Reggie Jackson apologizes to Yankees’ Giancarlo Stanton: ‘It was a joke’

Reggie Jackson

Yankees special advisor Reggie Jackson met up with Giancarlo Stanton on Sunday to say he was sorry for unintentionally criticizing him on live radio and that the slugging outfielder accepted the apology.AP

HOUSTON Yankees special advisor Reggie Jackson says that he was almost in tears Sunday learning that his lame attempt at making jokes with Jim Bowden of the MLB Network played out on live radio.

Mr. October says that he never meant to criticize Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton for missing Game 2 of the American League Championship Series with a strained right quad on the heels of an injury-plagued regular season and that his cursing insults were meant to make fun of Bowden before his on-air interview began.

When realizing his comments were on satellite radio, Jackson ended the interview and went straight to Stanton to apologize. Jackson said he would leave the ballpark before the end of the game to avoid the media and “not to draw a crowd and be a distraction.”

“I immediately spoke to (Yankees media relations VP) Jason Zillo and he advised I go in and talk to G Stanton, which I did,” Jackson wrote in a text Sunday night to NJ Advance Media. “I’d just spent several days with him during his rehab (from a knee injury) and he graciously accept my faux paux.

“Please know this was said to belittle the question, not with intent or malice.”

The incident took place prior to the Yankees’ 3-2, 11-inning loss to the Astros on Sunday at Minute Maid Park when Bowden, a former Cincinnati Reds GM, asked Jackson to do a satellite radio interview for the MLB Network.

Jackson assumed that he was waiting to go on the air live when Bowden said, “You share the same birthday as me.”

The 73-year-old Hall of Fame slugger responded, “I’ve thinking about suicide ever since I heard that.”

In his text, Jackson wrote, “I expected (Bowden) to say, ‘OK, Reggie, now we’re on the air.’ He immediately says, ‘Stanton’s quad is hurting him. He’s not in the lineup. Your thoughts?’”

That’s when Jackson says he attempted to make a joke by answering, “(Bleep), he’s been out all (bleeping) year! How the (bleep) could he be hurt?”

When there was silence, Jackson chimed in again, “This isn’t on air, is it? Honest to God?”

Jackson was sick to his stomach realizing his words weren’t private.

“Trying to make fun of the question, thinking it can’t go on the air with the swear words, I said, ‘He’s been out all (bleeping) year,” Jackson wrote in his text. “I thought (Bowden) would then say, ‘OK, Reggie, since you’re going to shoot yourself since we have the same birthday and you filled my tape with all the swear words, let’s do one for radio as we’re wanting to go on the air with you.'

“That was the an ‘Oh (bleep)’ for me. I thought it was all a joke. I almost chocked when he said they were on the air.”

Randy Miller may be reached at rmiller@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @RandyJMiller. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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