Great line from Ernie Harwell when I talked to him this afternoon. I said, "Ernie, I always tell people you're a tough guy...
And before I could get out the rest he blurted out - "AND MEAN, TOO!!!"
It made me laugh, because there is an element there that is so true about life. Being tough doesn't mean you're mean. Ernie Harwell is definitely tough, but obviously not mean. There is a big difference when you think about it. Sometimes it's the difference between a person with character and an unsavory character.
What's always amazed me about Ernie is the clarity of his memory. If you ask him about the gloves they used to leave on the field between innings, or the old Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants, etc. he is always been able to paint a vivid picture. He is the best baseball historian I've known. A suggestion: Get his audio scrapbook. It's a true treasure.

My column in today's Oakland Press about two Lions' tormentors being rolled into one Sunday at Ford Field: http://tinyurl.com/qakn5r