by Mj Ferruzza

Created on: August 08, 2007   Last Updated: May 19, 2011

You need 3 Things for a Perfect Storm.
1. Bonds hated McGuire and Sosa's popularity
2. New expansion teams diluted Major League pitching
3. Ball was juiced (a tighter core).

Ok! Let's work this out...

1. McGuire and Sosa juiced (used steroids) and the country loved them as the chased Roger Maris' record.
Who would get there first? Bonds was jealous. A good player in his own right with a trainer who sold the juice.

Bonds juiced and then lied in front of Congress.
Bonds could juice (secretly) because it wasn't forbidden (at the time),
but remember...when he juiced, he kept another player from making million$ who didn't juice!

2. When baseball adds new teams to either league they have to go out and find
new pitchers for their major, minor-AAA, AA, A teams.
One new expansion team means the league has to find 100 new professional pitchers for that organization.
Add 2 teams (like the season home run production skyrocketed) and the pitching talent pool dilutes even more.
When Barry juiced, he juiced just in time to face the weakest pitching in decades.

3. The season Barry socked 77 home runs balls were flying out of the parks all over major league baseball.
Hitters with sub .200 averages were smacking them over the fences.
Manufacturers screamed nothing changed, but remember...
Baseball had also just come out of a strike season with no World Series for the first time since WWII;
major league baseball needed something to draw the fans back. Home runs draw fans.

So Barry is new baseball home run king (maybe with an asterisk by his name).
If A-Rod averages 50+ a season, he will have the record in 4 1/2 years.
I imagine Barry couldn't handle that, his ego won't let him.
Expect him to retire at no time in the near future.
Is Barry worthy of the record?
All I know is that something can be said for longevity, but more can be said for character.
Baseball fans have lived through the era of the perfect storm!

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