Sosa becomes fifth player to blast 600 home runs

[Gee!]

Sosa becomes fifth player to blast 600 home runs
Associated Press

Updated: June 20, 2007, 11:30 PM ET

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Playing for the Texas Rangers after a year out of baseball, Sosa became the fifth member of the 600-homer club Wednesday night when he connected against his former team.

After driving a 1-2 pitch to right-center for a solo shot in the fifth inning, Slammin' Sammy bounced out of the batter's box with his trademark hop and thrust his right fist into the air before reaching first base. He was mobbed at home plate by his teammates while the scoreboard showed pictures of all five members of the elite club: Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays and Sosa.

No. 600 came off Jason Marquis, the 364th pitcher the 38-year-old Sosa has homered off in his 18 major league seasons.

Rest of article: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2911022

 

[asudevil83]

good for him....i guess

he cheated for god knows how long to get there though. so, i dont care about this just as much as i dont care about Bonds.

 

[Heucrazy]

good for him....i guess

he cheated for god knows how long to get there though. so, i dont care about this just as much as i dont care about Bonds.

That's the thing. Has Sammy ever been brought up in any of these investigations?

I'm asking because I can't remember him being mentioned.

 

[Shane]

That's the thing. Has Sammy ever been brought up in any of these investigations?

I'm asking because I can't remember him being mentioned.

He testified in front of congress. But he was never linked to Balco like all the others. Kudos to him.

 

[Russ Smith]

He testified in front of congress. But he was never linked to Balco like all the others. Kudos to him.

Call me a skeptic but look at his body now, and especially his head, and look at it back when he and McGwire were chasing Maris, he was HUGE then.
he was doing something, if it wasn't Balco it was something else IMHO.

And my usual complaint, why did ESPN make such a big deal about 600? It's not a record, will cut in on games when he hits 605, 610 etc? Why this obsession with "round numbers", just drives me bananas.

 

[Heucrazy]

Call me a skeptic but look at his body now, and especially his head, and look at it back when he and McGwire were chasing Maris, he was HUGE then.
he was doing something, if it wasn't Balco it was something else IMHO.

And my usual complaint, why did ESPN make such a big deal about 600? It's not a record, will cut in on games when he hits 605, 610 etc? Why this obsession with "round numbers", just drives me bananas.

Because he's only the 5th player in the history of MLB to hit 600 career home runs.

 

[SunsTzu]

Because he's only the 5th player in the history of MLB to hit 600 career home runs.

How many people have hit 599 homeruns and why wasn't it a big deal when he did that?

 

[Russ Smith]

Because he's only the 5th player in the history of MLB to hit 600 career home runs.

How many have hit 599?

 

[Stallion]

As much as I dislike Bonds, I think Sosa should be viewed even worse. Bonds was a great player in his young, skinny days. He just used the juice (IMO) to try and become The Best Ever, which he's about to do.

Sosa never hit more than 40 HRs or had an OPS over .900 before '98. He also had the corked bat thing when they took away the juice. Now he's sitting on Rushmore next to Aaron, Ruth and Mays. It doesn't feel right at all.

But a lot about MLB hasn't felt right for a long time.

 

[Heucrazy]

How many people have hit 599 homeruns and why wasn't it a big deal when he did that?

How many have hit 599?

So then should the sports world celebrate every single number of every single accomplishment ever? Would that make you guys happier?

 

[SunsTzu]

So then should the sports world celebrate every single number of every single accomplishment ever? Would that make you guys happier?

No they should celebrate when there is a record broken. Not for hitting some round number. I remember when Gwynn got his 3,000th hit espn and fox sports spent the entire night talking about it and showing his press conference.

 

[Heucrazy]

No they should celebrate when there is a record broken. Not for hitting some round number. I remember when Gwynn got his 3,000th hit espn and fox sports spent the entire night talking about it and showing his press conference.

So only when records are broken?

Not when guys hit career milestones that are so lofty only 4 other players in the over 100 year history of the game have achieved?

Ok got it. No credit for anything accomplished during a career unless it broke a record. That going to make it hard for the hall of fame voters.

 

[Ryanwb]

The world love rounds numbers, come on. Willard Scott doesn't give a damn about 99 year olds but your 100th birthday gives him wood

 

[SunsTzu]

So only when records are broken?

Not when guys hit career milestones that are so lofty only 4 other players in the over 100 year history of the game have achieved?

Ok got it. No credit for anything accomplished during a career unless it broke a record. That going to make it hard for the hall of fame voters.

I didn't say anything about not giving credit. I just don't think there should be a huge spectacle made of hitting some round number.

 

[AZCB34]

Does the fact Sosa...and even Bonds for that matter...did steroids matter anymore? It isn't like either of them will get into HoF on the first ballot anymore and an argument could be made for Sosa never getting on it I guess.

I guess the fact that these were not the only two players juicing has finally struck a chord with me.

If they had been alone in their juicing habits, then they would deserve every criticism and attack thrown on them but so much of baseball was juicing that I find it harder and harder to take the sanctimonious high ground about all this. I mean can we keep the disdain up forever when I think many of us "knew and accepted" what was occurring even as it happened?

