The Yankees, Aaron Judge and the fate of Major League Baseball

He Even Wore Bellbottoms

Fast-forward to the seventies and Reggie Jackson fittingly defines his Yankees era. Black power and high-priced Yankees free agency collided perfectly in the form of Mr. October, and even his ego was not bigger than his accomplishments.

I don’t know the first person to say, it ain’t bragging if you can back it up, but it might have well been Reggie.

However, it would take more than a big star to revive that moribund Yankees franchise; Reggie, fortunately for the Yankees, was always more grow than show.

He didn’t just lead the Yankees to the World Series in 1977, he led them to the title. Along the way, he joined Ruth as the only two players at the time to hit three home runs in one WS game. Even today, the two Yankees, Ruth and Reggie, account for three of the five occurrences.

He actually outdid Ruth in one way. Jackson had hit a home run in his final at-bat the night before and, after walking in his first at-bat the next day, hit out the next three pitches he saw.

That gave him four home runs on four straight pitches in four consecutive official at-bats, against four different pitchers. That’s what they call Jacksonian.

In a loud, brash era, Reggie was the straw that stirred the drink in the Bronx, and for all of baseball.