Posted on 07/15/2004 5:51:40 AM PDT by Huck
HOUSTON -- The sellout crowd at Minute Maid Park gave Muhammad Ali a hero's welcome Tuesday, but Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Feller would rather the former boxing great not have been invited.
Ali received a roaring ovation from the crowd for being an honored guest for the ceremonial first pitch at the All-Star Game, but Feller came away angered by Ali's presence.
"I object very strongly to Muhammad Ali being here to throw out the first pitch, and you can print that," Feller was quoted as saying in Wednesday's Boston Herald. "This is a man who changed his name and changed his religion so he wouldn't have to serve his country, and, to me, that's disgusting."
Born Cassius Clay in 1942, Ali changed his name after converting to the Muslim faith.
Commissioner Bud Selig dismissed the criticism of Ali, who returned to the city where he fought four times and relinquished his heavyweight boxing title by refusing to join the military during the Vietnam War.
"Muhammad Ali is one of the sports legends of our generation," Selig said before the game. "I don't think that that's valid criticism."
Feller won 266 games during his career, all with the Cleveland Indians, but lost nearly four seasons while serving with the U.S. Navy in World War II. He received eight battle stars.
"A man who turned his back on his country shouldn't be honored this way," Feller told the Herald.
Ali became known for much more than being a terrific and mouthy heavyweight champion in April 1967, when he moved his legal residence to Houston to fight induction into the military at the downtown U.S. Armed Forces Examining and Entrance Station.
He was roundly criticized for the decision around the country, and was indicted 10 days later by a federal jury for violating the Universal Military Training and Service Act. He was convicted in Houston on June 20, 1967, and was sentenced to five years in prison and a fine of $10,000.
Ali never went to prison as his case went through appeals, but was stripped of his titles and forced to stop boxing for more than three years. His refusal gave more steam to the growing anti-war movement, and the U.S. Supreme Court overturned his conviction in 1971. Ali returned to the ring shortly thereafter.
He became the world champion twice more, and eventually retired in 1981.
"I protest his being here [at the All-Star Game]," Feller told the Herald. "I don't like the message he sends out, and [Major League Baseball] shouldn't have invited him."
Ali has returned to Houston several times over the years, including a 1997 benefit for Parkinson's disease, the ailment from which he now suffers.
"He's a national treasure as far as I'm concerned," AL and New York Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "Sometimes when people are going through some physical problems, they tend to hide out. But I think he realizes how much good he does just showing up places."
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
However, I understand the Torre-Jeter high road too, just spinning it as a positive experience, highlight what you think are the aspects everyone can agree on, and don't drag politics into the all star game. That's just good business.
But again, maybe Feller is right. Maybe if you want to keep politics out of it, you don't invite Ali. I know to a lot of folks, with what's going on right now, Ali's presense was probably a slap in the face. I defer to those slightly older than me.
Boxing has been a farce far longer than most people realize. Ali's "contribution" to this nation was as an entertainer, not as an athlete.
Bud Selig would sell his own mother for money. No, this America-hating, draft-dodging jackass should never have been honored, but its all about money. Selig and his ilk could care less about this country and the men and women who served it, often with their lives.
IMHO, I don't think it matters if he's right or wrong. It's just his opinion that, now that I think of it, I happen to agree with.
Good for Feller. I am so sick of people who toss around the label "hero" as if it had no actual meaning beyond "celebrity." Ali deserves no honor.
I think he would have been a favorite of mine had he pitched while I was young (he was long retired by the time I was born).
Boxing is a fraud??????? You must be kidding, do you mean pro-wrestling is the only real sport left?
If it weren't for this article being posted here on FreeRepublic, I never would have known anything about the All-Star game, Muhammed Ali, etc.
The game also got record low television ratings, too.
Major League Baseball could have honored Osama bin Laden before the All-Star game, for all I care. Or even Barry Bonds.
I was in a "redneck" bar watching Ali fight British champ Joe Bugner. They were talking about Bugner teaching the "nigger" a lesson. By the end of the fight they were ALL on their feet cheering Ali.
Ali transcended sports. I am as conservative as they come, and I loved listening to Ali talk and talk and talk. He was truly one of a kind.
Bob Feller is a GREAT American. He gave up the best years of his playing life to fight for this country. Meanwhile, I am sure he would shun the label of hero. Ali had his time in the sun. He was a great boxer. He was NOT a hero.
I admire and respect Bob Feller, but Ali didn't flee to Canada or hide out in a Black Muslim safehouse when the authorities came to get him for his crime. Ali accepted his punishment like a man, and its hard to work up much righteous indignation against somebody who does that.
I think Ali was wrong in not serving his country but I don't doubt that he has principles and honors them, even at the expense of his own liberty.
The punch you refer to was in the rematch, in which Liston may very well have taken a quick dive rather than be humiliated by Ali again. In their first fight, Liston was beat up and totally exhausted by Ali, again despite the Liston team literally blinding Ali for a round or two. Ali was no fraud and you do not know your facts.
I still am.
The sport is an utter fraud, and Ali's career was really nothing more than a long-running entertainment production engineered by Howard Cosell.
All very true and Bob Feller is right, too.
Yeah, you just gotta admire a religious pacifist who won't fight for his country, but who will splatter another man's blood all over the ring for personal gain and glory. Soldiers didn't "earn" multi-million dollar purses, but they did earn our respect and gratitude. Ali did not.
Let's be honest hear. Would Ali get any of these ovations if he did not have Parkinson's Disease? The reason he gets all of this adulation because people feel sorry for him.
I think it is interesting that Ali was once hailed as the most famous person in the world and had a sharp mind and tongue. He converts to Islam and wants to spread Islam's message all over the world and God takes away his ability to speak and ability to function normally.
Baseball has a serious problem as more and more people like you care less and less about the sport. "Honoring" Muhammed Ali was no way to stir up interest in BASEBALL during the all-star game opportunity. What a crew of public relations and marketing morons.
No, he didn't.
He was sentenced to five years in prison, but never spent a single minute behind bars.
Nothing wrong with that, of course. In fact, it seems appropriate when you consider that the major power broker in the sport for the last few decades has been an Al Sharpton wannabe with an extensive criminal background.
I stand by my reply to Huck. And if service in the military is the only criteria you use in judging people, I'd like to remind you that there are a lot of Republicans and conservatives who never served a single day in uniform (some even for good reason). Think about it.
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