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Reggie Jackson: Line 'needs to be drawn' for brash celebrations

Rob Leiter / Major League Baseball / Getty

Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson isn't a fan of players disrespecting one another with bold celebrations.

"I do admire the talent. Fernando Tatis (Jr.), great admiration," Jackson said Friday, according to Monte Poole of NBC Sports. "But there's a line that needs to be drawn or a conversation that needs to be had.

"I get your excitement. I get your enthusiasm. And there's nothing wrong with that, nothing wrong with jumping and up and down and doing cheetah backflips when you hit a home run in the (World) Series. But there are times when you want to respect the pain of the opposition. And you want to have the class of being a great champion."

Mr. October acknowledged there was a mutual respect among major leaguers when he suited up between 1967 and 1987.

"I think that there's a way of passing on how you should act," the 74-year-old said. "The players that I admired and played against, (Willie) Mays, (Hank) Aaron, Billy Williams, Ernie Banks, (Bob) Gibson, (Sandy) Koufax, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra. (There was) the appreciation, the understanding, and the gratefulness they had for the game."

Jackson won five World Series rings and made 14 All-Star teams during his playing career. He was inducted into Cooperstown in 1993.

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