AJC > Sports > Columnists > Archives > 2006 > September > 13 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USHoward HR mark soiled by others
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Terence Moore
Bobby Cox is among the significant few who remember what Ryan Howard and the growing many don’t: “61” as one of baseball’s magic numbers. It’s just that Roger Maris’ old mark for most home runs during a season actually was buried long ago by the bats of Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds.
Well, sort of. You know, if you ignore that little matter of baseball’s Tarnished Trio using more juice than muscle to shovel “61” deeper into the record books.
Cox shrugged Wednesday at Turner Field, where the Braves manager reflected on Howard’s rush out of nowhere with the Philadelphia Phillies this season to 56 home runs before the start of a doubleheader along the way to wherever. “It’s still magical if you can hit 60 [homers],” said Cox, referring to Babe Ruth’s record that stood from 1927 until Maris did his thing 34 years later for the Yankees.
Added Cox, “When Howard does it, I’m going to shake my head and say, ‘I don’t know how he did it.’ Like I do all of them. That just seems impossible.”
It’s so impossible that folks have two schools of thought regarding Howard’s brilliant sophomore season (.316 batting average and 138 RBIs with those major league-high 56 homers entering Wednesday’s action) after he did so much as a freshman to become the National League’s rookie of the year.
Thought One: The only juice Howard uses involves the five basic food groups. He’s big. He’s naturally big. In fact, the 26-year-old slugger from Wildwood, Mo., is 6 feet 4 and 252 pounds. That’s opposed to those among baseball’s Tarnished Trio who awoke one day during their waning years in the game and went from Olive Oyls to Popeyes. So, if Howard rips a 62nd homer, supporters of this thought say that he would become the first “legitimate” slugger to surpass Maris’ record.
Thought Two: As is the case for the rest of Howard’s peers from Generation S(teroids), he is guilty until proven innocent. After all, the game still doesn’t test for human growth hormone. Not only that, the reason the BALCO folks were around before the feds got involved was to develop as many ways as possible to help athletes cheat without anybody knowing about it. Supporters of this thought say, no matter what Howard does, he’s just like the rest of them.
Here’s my thought: I don’t know. I do know that baseball’s Tainted Trio has ruined it for everybody.
“It’s a little bit disheartening to … somebody can’t go out and do something well without kind of having all of that [steroids, HGH, etc.] brought up,” said Howard, a pleasant soul with a potent bat and a nice glove. That was a decent enough combination to allow the Phillies to trade the accomplished Jim Thome to the Chicago White Sox in the offseason. Added Howard, “Even though we’re at that point where [steroids, HGH, etc.] still will be brought up, hopefully, that cloud will go away.”
Not likely. The truth is, the sun won’t shine for the longest time in baseball when it comes to the bulk of the public believing that somebody just ate all of his vegetables to do all of those incredible things with his bat, glove, arm or legs.
Fortunately, for Howard, the Phillies are among the many in what is becoming a race for the ages regarding the NL wild card. That, along with his team-first philosophy, is enough to keep his focus away from the slew of suspicious eyes that are creeping into his world. Not because of anything he has done, but because of the Tarnished Trio.
“I mean, me, personally, I’ve just never seen the purpose for [taking performance-enhancing drugs]. Me, personally, I’ve never did it, and if somebody else does it, that’s on them,” said Howard, who confessed to knowing little about Maris or his tortured march to 61. “If I could get to 60 [homers] or somewhere around that number, that would be fantastic, but I know people are going to have their own opinions about this, that and the other.”
Yes, people will, and Howard will have baseball’s Tarnished Trio to blame for having doubters when it comes to this, that and the other.
Permalink | Comments (17) | Post your comment | Categories: Terence Moore
Comments
By Tom
September 14, 2006 08:21 AM | Link to this
Great article, Terrence.
By olcottr
September 14, 2006 09:12 AM | Link to this
Amen. Howard’s accomplishments get buried in all the steroid hype. Thanks for digging it out.
By olcottr
September 14, 2006 09:17 AM | Link to this
Amen. Howard’s accomplishments get buried in all the steroid hype. Thanks for digging it out.
By Herbie Johnson
September 14, 2006 09:24 AM | Link to this
I think Ryan Howard is a good baseball player. Since his arrival in the major league last year, he has made a big impack on the game. I personally don,t think he uses steriods. I hope people look at him as a good human being, with a love for the game. He is an outstanding player and person, who I think deserves to be the MVP of 2006.
By AFinPC
September 14, 2006 09:30 AM | Link to this
WOW…Terrance..I didn’t think you had it in ya…But what if it was Giambi?
By pop
September 14, 2006 09:36 AM | Link to this
I believe you’re right;the “Juiced up 3” have taken some of the shine off a great performance by a fine young player and person. It’s a shame.
By jaybmore
September 14, 2006 09:47 AM | Link to this
I’m in the camp that believes Howard is just a natural slugger and I would love for him to top 60 HRs. What would be great for baseball, would be for him to take a test at the end of the season to show that he’s clean and force the other juiced players to put up or shut up.
By oldschoolbaseball
September 14, 2006 10:27 AM | Link to this
How many of Maris’s and Ruth’s HRs were hit to the right field porch in Yankee stadium when the distance was 296 feet from home plate? What about Nolan Ryan’s longevity of throwing hard into his 40’s, any question of steroids there? Bonds has yet to fail a MLB drug test as far as I know. 73 is the record for HRs in a single season. Live with it.
