Sosa likely gone for good

[Dodoubled]

And thank God, too. What a phony. What a phony, pathetic sport baseball is. Like many of us in the forum, I'm sure, I grew up on baseball. Played it my entire childhood and loved every minute of it. When I was a kid collecting baseball cards and watching TWIB, I could recite pretty much any stat you wanted to hear. Jayson Stark's Sunday Baseball page in the Inquirer was a must-read.

Now, thanks to steriods, just about every record that ever meant something in the sport (and yes, baseball records were the most revered and most hallowed of all) is a waste. Sosa, McGwire, Bonds and all those other bastards -- good riddance. Baseball will never be the same, thanks to their crap. Ever.

[omahilo]

I agree... I use to love baseball and all, it was like the best thing when I was a kid.

I could tell you averages, HRs... every stat.

Now thanks to steroids, it makes me feel like I wasted alot of my time with stats that arent even real.

One record in the game you know is real tho.... Joe DiMaggio's 56 game hitting streak. You can take all the steroids you want and you will never touch this record. Also Ichiro's most hits in a season record, before he broke it that record stood for over 80 years, another very impressive record to break.

[GeoffM]

Rollins has a 30 game hit streak going when the season starts.

[omahilo]

well the 56 game hitting streak is during one season...

it doesnt roll over to next season, if that was the case, Ted Williams would have like a 72 game hitting streak since he had one roll over from one season to another.

Rollins had a nice streak last season but he was still only alittle over half way to 56.

[Talking Poker]

Actually, I think it does roll over to the next season, technically.

Sadly, I'm in the same boat as you guys. I was a HUGE baseball fan as a kid and all through high school. But it's just not the same any more... I just don't care.

[junYUN]

i love baseball... although i've had to ride some highs and lows of the sport i still love the game. that said.. sammy is a disgrace to the game really. all the years he was a great hitter he could never lead his team to greatness.. and his bloated contract and equally bloated ego led to the sour taste he left in fans mouths.

that said, sammy was pretty much the best there was from '97-'02

[Dodoubled]

I think Sosa's inflated hat size, biceps and forearms did more damage to the game than his inflated ego. If any of you ever get the chance, check out his '90 Donruss rookie card. While you're at it, check out Barry Bonds' '87 Topps card, too. It's like a Screech-to-A.C. Slater transition over the years. Wow.

Speaking of baseball cards, did anyone here save all theirs hoping to pay for their childrens' college education one day? I think my '87 Topps set is still worth the 22 bucks it was worth back in 1988. Maybe less. By now, I figured it would fetch at least a grand, what with stellar rookies like McGwire, B.J. Surhoff, John Kruk and Raffy, et. al.

[redbank09]

my girlfriend got us weekend tickets behind home plate for the braves and marlins in may for valetinesday. as much as the steroid dumbasses hurt the game, it is still so much fun to get drunk and sit at a game. i dont care what happens ill still enjoy that. of course everything is fun drunk though

[Dodoubled]

True, true. I do still enjoy going to the games for all the cool things to do. The new Phillies ballpark is sweet. I could do without the six-dollar beers, but I suppose that's just the price of convenience these days. I still can go through five or six without a problem, hop on the subway and be at another bar in minutes after the game.

And, every now and then, some great things do happen. I saw several walk-off home runs two years ago as well as an inside-the-park home run, and three years ago, I remember heading to Veterans Stadium one day by myself because I was bored on a nice, balmy Sunday, purchasing a 700 level seat and proceeding to watch Kevin Millwood throw a no-hitter. (I made sure to call ALL the friends who earlier in the day had told me they were too busy with "yard work" to come to the game.)

There are plenty of great things about baseball that will keep people coming back. I just think that over the past several years, it committed the ultimate sin -- cheapening its past for the sake of its present. In other words, selling out the one thing on which baseball has relied: its tradition, unparalled by any other sport. And no matter what Kenesaw Mountain Landis or A. Bartlett Giamatti may have implied, that's more damaging than any Series fixing scandal or Pete Rose betting debacle can ever be.
Like any other baseball fan, I was on the edge of my seat for the HR chase in '98, and even looked at Sosa and a select few others as sure-fire Hall of Famers. Now, I don't even know who to root for. I can make some broad-based assumptions, but then again, that's all they are.

I still play fantasy baseball and enjoy it -- at least until late July when the grind gets really, really tough.

I grew up a Yankees fan, but by the time they lost the Series in 2001, I had gotten so sick of seeing them win that I actually was glad to see Arizona beat them. I root for the Phillies now because they seem pure, at least on the surface.

