Reggie Jackson may no longer be 'The straw that stirs the drink.' He still, however, knows how to stir up some controversy.
In this week's Sports Illustrated Jackson bashes steroid users, including Andy Pettitte and Alex Rodriguez of the Yankees, says he does not believe steroid users should get into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and says seveal current Hall of Famers don't belong there. You can also read the entire story online.
Samples from Reggie:
On Alex Rodriguez: "Al's a very good friend. But I think there are real questions about his numbers. As much as I like him, what he admitted about his usage does cloud some of his records."
On players liked to PEDs getting into the Hall of Fame: "If any of those guys get in, no Hall of Famer will attend."
On Andy Pettitte possibly beign inducted into the Hall of Fame: "The question is going to be a guy like Andy Pettitte, who admitted that he got involved for a while, but who is so universally respected in the game. I think he'll get in, but there will be a lot of [members] who won't go."
On Hall of Famers who he feels should not have been voted in: "I didn't see Kirby Puckett as a Hall of Famer. I didn't see Gary Carter as a Hall of Famer. I didn't see Don Sutton as a Hall of Famer. I didn't see Phil Niekro as a Hall of Famer. As much as I like Jim Rice, I'm not so sure he's a Hall of Famer."
On whether or not Bert Blyleven shouild have been elected: "No. No, no, no, no. Blyleven wasn't even the dominant pitcher of his era, it was Jack Morris."