Can You Believe It Has Been Ten Years Since This Happened?

On September 8, 1998, in the middle of a pennant race, Mark McGwire hit his (then) record breaking 62nd Homerun off of Steve Trachsel of the Chicago Cubs.

I was only a young kid back then, but even I remember the chase between Sosa and McGwire was all America was talking about. Heck, they were even talking about it on Nickelodeon, to give you an idea of how much of America was paying attention. All the talk was centered on: Which one of them would break the record first? I remember at times McGwire was way ahead, and then there was a time when Sosa would tie the game or even take the lead for a few hours until McGwire took it right back. It was a great time for America, as Fox actually showed this game on a weekday, not on a Saturday like they do now. For one night, Baseball was the topic of Converstaion.

Look at it now. In 2001, Barry Bonds obliterated the Home Run Record, as he hit 73 homeruns. Barry continued his incredible pace, passing Willie Mays, Babe Ruth, and finally, Hank Aaron in July 2007. Where did you find these games on TV? If you didn't live in the Bay Area, ESPN's Baseball Tonight was the only way to keep pace. Then ESPN showed every Giants game after Barry Bonds hit Carrer homerun number 753, culminating in Bonds tying the record on ESPN before breaking the record on ESPN 2. Again, for one night, Baseball was what America was talking about, but it was not All America was talking about like in 1998. True, steroids ruined the game. They have ruined many people's trust in the Homerun, as people want to check the slugger's arms now to see if the homeruns are legit. Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, and Sammy Sosa were all caught in the steroids cloud. It was guilt by Association for them.

In 2005, after Rafael Palmeiro vehemently denied using steroids in front of congress, Major League Baseball then announced that Palmeiro had tested positive for Steroids, continuing to destroy the game. Palmeiro hasn't found a job since.

Steroids have killed the game. It may never again get the same type of mentioning it got back in that Sensational Summer of 1998 because all of us were so blind to what was going on behind the scenes.