As the years go on, I wonder if the last, great innocent moment in baseball was seeing Ripken circle Camden Yards after breaking The Streak. Contrived as it may have been, a 22-minute standing ovation is still a 22-minute standing ovation. And, steriods or not, seeing Bonds rip that home run in the 2002 Series against Anaheim into the night sky and seeing the camera catch Tim Salmon mouth, "THAT IS THE FARTHEST BALL I HAVE EVER SEEN HIT" was downright awesome.

"The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game, is a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good, and that could be again. Oh, people will come, Ray. People will most definitely come."

I'd like to see it happen again, Terrence. Unfortunately, it's going to take more than a cornfield ballpark to get the magic back.

[GTDawg]

I gotta say, I'm a little biased towards baseball considering my job.

However, I can say that being around the players shows you a love for the game that you can't find anywhere else on the planet.

Those guys eat sleep and live baseball. Before games and after games...most of them find joy in every little aspect about baseball and to see the work that goes in to a single game, let alone a season...it's pretty damn cool.

That being said, the late 90s was a very bad time for baseball. Bonds/McGwire/Sosa...it was rough and the resulting scandals is a big black eye after they recovered from the strike.

Sammy's numbers are quite inflated and he never could get over the hump of Cubs management. It's always been a stigma with the way the team is run. And, suddenly forgetting how to speak english on capitol hill along with cork didn't really help the situation.

I'm hoping the WBC brings some new joy back to the game and, hopefully, with some of the inflated steroid numbers retiring, we can put the past few years behind us (all-star game tie, steroid policy, stupid players association leadership).

The playoffs have been kickass the past few years. The home run derby was insanely popular with the players again.

The sport was damn near dead 12 years ago and it came back. Here's hoping it happens again.

[Dodoubled]

What do you do, GT?

[GTDawg]

Batboy for the Braves

I don't know how I lucked in to it, but it's pretty kickass
----------

I wish they'd do something about the all-star game too. That play for home field advantage thing is the biggest crock ever

[redbank09]

oh shit dawg u got to hook me up when im there this spring. can u get a few autographs.

[GTDawg]

Part of the ND agreement says I can't ask for personal autographs or game stuff (eBay and all that jazz).

But, I should be able to swing a game ball or too if I'm working the game you go to.

[Gordogg]

That's a sweet job GT. I'll be looking for you on the TBS broadcasts. I respect the Braves' organization 100%. I like how they actually build there teams the right way, from their farm system. I went to a Braves game in 1995, they were building the olympic stadium right across the street for the 96' Olympics. I love going to ballgames, but baseball has lost it's magic in my opinion. The steroid problem, plus Bud Selig's moron ass, plus the outrageous salaries has killed it for me. The salary thing is a universal problem for every sport. But baseball and basketball in particular. Shouldn't be guaranteed the money, should have to earn it game by game, especially when it's a $2 mil a year salary just to come in and pitch for one inning a game or what have you. Anyways, that's awesome you got the job, enjoy that shit!

[Hawt]

Yeah I got every box set from like 87 when i was born to 94 from my uncle sadly they are probably worth less now than they were then.

[Dodoubled]

Wow. Sweet deal. I've always dreamed of a cool job like that. Rock on, GT.

[redbank09]

i came to about 20 games last year, my girlfriend is a baseball freak. this year we have only planned the weekend of the 13 th in may for the marlins. she would flip if u could get her a ball. we usually sit in section 119 and we never get any foul balls. it onlys takes us aliitle more than an hour to get there so im sure we will go to more. i always try to go if smoltzs is pitching.

[Talking Poker]

As much disinterest I have in baseball now (is that even a word?), I do have many fond memories of the game from the past...

Being a batboy = Way, way cool. That's every baseball fan kid's dream. Enjoy that, man. How old are you?

[GTDawg]

January 3rd...21st birthday

Last year was my first year working for them.

My mom knew a few players through working for a sports retailer (sign autographs at events, etc) and they hunt/fish a lot so she talks to them when they come in to the store.

The guy who is my boss, she has known for 4/5 years now and he was asking how I was doing at school...and she mentioned me looking for a job that didn't interfere with school hours too much. Snowballed from there.

*shrug*

I'm trying to figure out how I can do that instead of being an engineer or whatever the hell you do with a degree from Georgia Tech.
---------------
redbank - hit me up when the games get closer and I'll see if I'm working etc

[Gordogg]

That's cool. Honestly, I thought all bat boys were between the ages of 13 and 16 or so. That's kind of funny to me. A 21 year old bat "boy". LOL. Still a hella cool job. Shit, I'd be a bat "boy" and I"m 27 yrs old.