Showalter reflects on Jackson, '73 Athletics

OAKLAND -- Orioles manager Buck Showalter was in high school when the Oakland Athletics won their second straight World Series title in 1973.

The team was officially honored on the 40th anniversary of the championship Saturday with a sellout on hand for the occasion.

"I remember the light-colored uniforms," Showalter said before the game. "The coaches wore white hats. That [former owner] Charlie Finley was ahead of his time."

Finley championed the designated-hitter rule and also tried to get baseball to adopt a designated-runner rule.

Oakland and the New York Yankees are the only teams to ever win as many as three consecutive World Series titles. Reggie Jackson, who was in town for the pregame ceremony, was a big reason for both.

"I got to know Reggie when I was in New York," Showalter said. "We used to talk about those teams all the time. I thought some of the teams Tony [La Russa] had here were similar."