Bonds is an ass for sure but I am just worn out critisizing the guy...I will not celebrate his "accomplishment" in any way but I am done being the bitter baseball fan.

Sosa is a fool and his "accomplishment" is less impressive that it should have been had he not been roided up. I do not celebrate what he did in any way but I am done being the bitter baseball fan.

 

[HooverDam]

The world love rounds numbers, come on. Willard Scott doesn't give a damn about 99 year olds but your 100th birthday gives him wood

This is the best post ever, I laughed my ass off at it

Does the fact Sosa...and even Bonds for that matter...did steroids matter anymore?

Not to me it doesn't. Most everyone probably did it, or such a large portion of players that it doesn't matter. There was a dead ball era, and now we had a steroid era, the best players (ie Bonds, Sosa) from that era should still go to the HoF. I'm in agreement w/ Buster Olney on this issue.

 

[Russ Smith]

So then should the sports world celebrate every single number of every single accomplishment ever? Would that make you guys happier?

You're missing the point, the same number of people have hit 599 as have hit 600, same for 601. But they're only going to make a big deal out of 600, because it's a round number.

It's a pet peeve of mine it's completely illogical to quote Mr. Spock. I had the same problem when during the Sosa and McGwire HR chase they were cutting in on games to show Sosa "break" 61. McGwire had already broken it, 61 wasn't a record anymore, so why make a big deal out of 61 for Sosa?

 

[Russ Smith]

So only when records are broken?

Not when guys hit career milestones that are so lofty only 4 other players in the over 100 year history of the game have achieved?

Ok got it. No credit for anything accomplished during a career unless it broke a record. That going to make it hard for the hall of fame voters.

Again he'd already accomplished that by getting to 599.

 

[Russ Smith]

The world love rounds numbers, come on. Willard Scott doesn't give a damn about 99 year olds but your 100th birthday gives him wood

See Ryan gets it.

 

[Russ Smith]

This is the best post ever, I laughed my ass off at it



Not to me it doesn't. Most everyone probably did it, or such a large portion of players that it doesn't matter. There was a dead ball era, and now we had a steroid era, the best players (ie Bonds, Sosa) from that era should still go to the HoF. I'm in agreement w/ Buster Olney on this issue.

My problem with Sosa is precisely what someone else already said, his entire HOF credentials revolve around using steroids. He was a talented player with a lot of flaws who juiced himself into a HR freak. He was a guy with very good power maxing out in the low 30's who turned himself into a power hitter no doubt because he knew he was in a HR ballpark and being a flyball hitter in that park it made sense to juice.

Bonds was a great player before he juiced, so was McGwire, Sosa wasn't.

 

[asudevil83]

That's the thing. Has Sammy ever been brought up in any of these investigations?

I'm asking because I can't remember him being mentioned.

the guy started back in the league at 225 pounds.....and hit 60-whatever home runs while while at 265.

he bottoms out years later.....takes a year off....and comes back at 225 pounds. show me another guy who's done the same type thing and i'll back off. but as it stands, just because he hasnt been implicated in anything, doesnt keep him free from criticism IMO.

 

[PDXChris]

the guy started back in the league at 225 pounds.....and hit 60-whatever home runs while while at 265.

he bottoms out years later.....takes a year off....and comes back at 225 pounds. show me another guy who's done the same type thing and i'll back off. but as it stands, just because he hasnt been implicated in anything, doesnt keep him free from criticism IMO.

I am not questioning you, but do you have proof to this 40 pound difference, because 40 pounds of muscle is a lot to loose in one missed season.

 

[BC867]

I had the same problem when during the Sosa and McGwire HR chase they were cutting in on games to show Sosa "break" 61. McGwire had already broken it, 61 wasn't a record anymore, so why make a big deal out of 61 for Sosa?

Maybe it was a subconscious way of saying that the recent records were based on baseballs wound tighter, a smaller proportion of Major League caliber pitchers than in the past due to expansion, etc. ("etc." now means steroids).

And that the old records were still the real ones.

Even Roger Maris, when he hit 61, was hated, because he had one great year (batting ahead of Mickey Mantle and his 54 HR's in the lineup) and a couple of pretty good ones. Certainly not in the same league with Babe Ruth and his 60, which followed various years in the 50's(when everyone else was hitting in the 20's).

Yup, I think that's it. Sosa passing 61 was tainted, as was McGwire's when he passed it. And certainly Bonds when he did, too.

I'd still like to see Bonds retire when he ties Henry Aaron. Taking the record away from Aaron, who played fair, will not be respected.

Aaron hit them with his powerful wrists, as did Ernie Banks, not by artificially becoming a Mr. Puffy.

 

[Dback Jon]

Did Sosa, Bonds, McGu\wire use juice? Probably. But did Sosa and McGwire bring back baseball in 1998 while everyone looked the other way? YUP.

Hypocritical to bitch now, and say he shouldn't be in the HOF. He's earned his spot.