By king awtha
September 14, 2006 10:35 AM | Link to this
great article, terrence. it’s all a damn shame. now we have a bunch of meaningless stats in game where stats are supposed to mean something. i love baseball but the regular season is just too long and boring at times without certain benchmarks to strive for such as 60 HRs or for that matter 50, 40, 30, 25, 20, 15, 10 home runs in a season. i remember when i was a kid ten to twenty years ago when it was a big deal for a player to hit 20 or 30 home runs in a season. hell, people even got happy when the second baseman, shortstop, or centerfielder could give you a little pop and hit you ten home runs in a season. now those people are out of baseball in a year or so if they do not step up their production, i.e., home runs, power, slugging pctg, ops, etc. i remember when cecil fielder was the first to hit 50 home runs in almost 15 years since george foster and that was a big deal. it’s just a damn shame. i remember when it was a big deal when mcgriff had a streak of a certain number of years with 30 home runs and he was a legit power hitter before the steroid craze (at least i think he was legit). he ended up with 495 home or so home runs and now it seems like noone gives him his due. with the wildcard watering down the pennant races and the stats now meaningless, the regular season is almost becoming as tedious as the NBA regular season. there is nothing more exciting than seeing some player who was struggling at one point of the season turn it on. for example, like laroche this year. i thought he was the biggest bum for the first 3 months of the season. but now he looks outstanding and it is exciting to root for him to hit .300 and hit 30, 35, 40 home runs. but it would have been a lot more exciting if you felt like 30 home runs in a season actually meant something anymore. but you do not feel that way anymore. then you start to wonder if laroche is on the juice although from physical appearance alone, you would not suspect it at all. but you never know. look at how luis gonzalez, a journeyman 15 home run hitter, looked in 2001 when out of nowhere he put 57 home runs on the board. so, you just never know. for some reason, i still feel like well it is great what laroche is doing in the second half but how much does it really mean in this day and age. doesn’t everyone hit 30 home runs now, especially at first base. it’s just a damn shame.
By Chuck
September 14, 2006 10:51 AM | Link to this
There’s nothing old school about oldschool’s post. What a crock. Bonds and the others were dirty, plain and simple. And Terrence is right, I have my suspicions about Howard just because of the others and the fact that baseball doesn’t test for some things. I read an article/story last year that was set in the year 2150 or something. A man was at Cooperstown explaining what the syringe was beside some player’s names. The kid asked how it all got resolved, and the guy says that the players that were clean volunteered to be tested to prove it, and peer pressure won out. If Howard would, as Terrence suggests, volunteer to get tested for everything they can think of, that would clear him completely, clean up baseball’s image considerably, and might start that trend toward the players taking back the game from cheaters. What a great thing that would be! And how much better for the player’s health to not have to take untested, unapproved drugs in order to play on a level field with others. Do it, Howard! Chuck
By NotThatGullable
September 14, 2006 01:49 PM | Link to this
I hope Howard tests clean this and every year, and that he breaks all the records so that we don’t have to hear about Bonds (aka “the Cheater” as my 10-year old calls him) and McGwire. Ruth did it while drinking and eating enough to kill most guys, and without a personal trainer. Anybody that believes Bonds and McGwire did it the old fashion way probably thinks we’ll find WMD in Iraq. I am amazed that people believe Bonds, accept McGwire’s refusal to address “the past,” but think Conseco is lying. Which one has more to lose by tellin the truth: Bonds? McGwire, or Jose? Get real.
By NotThatGullable
September 14, 2006 02:02 PM | Link to this
I hope Howard tests clean this and every year, and that he breaks all the records so that we don’t have to hear about Bonds (aka “the Cheater” as my 10-year old calls him) and McGwire. Ruth did it while drinking and eating enough to kill most guys, and without a personal trainer. Anybody that believes Bonds and McGwire did it the old fashion way probably thinks we’ll find WMD in Iraq. I am amazed that people believe Bonds, accept McGwire’s refusal to address “the past,” but think Conseco is lying. Which one has more to lose by tellin the truth: Bonds? McGwire, or Jose? Get real.
By NotThatGullable
September 14, 2006 02:02 PM | Link to this
I hope Howard tests clean this and every year, and that he breaks all the records so that we don’t have to hear about Bonds (aka “the Cheater” as my 10-year old calls him) and McGwire. Ruth did it while drinking and eating enough to kill most guys, and without a personal trainer. Anybody that believes Bonds and McGwire did it the old fashion way probably thinks we’ll find WMD in Iraq. I am amazed that people believe Bonds, accept McGwire’s refusal to address “the past,” but think Conseco is lying. Which one has more to lose by tellin the truth: Bonds? McGwire, or Jose? Get real.
By What Happened to the Chop Chick?
September 14, 2006 02:27 PM | Link to this
She sucked anyway.
By BirdDawg
September 14, 2006 02:45 PM | Link to this
I have $500 that Howard uses HGH. If Howard were white then Terrence Moore would be all over him about it.
By Matthew
September 14, 2006 02:49 PM | Link to this
I agree BirdDawg. I am glad to see we at least have one intelligent blogger.
By Larry O
September 14, 2006 04:29 PM | Link to this
I personally believe Ryan Howard has never taken perfomance enhancing drugs. I mean , look at him, he’s 6 foot 4 and weights 252. He just puts his weight behind his swing. And when he connects , look out. I hope he wins the MVP because the Phillies would be battling the Nationals for last place without him.