From the field to the front office
Catching up with Tim Naehring
CINCINNATI, Ohio --He was a heartthrob to many of the women in Red Sox nation.
For eight seasons (1990-97) Tim Naehring stole the hearts of female Red Sox fans, who were googly-eyed for the baseball stud.
"It was a lot of fun being a single guy up in New England," said Naehring about being a Red Sox heartthrob. "Anytime you are in a situation where you are in the public eye it's interesting. I never really dealt with any of that growing up in Cincinnati and all through college."
He is still involved in baseball as the Director of Player Development for the Cincinnati Reds. Naehring, who took over the job in October 2000, loved returning home.
"It's a great experience for me coming back to Cincinnati and staying in the baseball world," said Naehring. "My career has progressed nicely on this side of it and am very excited about the opportunity the Reds have given me."
It's been an adjustment for Naehring to go from playing the game to working in the front office.
"It's a challenge," said Naehring. "It's not the same as playing, but you still have days where the blood starts to boil and you get that competitive side of things when you see your Minor Leaguers out there playing. It's great to know you can positively affect some of these young kids and try and teach them some of the things I was taught in the Red Sox organization such as respecting the game and how you should go about it on a daily basis."
On the job, Naehring has used his Boston connections. One of his first hirings was former Red Sox shortstop Rick Burleson, who is currently the Reds Triple-A (Louisville Bats) manager.
"Rick is doing well and is going to be with our organization next year," said Naehring. "He is a great baseball person and he was honored this year by being put in the Red Sox Hall of Fame. That was a great honor for him and shows what the people in Boston think of him. He is a hard-nosed guy and demands a lot from his players. He has been a welcome addition to our organization."
Naehring, who grew up in West Cincinnati , now resides just minutes outside of East Cincinnati with his wife, Kris. They just had a baby daughter, Jamison Page, three weeks ago.
"I married a girl I met in college and she actually went to graduate school at B.U. (Boston University)," said Naehring. "I met up with her briefly while I was in Boston and when my career finished we started to see each other. It's a life changing event when you get married and start a family. That's been exciting."
"The travel gets a little hectic at times being away from your family, but thankfully my wife understands. Hopefully the daughter will look at it the same way."
Outside of baseball, Neahring is very involved in charitable works, including his own "Athletes Reaching Out."
"Things are going well and the charity has been keeping me quite busy," said Naehring. "If you have the ability to group a bunch of professional athletes together with some corporations and help raise some dollars for the community it's an obligation. I hope we can keep making an impact with young kids."
Naehring was the eighth-round draft pick of the Red Sox in 1988 and made his Major League debut in 1990. He played a total of eight seasons in the Major Leagues all with the Boston.
"Anytime you get a chance to play at the highest level in the Major Leagues you are going to enjoy it," said Naehring. "Looking back, what a great experience it was to play with the Red Sox and playing in Fenway Park.
"It was great to play in front of educated and vocal fans. They watched every move you made and if they didn't agree with the way you played the game they let you know. If you couldn't get up to play night in and night out in front of those types of fans than you had to take a serious look in the mirror."
Naehring's best seasons came in 1995 and 1996. In 1995, Neahring hit .307 with 27 doubles, 10 home runs, 61 runs scored and 57 RBI. In 1996, he hit .288 with 16 doubles, 17 home runs, 77 runs scored and 65 RBI.
Althoug the Reds are foremost in anything Naehring does, he still keeps a close eye on his former team. With the Reds out of the playoffs, Naehring likes the Red Sox chances this year.
"I do follow them and wish them the best," said Naehring. "They definitely have the talent. I think you have to make a case for them to be able to run the table. They have the starting pitching you need to be able to move forward through the playoffs. A lot of times the starting pitching is the difference maker and they have that ability." 