'Daddy' T's yanked; hero Ortiz hits the town
T-BALL So Yankee fans weren't the only ones happy when Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez called the Bronx Bombers his "daddy." (You'll recall that Martinez made the ill-advised comment last month after losing yet again to the Yanks.) Major League Baseball liked the quote so well it created a special T-shirt in time for the playoffs. Emblazoned with "Hey Red Sox . . . Who's Your Daddy?" the official MLB jersey has a picture of a pacifier with the Sox logo on it. Unbelievable, right? Explaining why the league would market a shirt flattering one team, and insulting another, MLB merchandising genius Howard Smith was quoted on Bostondirtdogs.com over the weekend as saying "fans want an attitudinal product." Oh, really? But Smith, who once worked for Canton-based Reebok, did say Major League Baseball might consider producing an anti-Yankees shirt to be fair. Sox fans were unimpressed and swamped the suits at the league office with e-mails and phone calls. (Helpfully, Bostondirtdogs.com webmaster Steve Silva posted Smith's e-mail address.) Yesterday, MLB finally yanked the $24.95 shirt from its online store and announced it is recalling the thousands of T's that were shipped a week ago to retail stores around New York. Predictably, Smith was too busy to talk yesterday -- he's working on his resume -- but MLB flack Carmine Tiso said the shirt seemed like a good idea at the time. "Obviously, some fans had some problems with [it] and weren't comfortable with [it]," he said. "The last thing we want to do is offend fans." Charles Steinberg, Sox vice president of public affairs, said the team complained only about the pacifier, not the words.
NO LAUGHING MATTER The gruesome death of a golden retriever in Nahant last month is attracting attention on the left coast. Comedian Richard Pryor and "Friends" star Matthew Perry are the latest to contribute to the cause of finding, and prosecuting, the person(s) responsible for the dog's death. The animal was found Sept. 21 in a burlap bag, hogtied and with a rope wrapped around its mouth and nose. Soon after, the "Golden Justice Fund" was created and Paul Barclay, owner of The Rack, kicked in $1,000. Since then, more than $12,000 has been raised, including a $1,000 check from Pryor and his wife, Jennifer Lee. "We have an animal rights forum on our website, www.richardpryor.com, and people post there all the time," said Lee, reached yesterday in LA. "When we heard about this horrendous situation, Richard and I knew we had to do something to help." Peter Gollub, director of law enforcement for the Mass. Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said the investigation is continuing. (Tipsters can call 800-628-5808.)
HEY, WHY THE LONG FACE? Former city politico John Nucci got more than a few double takes while marching with fellow Italian-Americans Mayor Tom Menino and Senate President Robert Travaglini in the Columbus Day Parade. But it wasn't his politics that got Nucci the looks. It was his resemblance to presidential aspirant John Kerry. Asked if that happens often, Nucci said it's been happening more and more, including the other night when he went to see "Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry" at the Loews Copley Square. People noticed Nucci, but Nucci noticed the real celeb: Author Stephen King was at the same screening.
SIGHTINGS Big Papi David Ortiz celebrated his game-winning home run in style Friday night. After dinner at Abe & Louie's, where patrons went nuts at the sight of the Sox DH, No. 34 pulled his custom Cadillac sports car up to the curb at Saint, and disappeared with his wife, Tiffany, into a VIP room. . . . A week after Joe Perry was spotted at the faux 16th-century marketplace there, Steven Tyler stopped by King Richard's Faire Saturday. With his wife, Teresa, and a couple of kids, the Aerosmith singer snacked on a turkey leg and apple cider, and tried his luck in the Archer's Den. Wow, dude, looks like m'lady. . . . And dining at the Todd English's restaurant aboard the Queen Mary II over the weekend was former president George Bush. (The luxury liner was docked in Portland, Maine.)
Peter DeMarco, a Globe correspondent, contributed to this column. Names can be reached at names@globe.com or at 617-929-8253. 
