REMARKABLE; MCGWIRE'S 62ND HOME RUN BREAKS MARIS' SEASON RECORD.Byline: Phil Rogers Philip ("Phil") John Rogers (born April 24, 1971 in Adelaide, South Australia) is a former breaststroke swimmer who competed in three consequentive Summer Olympics for Australia, starting in 1992. Chicago Tribune Chicago Tribune Daily newspaper published in Chicago. The Tribune is one of the leading U.S. newspapers and long has been the dominant voice of the Midwest. Founded in 1847, it was bought in 1855 by six partners, including Joseph Medill (1823–99), who made the paper Mark McGwire River, central U.S. It rises at Lake Itasca in Minnesota and flows south, meeting its major tributaries, the Missouri and the Ohio rivers, about halfway along its journey to the Gulf of Mexico. since the Gateway Arch. McGwire caught Roger Maris Trachsel graduated from Troy High School in Fullerton, California in 1988. over the left-field fence. It was his third home run in a five-game homestand and it came in the fourth inning of the St. Louis Cardinals' 6-3 victory over the Cubs. It was a fitting end to five days that should be remembered for decades to come. Each day for five days, sellout crowds came to Busch to see McGwire hit home runs. He accommodated them three times, beginning by hitting No. 60 off Cincinnati lefty Dennis Reyes on Saturday. ``I'm damn proud of what I've accomplished, and what I had to go through,'' McGwire said. ``I especially appreciate the support I've been getting here in St. Louis. It's absolutely incredible. I thank St. Louis for everything.'' Unless the Cubs' Sammy Sosa Samuel Sosa Peralta (born November 12 1968 in San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic) is a designated hitter for the Texas Rangers of the American League. His Major League career began when he broke in with the Texas Rangers in 1989. can make a move to catch him, St. Louis' remaining 18 games will turn into a McGwire victory tour for the Cardinals. St. Louis travels to Cincinnati for a two-game series today. The road trip concludes with three games at Houston. By taking the express lane to 62, McGwire deprived the fans there of witnessing the record-breaker. But every homer he hits the rest of the way will be historic. McGwire, who has homered 15 times in his last 20 games, came through in his second shot at setting the record. He came to the plate three times Monday after hitting his record-tying homer off the Cubs' Mike Morgan
Unlike others who have faced him recently, Trachsel didn't appear to relish his assignment. He said little about it Monday, and before the game Tuesday declined a request from Major League Baseball "MLB" and "Major Leagues" redirect here. For other uses, see MLB (disambiguation) and Major Leagues (disambiguation). Major League Baseball (MLB) is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. staffers to make himself available in an interview room afterward. Trachsel gave up 32 home runs a year ago, the most in the National League. But he had allowed only 19 in his 28 previous starts this year. He was victimized three times Tuesday, allowing sixth-inning homers to Ray Lankford When he faced him in the first inning, Trachsel showed McGwire most of his pitches - the exception being a good one to hit in the strike zone. He fell behind 3-0 by throwing a low curveball, an inside fastball and a slider A block of material that holds the read/write head of a magnetic disk. See flying head. in the dirt. The crowd booed louder each time umpire Steve Rippley acknowledged them as balls. McGwire hasn't hit a home run all season on 3-0 pitches, which he generally takes. But he showed his eagerness to pass Maris before the Cardinals left town, grounding a change-up to shortstop Jose Hernandez Jose Hernandez can refer to
McGwire apparently decided he was going to swing at the first good pitch in his next at-bat. He jumped on a fastball that was just above knee-high, driving it over third baseman third baseman n. Baseball The infielder stationed near third base. Noun 1. third baseman - (baseball) the person who plays third base third sacker Gary Gaetti's head. As was true with the record-tying homer off Morgan, this one flirted with going foul. It barely sailed over the fence, about 10 feet to the right of the foul pole. It was estimated at 341 feet, making it the shortest of his 62 homers this season. The shortest had been a 347-footer at Houston off Jose Lima on June 17. All that remains to be seen is whether McGwire will get his long stay in the record books, like Maris and Babe Ruth, or become baseball's version of Roger Bannister Noun 1. Roger Bannister - English runner who in 1954 became the first person to run a mile in less than four minutes (born in 1929) Bannister, Sir Roger Gilbert Bannister . After the Englishman broke the four-minute mile, it soon became almost routine for runners to break the once unattainable barrier. For a variety of reasons - among them weight training, smaller ballparks and the addition of four expansion teams in the last six years - the best power hitters are hitting more home runs than ever before. Never before had more than two men hit 50-plus homers in a season, but already three have done it this year. With 17 games remaining to add to his total of 58 homers, the Cubs' Sosa still has a chance to overtake McGwire. Ken Griffey Ken Griffey may refer to:
