Letters

• After following baseball for more than 45 years, I can think of only one player who compares with Dustin Pedroia and his intense, hustling style of play: Pete Rose. Still, what really impresses me the most about "Pedey" is the way he runs hard to first base on every ground ball and never finishes a game without getting his uniform filthy.

Bruce Bernstein, West Hartford, Conn.

Dirt in Motion, Pig Pen, Tunnel Rat. These are some names that I have called Pedroia (The Muddy Chicken Hits It Big, Aug. 15) over the years. And no, they weren't intended to be terms of endearment. However, after reading your article on the Red Sox' second baseman, I was left thinking, How can you hate a man who has such a deep, abiding passion for the game of baseball and for his family?

Patrick R. Lynch

Nottingham, Md.

Tree Justice

As a University of Alabama alumnus I dislike Auburn as much as the next guy. Yet even I was disgusted and embarrassed by the fact that Harvey Updyke poisoned those oak trees in Toomer's Corner. Reading about how "what hurts Updyke most is that Alabama turned on him," says to me that he is indeed mentally unstable.

Steve Victory, Metairie, La.

Retaliatory behavior is about the lowest and worst expression of team loyalty. True sportsmanship suggests that opponents fight it out on the field and shake hands after the game. Most athletes know and adhere to this unspoken rule even when fans don't.

Daniel Segal, Groton, N.Y.