is joe nuxhall in the hall of fame
Part of his trademark radio signoff phrase -- ``This is the old left-hander, rounding third and heading for home'' -- is displayed on the outside of the Reds' stadium, Great American Ball Park, which opened in 2003. A likeness of Nuxhall (see photo) is one of five statues that decorate the main entrance of the stadium (The others are Ernie Lombardi, Ted Kluszewski, Frank Robinson, and Pete Rose). He was elected to the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 1968, and officially retired from the Reds on October 3, 2004, 60 years after his pitching debut, though he still made guest appearances on some game broadcasts. For many years after retiring as a player and during his broadcasting career, Nuxhall pitched batting practice for the Reds. In addition to being called ``Nuxy'' and ``the ole lefthander'', Nuxhall was also known as ``Hamilton Joe'', particularly to locals. He spent nearly 62 of his 64 baseball seasons with the Reds (or one of its minor-league clubs) as a player or an announcer from 1944--2007; the only exceptions being 1946 (when he was on the ``voluntarily retired'' list -- in reality, he went back to high school), 1961 (when he was dealt to the Kansas City A's) and 1962 (pitching for a few weeks with the Los Angeles Angels before heading back to Cincinnati).
Joe Nuxhall