``You can say (it's) expansion; you can say it is pitching,'' McGwire said recently. ``You also can say there is a lot of damn good hitters in this game of baseball too. I truly don't believe that some of these hitters get the credit they should be getting. . . . I look at the names of the guys who are approaching 50 and over 50, and they are just bona fide [Latin, In good faith.] Honest; genuine; actual; authentic; acting without the intention of defrauding. A bona fide purchaser is one who purchases property for a valuable consideration that is inducement for entering into a contract and without suspicion of being power hitters. I don't have to worry about anything like that.'' Commissioner Bud Selig believes nothing should take away from the credit given McGwire and Sosa. He believes the challenge is just as great for today's players as in the eras of Maris and Ruth. ``I can make all kind of cases,'' Selig said. ``Yes, they may say there has been dilution because of pitching, but I submit to you that the travel is much more difficult in a great sense and there are a lot of other variables that make it tougher today. So no, I don't believe in asterisks.'' ``To all my family, my son, the Cubs, Sammy Sosa. It's unbelievable. Thank you, St. Louis. - McGwire, immediately after hitting the home run I tell you what, I was so shocked because I didn't think the ball had enough to get out. - McGwire, after game It's an absolutely incredible feeling. I can honestly say I did it. - McGwire, after game Roger, I hope you're with me tonight. - McGwire, holding the bat that Roger Maris used to hit his 61st and rubbing it against his chest I was hoping it wasn't going to be me. It was a matter of time before he got it and he's probably going to hit five or six or 10 more. - Cubs pitcher Steve Trachsel after giving up homer No. 62 Maybe when my career is over, I'll think about it. Right now it's just another home run. I've given up a billion of them. - Trachsel I just hope I didn't act foolish. This is history. - McGwire, on his emotional trot around the bases I hope my son grows up some day and breaks the record. - McGwire, on his 10-year old son, Matt. I just couldn't be happier for him. - Roger Maris Jr. Mr. McGwire, I think I have something that belongs to you. - Tim Forneris, Busch Stadium ground-crew member who retrieved the ball If I had to give up 62, that would have been OK. I would battle, but that would be OK. - Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez Down the left-field line, is it enough? Gone! There it is, 62. Touch first Mark, you are the new single-season home run king! - Fox's Joe Buck delivering home run call No. 62 It was awesome to see him break the record. What he and Sosa have done for the game of baseball this season has been invaluable. There's no telling how many more home runs he will hit to extend the record before the season ends - Dodgers first baseman Eric Karros Pretty cool, wasn't it? You just want to congratulate him and pray he hits none off you next year. - Braves ace Greg Maddux It gives you goose bumps goose bumps or goose pimples: see gooseflesh. . He's always been the best home-run hitter I've ever seen. It couldn't happen to a better person. To hit 62 home runs in one season is unheard of. He might be the best of all time. - Frank Thomas, a two-time AL MVP (Multimedia Video Processor) A high-speed DSP chip from Texas Instruments, introduced in 1994. Officially introduced as the TMS320C80, it combines RISC technology with the functionality of four DSPs on one chip. He's made a fan of the world. You can't have an asterisk by his name. He got the record the quickest of anyone so they can take that asterisk and do whatever they want with it.'' - Houston's Craig Biggio THE HOME RUN Inning: 4th Count: 0-0 Pitcher: Steve Trachsel Distance: 341 feet THE LIST Single season home run leaders: Player Yr HR 1. Mark McGwire '98 62 2. Roger Maris '61 61 3. Babe Ruth '27 60 4. Babe Ruth '21 59 5. Jimmie Foxx '32 58 5. Hank Greenberg '38 58 5. Mark McGwire '97 58 THE BALL Tim Forneris, a 22-year-old member of the Busch Stadium grounds crew, tracked the ball down and returned it to McGwire. CAPTION(S): 4 Photos PHOTO (1--3--Color) no caption (Mark McGwire hitting his 62nd home run) (4--Color) It's a mob scene at home plate as St. Louis teammates greet a jubilant Mark McGwire after his 62nd home run of the season broke Roger Maris' record. Phil Velasquez/Chicago Tribune |
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