Reggie Jackson Talks A-Rod, David Ortiz And 'Becoming Mr. October' (VIDEO)

Reggie On A-Rod: 'He's My Friend'

Decades removed from his tempestuous time with the New York Yankees, Reggie Jackson is aware that his mouth can still get him into trouble. The Hall of Famer best known as "Mr. October" for his postseason heroics with the Yankees and Oakland A's realized that during a 2012 incident in which comments made about Alex Rodriguez to Sports Illustrated caused him some embarrassment.

"I have done things in the past here where I don't mind admitting it, making a mistake. I had an issue last year with Sports Illustrated where I made some comments and they got printed but I assumed. I didn't tell the writer not to write them," Jackson told Marc Lamont Hill of HuffPost Live on Thursday. "It embarrassed me and hurt me for a while."

Asked by Hill why the publication of his comments about A-Rod's records being clouded by his 2009 admission that he used performance-enhancing drugs from 2001 to 2003 bothered him, Jackson replied, "Well, he's my friend."

"I made comments about him that I would say to him but I certainly didn't want them misinterpreted so they come out with a different slant or a different tone and I wind up looking foolish," Jackson explained.

Jackson dropped by HuffPost Live on Thursday to discuss his forthcoming book "Becoming Mr. October." With the Yankees' archrival in Boston having won the World Series the night before, Jackson also weighed in on the 2013 Fall Classic and its MVP. As the Red Sox rolled through the postseason, Jackson's iconic nickname was increasingly bestowed upon Boston slugger David Ortiz, perhaps a bit too freely.

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