This might seem an unusual entry on a list of obscure team nicknames, but let鈥檚 face it, the use of the name Reds isn鈥檛 quite as clear as the name Red Sox. Both, however, refer to the color of the teams鈥� socks. At the turn of the last century, fans knew Cincinnati鈥檚 club as the Red Stockings. That morphed into Reds, but during the height of the anti-communist Red Scare of the 1950s, the team actually changed its official name to Redlegs for a time to avoid negative associations. As that concern faded, 鈥淩eds鈥� was revived and the 1975 and 1976 championship teams became known as the Big Red Machine. Today, a Mr. Redlegs mascot entertains fans at Cincinnati鈥檚 Great American Ball Park.
AL BEHRMAN/AP
