WILLIAMSPORT — Baseball Hall of Famer and New York Yankees legend Reggie “Mr. October” Jackson slid into Lycoming County for the second time ever to interact with baseball fans from around the country during the Little League World Series on Saturday — and he wants to come back for more, he said.

The two-stop tour around the county began at Bald Bird Brewing Co. in Jersey Shore with a question-and-answer luncheon with baseball fans from around the country and ended with a memorabilia signing event at the Liberty Arena in downtown Williamsport later in the afternoon.

“It’s really nice, the people are nice,” Reggie said of the city. “Baseball is important — and Williamsport is important to continue what it is.”

Crosscutters Vice President of Marketing Gabe Sinicropi listed several famous baseball players with the name “Reggie.”

“But there is only one Reggie,” he said.

Reggie said he marveled at the rural beauty of his home state, having grown up outside of Philadelphia. As a young athlete, he came from a poorer family — one of six children in a split family, mother and father taking care of three each.

He explained he first arrived at Arizona State University on a football scholarship, but eventually switched to baseball.

“We always needed money. It was good for me to leave college and get in the draft,” Reggie said.

When Reggie signed his first contract, he flew into Chicago with his father to stay in a hotel with two bedrooms in it, which he described as a big deal for the two.

“My dad had coffee brought to our room!” he exclaimed. “And someone brought breakfast to us in the morning.”

The breakfast had every kind of farm animal present that Reggie could imagine — bacon, eggs, ham and more. His father had steak and eggs — a first — while Reggie had cantaloupe with a scoop of ice cream.

“And boy, I just thought that was the cat’s meow,” Reggie said.

Reggie also divulged the story behind his iconic mustache — one that started a team trend in 1972 — while he played for the Oakland Athletics.

He said his teammates thought he wanted to draw attention to himself with the look, and thought if they grew mustaches, Reggie would be forced to shave it off because he would not be unique.

Instead, the Athletics’ owner, Charlie Finley, paid every member of the team $300 to grow a mustache, and held a mustache game to attract more fans.

“I was making about $30,000 a year and $300 was a lot to me,” Reggie said.

Reggie moved on to his career with the Yankees, describing the World Series game against the Los Angeles Dodgers where he earned a nickname that followed him through his career — and even into his Twitter username.

According to Reggie, during a late-season October game, he hit three home runs off three pitchers and, afterward, teammate Thurman Munson told the press they should be interviewing “Mr. October. It was his game.”

Mr. October continued to tell stories about his siblings, who were involved in the creation of a documentary. His brother recounted how he heard Reggie slam home runs from a coworker in a radio tower at the airport, or how his sister saved letters from him from years ago.

“It was really cool to look at my handwriting and see where I had sent those letters to her from,” Reggie said.

The Mr. October Foundation, formed by Reggie and intended to be continued by his daughter after he has passed away, is a charity to bring STEM education to underserved communities in America, Reggie said. According to him, the foundation is exploring trying to bring the “Reggie bar” candy bar back with plans of donating the proceeds to charity.

Reggie fielded several questions from the audience before he left for the Little League World Series.

Between signing events, Reggie said he wants to continue to see investment put into baseball, especially for children.

“Baseball should be an obligation to promote,” Reggie said. “I want to help. We need to have more minorities in the field and as managers.”

Reggie also voiced disapproval of club baseball because of how it restricts participants.

“Traveling and paying to play isn’t good. We need to have it in our own neighborhood,” Reggie said.

Sinicropi reflected on the event after Reggie departed the brewery.

“It is a huge honor. He’s Reggie! He transcends the sport. He’s an American icon! He’s a tremendous player and hall of famer,” Sinicropi said.

“It’s a special time in the World Series, and it’s great the chamber is bringing back these events,” Sinicropi said.

“It is exciting to welcome somebody with a reputation like him,” said Jason Fink, president and CEO of the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce. “We are thankful for the opportunity to have him here.”

Reggie played professional baseball for 21 years, racking up 563 home runs with a .262 batting average. He played with the Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees and California Angels.