The $200 package included the gift items plus a Reds mini-helmet signed by a Reds player.
The action kicked off with a special one-hour Reds Live pregame show. The telecast featured several special guests, including Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench, who spoke with Reds broadcaster Jim Day. Fellow Reds broadcaster and former pitcher Chris Welsh joined Reds Community Fund board members and volunteers to take orders in the call center. Day also interviewed two Reds RBI softball players, Presley Kruse and Andralyn Brown. Kruse, set to attend Mount St. Joseph University, was the 2022 recipient of both the MLB RBI for RBI Scholarship and the Cincinnati RBI Scholarship. Brown, who will continue her softball career at Kentucky State University, was named the 2022 Youth Academy Member of the Year, which includes an invitation to attend Game 4 of the World Series in October.
Throughout the night, Bally Sports highlighted the many baseball- and softball-themed outreach initiatives of the Community Fund. Current programming and recent events include the RBI program, a recent field renovation project in Ludlow, Kentucky, the introductory Fun At Bat program, the return of baseball at Wilberforce University, the first Reds Catchers Camp and more.
Reds President and Chief Operating Officer, Phil Castellini, also joined Jim Day during the broadcast and highlighted the upcoming Community Makeover that takes place on August 4 in Lincoln Heights. Afterward, Castellini marveled at the collective effort required to produce the Telethon.
“The outpouring of support from our fans and partners during the Reds Community Fund Telethon was truly incredible! We are so grateful for their generosity, and for sharing our passion to keep the rich tradition of youth baseball thriving in the communities throughout Reds Country.
“And Jim Day is such a talent, we really appreciate Jim hosting the telethon with such warmth, humor and humility.”
PNC Bank executives Kay Geiger and Warren Weber announced a $75,000 matching grant at the start of the broadcast. After Reds fans exceeded the amount, PNC decided to donate another $25,000 toward the baseball and softball programs at the P&G MLB Cincinnati Reds Youth Academy. It marked the third consecutive year that PNC Bank provided financial support to the Telethon.
Donations are still being accepted for the telethon and a limited number of both packages remains. Visit reds.com/telethon for more information.