Tony La Russa’s fondness for mullet-rock is well established. If Bill Belichick hopes to impress a Jersey housewife, there’s no aphrodisiac quite like a Bon Jovi all-access laminate. But when it comes to World Champion coaching gurus and their decidedly atavistic tastes, there’s no one quite the equal of Charlie Manuel. The Phillies skipper has already weighed in on the subject of vintage video games, and via Saturday’s “Answer Man” feature at Yahoo Sports, Manuel tells David Brown he’s more than conversant on when it comes to 1980’s pro wrestling.
DB: Not that you were ever THAT big, but were you ever tempted to try sumo wrestling while over in Japan?
CM: No, no. But I do like pro wrestling and Antonio Inoki used to live right next door to me. He was a big-name rassler in Japanese wrestling at that time. He was the one who fought [Muhammad] Ali.
DB: So, have you ever been to a Wrestlemania event live?
CM: Yeah, I’ve been a couple of times. I saw Batista, I saw Vader and the heartthrob, Shawn Michaels in Cleveland. And Sunny, the woman. She was better than all of them.
DB: Who’s your favorite wrestler?
CM: Goldberg. I like Goldberg.
DB: What do you think it feels like to get tasered?
CM: I’m not planning on finding out! [laughs].
Though it’s not Charlie’s birthday again until next January, there’s no reason the Phillies players can’t pool their resources to buy him something he’d really cherish.