Pinch-Hitting for Reggie Was Cruelest Cut of All

Many Angel fans, like myself, have long thought Gene Mauch was an automaton, not a human being. His right-vs.-left fixation has cost the Angels games and pennants.

But the final inhuman cut of all was pinch-hitting for Reggie Jackson in what was most probably his last at-bat in Yankee Stadium. Reggie is a winner, a gentleman and a future Hall of Fame member, while Mauch now has 25 years of failure to show for his managing career.

The well-deserving Angel veterans will undoubtedly be denied the pennant as Mauch mismanages the Angels out of it again. If they win, it will be despite Mauch.

LEO B. USSELMAN

Valencia