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An Andy Rooney classic for baseball's opening day

Baseball bats: An Andy Rooney classic
An Andy Rooney classic for baseball's opening day 02:07

Let's play ball! In honor of Major League Baseball's opening day Thursday, here's a look back at a classic piece from 1981, when Andy Rooney visited the Louisville Slugger factory.

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"They can make 250 bats out of one good tree," Rooney explained. "How's that for a statistic, baseball fans?"

While looking at a stack of wood waiting be turned into bats, Rooney predicted Yankees legend Reggie Jackson would use one to strike out and end the 1981 World Series.

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He was half right—the Yankees did lose the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers that year. But it wasn't Jackson's fault. In the bottom of the ninth with two outs, facing a 3-2 count, "Mr. October" made it to first base on an error, extending the game. It was actually the next batter, first baseman Bob Watson, who hit a fly ball, ending the Yankees' season.

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