Letters to the editor - The Fans Speak Out - Letter to the Editor

Baseball Digest, Sept, 2003

Sammy Sosa's corked bat incident (on June 3 against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays at Wrigley Field) adds to why baseball is, in my opinion, America's greatest pastime.

A true symbol of the United States would not be complete without a shadow of doubt; that hint of controversy which follows every image of heroism, be it that of a president, movie star, rock 'n' roll band or athlete.

Sammy has pushed the game to a new level, but now with his accomplishments comes a reminder that things may not be quite as they appear.

Will his violation raise questions about the validity of his case for a spot in the Hall of Fame some day?

Every day people prove that despite laws and enforcement, rules can still be broken. Sometimes, we even avoid the consequences, and this holds true in baseball. Honest mistake or not, this was not the first time a player got caught breaking the rules, and it certainly won't be the last.

Baseball fans live for these events--the inconsistencies within a constant and unchanging tradition that give baseball its character: the Black Sox scandal, use of steroids, scuffed balls and corked bats all help make baseball real.

Baseball is America's game because it is the closest thing we have to reality in sports. Sosa's ejection from the game against the Devil Rays and his subsequent suspension will not harm baseball, but instead mark a new chapter in what makes the game so interesting. It adds another piece of history to an already controversial "long ball era."

Even though some scientists believe putting cork in a bat does nothing to enhance performance, Sammy Sosa, for better or worse, merely reminded us that baseball truly reflects life because it's not perfect, and that's what makes it great.

Bryan Christopher

Chagrin Fans, O.

I cannot sit quietly on the issue of Sammy Sosa and the use of a corked bat.

Gaylord Perry fortified an entire, illustrious career on a cheating tactic known as "doctoring the baseball."

The real issue of what has gone wrong with baseball in the 70-plus homer era has nothing to do with corking bats or the use of vaseline on the ball.

If people were to look at the rookie photographs of some of these players and compare them to the current photos of the same players, the problem becomes extremely apparent. A lot of these guys today look like they could go into pro wrestling in the off season.

The size of these players and the path they took to become that strong, along with the many small ball parks now existent in the majors have combined to create a home run explosion.

Ban steroids the way Kenesaw Landis (the game's first commissioner) would have done, and move back the fences!

Robert W. Mayes

Kirkwood, N.Y.

I was wondering if you could provide a list of players who hit 500 home runs in their careers and with it the number of times they each hit three home runs in a single game?

Jim Soderman

Richfield, Minn.

Through June 1 of this season, Sammy Sosa had recorded the most three-homer games, six, among players with 500 or more career HR. See the accompanying chart.

In the letters section of the July issue, you listed Dennis Martinez as the pitcher with the most career wins without a 20-win season.

But, then on page 14, you did not list him among pitchers with the most wins who had not been enshrined at Cooperstown, although his 245 victories would place him in ninth position on the list, ahead of Clark Griffith, Frank Tanana, Charlie Buffington, Luis Tiant and Sam Jones.

Burt Prelutsky

North Hills, Calif.

The heading of the list on page 14 in the July issue included players and pitchers "Currently Eligible for Hall of Fame But Not Yet Enshrined.

Martinez last pitched in the majors in 1998. He will not be eligible for the Hall of Fame until the 2004 election.

The recent letter about pitcher Ed Head interested me. I was 13 years old when Head pitched his no-hitter, and I recall reading that he was born left-handed, hurt his arm, and had to learn to pitch right-handed.

Was that true? If so, I think it was a marvelous accomplishment.

I think I also read that outfielder Pete Gray was born right-handed, and had to learn to do everything with his left hand after losing his right arm.

Don Wells

Bartlett, Tenn.

Ed Head pitched a 5-0 no-hitter for the Brooklyn Dodgers against the Boston Braves on April 23, 1946.

He was a left-handed pitcher until 1935 when he broke his pitching arm, forcing him to become a right-hander.

In 1945, with the wartime player shortage at its height, Pete Gray became the major league's only one-armed outfielder

He lost his right arm after falling off a moving wagon when he was six years old.

In his one season with the St. Louis Browns as a left-handed batter, he hit .218, but fanned only 11 times in 234 at-bats.

In the July article on "Deficient Defenders," author George Vass says that Dick Stuart's three assists in an inning "obviously can never be surpassed."

I believe that this is wrong since a fielder can be given an assist when his throw is dropped for an error by a player attempting a putout.

This ruling (10.11) makes it possible to have four or more assists in an inning: three which resulted in putouts and one (or more) which resulted in errors for another player.