Sammy Sosa passed Babe Ruth and Roger Maris on the same day. In his team's 150th game of the season (no asterisks need apply to the record). He knocked two balls out onto Waveland Avenue and strode back into the race for the all-time single season home run mark.
My money's on Sammy. Has been since the end of June. Sure, I have to admit that since WGN is on my cable system, I get to watch as many Cubs games as I like (one a week, perhaps). So I am somewhat familiar with Sosa and his team. Also, I happened to be sitting the upper deck at Wrigley last week when Sammy hit number 56, tying him with Hack Wilson for the Cubs' single season home run mark. It's nice to think I watched a tiny little part of history. But the main reason I'm in the corner of the man from the Dominican Republic is that Sammy is so much fun to watch.
And, hey, it's because everyone feels like they can call him Sammy. Mark McGwire is "McGwire". No one calls him "Mark". He's some kind of mutant freak, the granddaddy of all bouncers strapped into baseball polyester and given a wailing stick. Rooting for Mark McGwire to set the record is like rooting for the Cowboys, or Jeff Gordon for that matter. I know lots of people do it, but it's just not any fun.
Always root for the underdog. Virginia or Chaminade? I'll go Hawaiian. Notre Dame or Navy? Despite my aversion to the military, I'm sailing with the Midshipmen. And Sammy or McGwire? There is no choice. Sammy all the way.
Like almost every guy in the country, I watched my local Fox station last Tuesday night as the Cardinals faced the Cubs. McGwire tied Maris the night before, and then at 9:19 (9:18? My own clock said 9:21) p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, the shot that made history. McGwire cranked the ball into a small part of the stadium where they keep the batting practice equipment.
Yep, that's right. No one will ever know which ball McGwire hit. After the game, McGwire himself expressed doubt that the actual ball would be located. But he accepted the ball given to him (not to mention the 1962 Corvette) and rode off into the sunset.
Not so fast, sparky. Sure, McGwire was the first to 62, but the winner is the one with the most points at the end of the game. And Sammy might have been four dingers behind last Tuesday, but tonight, the season starts anew. The score is tied at 62, and there are two weeks of bashing left to enjoy.
Sammy's gonna do it. Why? Because the Cubs are fighting for a playoff spot. All McGwire is doing is swinging for the fences. Sammy is swinging for the team. His home runs the past two days have contributed to Cubs wins. He leads the National League in Runs Batted In (the most important offensive statistic in baseball). He's a shoo-in for NL Most Valuable Player. And the Cubs leads the Mets by one game in the race for the wild card spot. In short, Sammy has more than one reason to play. He can take his mind off crushing home runs and thus knock more out of the park.
McGwire has already proven this theory. It took him forever (relatively) to get from home run number 40 to home run number 50. But 50 to 60 went by in a flash. He put pressure on himself to get to 50, and once he made it, everything has been gravy. Now Sammy can thrive on the competitive juices of a playoff race, and since he is a clutch player, he will deliver that much more. That the Cardinals are all but eliminated from the race means all the pressure in St. Louis is on McGwire. The fans don't care if the Cards win. They really don't. All they want is another ball whacked out of Busch Stadium. That's some serious pressure. And no matter how good he is, McGwire just won't be able to keep up with Sammy.
Anyway, Sammy is the better story. He plays the game with evident joy and excitement. Watch the end of a Cubs win. He sprints in from the outfield so that he can be one of the first players to congratulate the pitcher and the rest of the players. He runs grounders out all the way to first. He truly enjoys talking to the media. When I see his interviews, I see a man who knows he's on top of the world and is enjoying every minute of it.
Older folks always like to talk about Ernie Banks, the Cubs Hall of Famer. "Let's play two!" was his famous quote. A guy who really loved the game, and spread that joy to fans and writers alike. While I was growing up I watched Kirby Puckett do the same thing. Even if he did play for a divisional rival of my team, the Kansas City Royals, I loved to watch him play. He put every piece of himself into the game, and even a person only peripherally watching the game could get caught up in his enthusiasm.
So in this great season of baseball revival, punctuated by one of the great team performances of all-time (the Yankees' run at the record of 116 victories in a single season) and the home run chase, it is only fitting that once again a player has left his love of the game all over the field. Sammy, with his power, grace and joy, has brought back innumerable fans to the great American pastime. Watching him on and off the field can only bring a smile to the face of even the most cynical jerk.
Oh, I know McGwire is the fashionable choice. He's the odds-on favorite to take the title. Even Sammy publicly says that McGwire will take the crown. Doesn't matter. My money is on the man intent upon leading the hapless Cubs into the postseason for only the third time since 1945.
Sammy, you da man.
Jon Worley hasn't bothered reading Ken Starr's report on the President. There's much more drama to be had at the ballpark.