...the bald-headed dope on the right. And what did Jim Beattie, vice president of player personnel for the Baltimore Orioles, do to earn such a distinction? Take a look:
Jim Beattie...acknowledged to the Washington Post that the O's placed the call to the commissioner's office that resulted in Major League Baseball banning Johnny Pesky from the Sox dugout at Fenway Park. Beattie denied the call was retribution for the Sox asking the umpires at Fenway Park last week to check Rodrigo Lopez's cap for substances. "I'm from New England," Beattie said. "I love Johnny Pesky. It had to do with the Red Sox not following the rules. We all have to live by the same rules."
And for the uninitiated, Johhny Pesky is now 157 years old, and occasionally sits in the Boston dugout during home games. Why exactly his presence was a threat to Baltimore is unclear at this point. I mean, if I'm the Orioles, I'd definitely be more concerned with the fact that an old-timer is sitting in the Red Sox dugout minding his own business, than say, trying to keep my best pitcher's weight under 400 lbs.
And thank God Beattie is interested in following "the rules." Really, where would we be if we let senior citizens sit anywhere they damn well pleased? The next thing you know they'll be sitting in seats "reserved for the elderly" on public buses and subways. Where will it end?
This guy is an awful, spiteful person. It's Ok to be upset that the Red Sox accused Lopez of doctoring the ball, but it's no Ok to be a vindictive jerk about it by running Pesky out of the dugout. But Beattie and the Orioles got what was coming to them -- they're currently 22.5 games out of first place, despite their bloated payroll.
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