Reds welcome Rijo back home again
Storied pitcher says induction is 'my Cooperstown'

By John Erardi
Enquirer staff writer

Two nights ago. A phone call from Cincinnati to Jose Rijo's cell phone.

Reporter: "Where are you?"

Rijo: "San Cristobal, Dominican - at my summer home."

"What are you doing?"

"Cooking."

"What are you cooking?"

"You don't want to know."

"Yeah I do. What are you cooking?"

"Goat."

"Goat?"

"Yes, goat. It's a big food in the Dominican. It's delicious!"

Back in the day, when Jose Rijo was mowing 'em down for the Cincinnati Reds, he would sometimes joke about needing to go home to the Dominican Republic to "sacrifice a goat" to break a Reds losing streak.

Now, he's sautéing goat with onion, garlic, olive oil, cilantro, oregano, green pepper and white wine.

Life is good for Jose Antonio Rijo Abreu, if not for the goats of the Dominican.

One thing Rijo never was was a goat.

Was Rijo ever booed at Riverfront Stadium? Probably. But if you added up every boo Rijo received in his 10 seasons at Riverfront, would it total even one trip's boos from the Great American Ball Park mound to the first-base dugout for some of the current Reds pitchers?

On memories alone, 40-year-old Jose Rijo is a very rich man.
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