Rare Beef

A cocky light heavyweight and a hard-hitting heavyweight almost had a go at each other last Thursday afternoon in Cincinnati's Riverfront Stadium. When Cubs manager Jim Frey was arguing a call at second, the Reds' Dave Parker, the runner there, started kibbitzing. Frey told Parker to stuff it, Parker returned the compliment, and the beef continued after the third out was made.

The 6'5", 230-pound Parker was on the third-base line, and Frey, 5'7", 170, was at the edge of the Cubs' dugout. " Ruben Amaro and Ron Cey held me back," says Frey. "I would say I reacted kind of instinctively. But now that I've given it some more thought, I'm glad I didn't hurt a player in the prime of his career. I wouldn't want that on my conscience."