The problem here is that it makes very little sense to have ONE corked bat and 76 normal ones. Corked bats break more easily because of the alterations done to them. Say Sosa IS a cheat, but that things don’t go down the way they did the other night. Say he just fouls a pitch off and the bat gets a hairline crack in it, which often happens. He’s now out of corked bats. It’d be a stupid and inefficient way to cheat. I mean, I don’t know the guy, he may be an idiot. But even if it’s a built-in excuse, it may be true - and I think the most sensible solution is that he was telling the truth. He DID own up to what happened. I don’t recall Albert Belle doing that.
My son and I regularly go to the games two hours early to see BP and infield practice. It’s the best time to get a ball or an autograph.
If anyone is interested, here is an ESPN poll regarding Sammy and his corked bat.
I also saw this on ESPN yesterday. There was a dealer who supplies memorabilia to trading card companies and others and he had the bat which Sosa used to hit his 498th homer. They said that it was live when he was cutting the bat in half.
I have tried looking for a cite on ESPN but I can’t find anything.
SportsCenter had a video freeze frame of Sosa at the plate, clearly showing a white C in the indentation at the end of his bat. Whether this was from batting practice or during the game was ambiguous; the event clearly had the presenters in such a tizzy that their discussion wasn’t very clear. I haven’t seen that shot since, either.
By the way, anyone who’s interested in this topic should read the book The Physics of Baseball to see why corking bats is a waste of the player’s time.
By the way, five Sosa bats from the Hall of Fame were tested. No cork in them, either.
This perpetuates a myth about Wrigley Field. It is NOT a “small” ballpark, as can be seen from a comparison of the dimensions found at this site. Down the line each way is at least 353. Dead center is 402. The power alleys are relatively short (368), but notice that the size of fair territory is comparable to other major league ballparks, including the one just down the road in St. Louis. Wrigley’s size conception is based on a. relatively small foul territory, and b. the existence of wind blowing “out” during the summer.
He should never have HAD a corked bat, for any reason. Stupid.