Slugging in the shadows
McGwire not the only one making a run at Maris' record
Posted: Monday June 22, 1998 06:54 PM
ST. LOUIS (CNN/SI) -- With all the hype and all the talk surrounding Mark McGwire,
it's easy to overlook some other sluggers who are smacking the ball over
the fence at an almost unbelievable pace.
Sammy Sosa of the Chicago
Cubs is going berserk! He's in one of those rare binges now where
everything he hits is flying out of the ballpark. Unless he hits a swoon,
he'll be right there with McGwire at the end of the season challenging
Roger Maris' home run record.
And then there's Ken Griffey
Jr., who is quietly ripping the ball at a pace that will give him 60
for the season.
In fact, there are seven players who, at their current rate, will hit 50 or
more homers this season.
Sosa has been the most impressive of the bunch lately. He's hit 10 homers
in his last nine games, 21 in his last 22. He's hit 17 of his 30 home runs
this month, a major league record, and has eight games left in June to go
for the record for homers in a month (18).
No one knows whether Sosa can break Maris' record. But he's definitely
capable of 50 homers.
What has happened with Sosa is what happens with a lot of guys who have big
swings. To cut down on the strikeouts, they've cut down on their swings
some and are putting the ball in play. It helps the batting average (Sosa
is hitting .339).
But guys like Sosa are so strong that, even cutting down on the swing, they
can still hit the ball out of the park. And Sosa is put together very well.
He's a very strong man. He's always had the capability to hit home runs in
bunches (he's had at least 25 in each of the past six seasons). Now, he's
just maturing. He just kind of found himself. And it doesn't hurt that the
Cubs are winning.
It will be fun to watch Sosa and McGwire and Griffey and Juan Gonzalez
and Alex
Rodriguez and Andres
Galarraga and Greg Vaughn
during the second half of the season. Once they get close to the record,
that's when it will get really interesting. That's when the pressure
starts.
Sosa has been the most impressive of the bunch lately (AP) | |
Nobody has handled that pressure better than McGwire so far. People come to
the ballpark expecting to see him hit a home run, and what does he do? He
hits home runs. That's impressive. The rest of those sluggers should take a
lesson from him.
Today's players are bigger, stronger and faster. They're spending more time
in the gym and in the creatine jar. They understand the craft a little bit
more, understand how to hit. When someone can smash the ball that far, it’s
just fascinating to watch.
The 6-4-3 with Ozzie Smith: The cries are out again for Cal Ripken Jr. to
take a seat and break The Streak.
Ripken has played every game for the Baltimore Orioles for
more than 16 years, more than 2,550 straight starts. For years, people have
said The Streak has become a burden.
This year, the critics may have a point. Ripken’s numbers are not good.
He's had only two home runs this month -- and only four extra-base hits. He
has only six home runs for the year and just 34 RBIs.
Anytime anybody gets a chance to take a break, it's going to help. But the
only person who should be able to say, "Hey, let's put an end to The
Streak," should be Ripken. I can't see a manager or a general manager doing
that, putting himself in the position to be ridiculed as the man who broke
The Streak.
The decision won't be an easy one. If he does sit, he faces all the
questions about The Streak ending: "Why did you sit? Did you feel you were
hurting the team? How did you come to the decision?" It opens up a whole
Pandora's Box.
It's almost just as easy to keep it going.
Ozzie Smith is the baseball analyst for CNN/SI, the 24-hour sports news
network from CNN and Sports Illustrated. His column appears every Monday on
CNNSI.com.
| 
