Reggie Jackson, the newest Hall of Famer, pulled a rock with his announcement that he prefers his Cooperstown plaque to show him in a Yankee cap. He says he wants to be part of the Mickey Mantle-Roger Maris-Whitey Ford tradition. Poor judgment on his part.
Whether he realizes it or not his principal identification has been and always will be with the Oakland A's, not the Yankees. He played 1,045 games with Oakland, 653 with the Yankees. He was the key position-player when the A's won five consecutive divisional and three World Series titles in the early and mid-1970s.
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Old-timers' game: Jim Bowden, the new Cincinnati front office boss, has been loading up with former big-league field managers: Davey Johnson, Jack McKeon and Bobby Valentine have joined the Reds' brain department. But does Bowden have a quick trigger finger to dump Tony Perez at the first opportunity? Win or lose, Perez is entitled to a two-year managerial voyage.
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Not that Bush: George W. Bush, the president's oldest son, almost-but-not-quite-fully has recovered from the presidential elections. According to Texas sources, George W., is back up to about 80 percent of his normal self. If so, that's more than good enough; it put him on a par with the majority of his fellow-owners, Cubs and White Sox excepted.
George W. has reiterated his father is retiring from public life and thus is not interested in succeeding interim commissioner Bud Selig as baseball's ninth czar. Whatever, a commissioner's search committee is expected to be formed when the owners hold their quarterly meeting in Dallas Tuesday.
The owners shouldn't give the job to an outsider. It would take him two or three years, half his term, to know who's who. The owners should anoint someone who already knows the score.
Come to think of it, George W., who is beginning his fifth season as co-owner of the Texas Rangers, would be a good choice. He's quick on his feet and has a sense of humor, both absolute necessities.