I was happy to see Steve recently reference Norm Charlton’s contributions as a starter during Cincinnati’s 1990 World Championship season. Twenty-seven years later, most Reds fans remember Charlton as a Nasty Boy, a hard-throwing setup man (and occasional Mike Scioscia bulldozer) who set the stage commendably for his fellow Nasties Rob Dibble and Randy Myers. While researching a piece that will appear here next week, however, I was reminded that Charlton played a huge role in the success of the Reds in a different capacity during the second half of the 1990 season.
When Jose Rijo went on the 15-day disabled list on June 29 of that year, Cincinnati needed to fill a slot in its starting rotation.