SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. -- On May 21, my esteemed colleague Bill Finley wrote the following in an article requesting Rachel Alexandra's start in the Belmont Stakes: "Jess Jackson might just be the last true sportsman left in horse racing. He gets a thrill out of seeing his horses compete& in the most challenging races. He understands the need to look beyond his own self-interest and keep the well-being of a struggling game in mind. He doesn't always put what's best for his bank account first." I drank the Kool-Aid. Sure, Mr. Jackson comes off as a sportsman. His campaign of Curlin through a 4-year-old season that the colt could have spent at stud was appreciated by the industry. And running Rachel Alexandra against the boys in the Preakness took a leap of faith that most owners would not have taken. I was on the bandwagon. Not any longer. Here's what I've come to discover in the weeks since Rachel's romp in the Haskell: there's a difference between a true sportsman and a pseudo-sportsman. Allow me to explain. Monday. 11:00 a.m. Chip Woolley calls a press conference. There's something wrong with Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird. The whole thing is disclosed, from the little entrapped epiglottis to the schedule for a quick surgery at Ruffian Equine Medical Center to hopes he'll still run in the Travers to a plan to nominate to the Pennsylvania Derby just in case. Members of the media are briefed on his departure. Woolley answers his phone on the way to and from the hospital. He lets us into the barn when he gets back to talk about what happened. He repeats the information in countless interviews. In short, he's a sportsman. He understands the trust he owes to the racing industry. He understands that the racing media is a vital (if ever-shrinking) part of the game. He wants the fans to know about what's going on with his gelding because he knows the fans follow this game because of horses like Mine That Bird, horses like Rachel Alexandra. And he knows without the industry, without the media, without the fans, there would be no racing and his horse would be cutting cows in a field somewhere or something. Now let's talk about how Jackson has still not announced plans for his filly's next start -- or the completely ridiculous fact that reporters (and the public) had to wait for the overnight to come out to discover she would not be starting in Saturday's Alabama, one of five races listed as "under consideration" by her connections. Or how about the constant harping on raising purse monies, per Jackson's quote today in the Daily News -- "The NYRA has been very good to us, but I wish the purses were higher." The purse for the Aug. 29 Travers is $1 million. The purse for the Sept. 5 Woodward is $500,000. Not exactly pocket change -- as if the California wine mogul, 428th on the Forbes 500 list at a net worth of 1.8 billion, needs the money. Real classy. Reporters seeking an answer on Rachel's next start yesterday were informed that it was the day off for the owner's PR director, that Asmussen didn't know, and that Jackson still hadn't made up his mind. And that's why I say sportsman shmortsman, Mister Jackson. Enough cat-and-mouse. Set a date for a press conference, make up your mind, and make the announcement. That's what a true sportsman would do. This way, racetracks barely have a chance to promote the appearance of the filly who at the moment is the only Thoroughbred with enough charisma to draw the public in. And if Rachel Alexandra takes home much-deserved Horse of the Year honors by the end of the season, it will be all because of her phenomenal performances on the track, not because of her owner's approach to her second half of the season. "It's fun to have the speculation," Jackson told the Albany Times-Union today, after he said he's taken so long to make the decision because he wants to make sure the filly is really fit when she goes. Trust me, the filly is fit. If she wasn't, trainer Steve Asmussen would be out of a job. And this beating around the bush, holding out for the best offer, making racetracks scramble to enhance purses or build special races or get creative on terms and conditions is indicative of only two things -- self interest and power play. So, Mister Jackson, take a lesson from a little guy and a gelding from New Mexico. Give us a straight answer, and give it to us now. It's what the racing public -- and the entire racing industry -- deserves.