Jim Bouton

I read Ball Four almost every summer when I was growing up, and my first summer in NYC was the one his son wrote the letter to the Daily News asking the Yankees to bury the hatchet and let Bouton come back to Yankees Stadium for Old-Timer’s Day. This will be a big day for fans like me:

Ex-Yankees pitcher Jim Bouton will take the mound one more time June 17 for what might be the most meaningful game of his storied career.

Bouton was named Thursday to the 2018 Old-Timers' Game, where he will be joined by legendary Bronx Bombers Homer Bush, Bucky Dent, Whitey Ford and Ron Guidry, as well as newcomers Jason Giambi and Aaron Boone.

In the crowd will be 54 guests of the 79-year-old knuckleballer, including his six grandchildren — four girls and two boys, ranging in age from 7 to 18 — who have never seen "Bulldog" in uniform.