Retired Hall of Famer Paul Molitor, along with others, spoke to the Hartford Currant about slugging and hitting. He appeared to say that the muscle era players hit the ball farther, but on the whole are not better at actual hitting than pre-muscle (steroid) era players. Better sluggers, not better hitters"
"To be as straightforward as I can," says Hall of Famer Paul Molitor, one of 27 players in the 3,000-hit club, "the steroids thing, coming along with expansion and smaller ballparks, it seems to have put 500 home runs within reach of a lot more guys. The number of guys hitting 500 home runs will surpass the number getting 3,000 hits fairly soon."
The Currant points out the crowd at the 500 Home Runs bus, which has stopped to pick up more players than ever since smaller ball parks and juiced players. appeared:
Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Ted Williams, Mel Ott and Jimmie Foxx were in the club before Mantle hit his 500th off the Orioles' Stu Miller. Eddie Mathews joined two months later; Hank Aaron hit his 500th in 1968...Seven players have hit their 500th home run in the last 10 years, more than managed to do it in the 90 years before Mantle's, and several more are in position to do it over the next two or three years. And thus, there seems to be a growing divide in the public's perception between current players, who have accumulated high home run totals in this era of the home run, some with the suspicion of steroids attached, and those who did it in earlier decades, when, at least judging by the numbers, it was far more difficult.
Barry Bonds cousin, former A, and Yankee slugger Reggie Jackson says this about chemical enhancement:
"I think 500 is always going to be a special number," said Reggie Jackson, who joined in 1984 and finished with 563, "but some of the guys in it are going to be more revered than others. That's the reality; it doesn't even matter that it's my opinion. Some of the guys in it we know used some kind of chemical substances. There's going to be a People's 500 Club, and then some other guys who have question marks.
"The saddest part is some of the guys who have 500, 600 would have hit that many anyway. Barry Bonds was going to be considered one of the greatest players anyway.
Babe Ruth's granddaughter weighs in with an educated opinion:
"Actually, with the introduction of steroids, I do think the 500 home run club has diminished in importance," said Linda Ruth Tosetti, whose grandfather, the Babe, was the first to reach the plateau. "You have to ask yourself: How many of these players suspected of using enhancement drugs would be there without them? I know fans love to see the home runs, but as far as I'm concerned, it's cheating and not fair to all the ballplayers who did it the natural way, with hard work and practice."
The Current points out that the home run explosion is not all PEDs. Baseball expansion diluted talent, new ball parks present favorable walls for sluggers, and the DH rule allows aging stars to prolong their career without as much physical stress by playing a filed position.
Though the steroids scandal has done the most to call home run totals into question, there are other factors that have made the club more accessible. One is the advent of the DH in the American League in 1973, giving older players a way to extend their careers and defensively challenged players such as Thomas the opportunity to play every day. The DH also helped Jackson, Palmeiro and Eddie Murray play long enough to make it.
Another factor is new ballparks, many of which are home run friendly. Many parks built before World War II were contoured to the city block outside and had cavernous power alleys. A dead pull hitter, Ott took advantage of the short right field porch at the Polo Grounds in New York to hit his 511 home runs. Today's sluggers are better able to hit for average and power because power alleys and center field walls are reachable, unlike Yankee Stadium's "death valley," 457 feet to left-center, or the Polo Grounds, 483 feet to center field.
The expansion from 16 teams in 1960 to 30 today not only waters down pitching, it allows a skilled veteran to play as long as he wants.
That's right kids, emulate Molitor and stick with marijuana and cocaine and you'll be allright. Great example for America youth.
Posted by: The Slav | 08/06/2007 at 10:23