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Topic: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat (Read 938 times)

Rhune
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Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« on: Jun 4^th, 2003, 10:30am »

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Unsplendid splinter

Cubs rally past Rays after Sammy's ignominious ejection
Posted: Tuesday June 03, 2003 8:42 PM
Updated: Wednesday June 04, 2003 3:25 AM

CHICAGO (AP) -- Once Sammy Sosa was caught using a corked bat, there was one big question: Was he cheating when he hit any of those 505 home runs?

The Chicago Cubs' star slugger, 17th on the career home-run list, was ejected in the first inning of Tuesday night's 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays after umpires found cork in his shattered bat.

Sosa said it was all an honest mistake.

"I use that bat for batting practice," he said. "It's something that I take the blame for. It's a mistake, I know that. I feel sorry. I just apologize to everybody that are embarrassed."

Sosa, who gained national prominence in 1998 during his home-run battle with Mark McGwire, apologized to fans, his teammates and the commissioner of baseball. Sosa's other bats were confiscated by security personnel and turned over to major league baseball.

"Deep down in my heart, I truly believe Sammy didn't know that was in there," Cubs manager Dusty Baker said. "But I just hope that this event, whatever it was, doesn't tarnish his career or take away all that Sammy Sosa's done. For baseball and for Chicago."

The Cubs had runners at second and third when Sosa broke his bat with a grounder to second base that at first appeared to drive in a run.

Crew chief Tim McClelland gathered with the other three umpires to examine the handle area of the bat. Cubs manager Dusty Baker came out and the umpires showed what was left of the bat to him.

Mark Grudzielanek was sent back to third base, the run was wiped off the board and Sosa was ejected as he stood in the dugout.

Sosa said he hoped fans will believe he didn't intend to use a corked bat.

"That's why I'm here right now, to explain that it was a mistake," he said. "I know that right now, anybody or somebody probably want to think whatever comes to their mind, but you know, I just picked the wrong bat.

"I don't really need to use that. I break so many bats in my life. But when you make a mistake like that, you got to stood up and be there for it. ... It's a mistake, and I take the blame for it."

Sosa said he had the corked bat "for batting practice -- just to put on a show for the fans ... I like to make people happy and I do that in batting practice."

Some fans didn't like what they saw.

"I think it's a disgrace, a shame. Everything that he's done now is called into question," said Craig Carr, a 35-year-old spectator from Newton.

Cork inside a wooden bat is thought to help players hit the ball farther and is against baseball rules. Several players have been caught using altered bats in the past, including Albert Belle, Wilton Guerrero, Chris Sabo, Billy Hatcher and Graig Nettles. All were suspended.

Rule 6.06 (d)
A batter is out for illegal action when:

He uses or attempts to use a bat that, in the umpire's judgment, has been altered or tampered with in such a way to improve the distance factor or cause an unusual reaction on the baseball.

This includes, bats that are filled, flat surfaced, nailed, hollowed, grooved or covered with a substance such as paraffin, wax, etc.

No advancement on the bases will be allowed and any out or outs made during a play shall stand.

In addition to being called out, the player shall be ejected from the game and may be subject to additional penalties as determined by his League President.

"You don't want to see that happen to a great player like Sammy," Tampa Bay manager Lou Piniella said. "I care about the great players in this game, and Sammy certainly is in that category."

Umpires initially took part of the corked bat into the Cubs dugout and down the runway toward their clubhouse before security came and took it away about an inning later, McClelland said.

McClelland said he wasn't sure what happened to the other part of the bat that was split away and landed between third and shortstop. But he said a batboy may have picked it up and took it to the dugout, and it may have been tossed into the stands.

McClelland also was the umpire who took away a home run from Kansas City's George Brett in 1983 because of excessive pine tar, a decision later reversed by AL president Lee MacPhail.

McClelland said the cork was clearly visible.

"I turned it over and there was a small probably half-dollar size piece of cork in the bat right about halfway down the barrel head, I guess," he said. "It was notched in there. I felt it, and it obviously was cork, so I called the crew together and it was reminiscent of what happened about 20 years ago with me."

Sosa's bat immediately became a big topic around the major leagues.

"Everyone who hits a home run now, they're going to think you're using a corked bat," said Atlanta's Andruw Jones, who hit a game-winning, two-run homer against Texas.

"Unfortunately, it's a dirty mark, when you consider all he's accomplished," Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "It's really unfortunate for the game. Everybody's scratching their heads right now. ... It's embarrassing. He's too good of a player. It's too bad."

Sosa just came off the disabled last Friday after having the nail taken off his big right toe and missing 17 games.

Entering Tuesday, he was just 2-for-15 in his three games since coming off the DL, including one five-strikeout game in which he also had the game-winning single against Houston.

"I just hope it doesn't taint what he's done," Seattle second baseman Bret Boone said. "Corked, not corked, he's got as much power as anyone in baseball. He's probably got as much power, outside Mark McGwire, as anyone in history."

Sosa, a six-time All-Star who reached 500 career homers earlier this season, hasn't homered since May 1 and his power numbers have dropped drastically since he was beaned April 20 by the Pirates' Salomon Torres.

He has just six homers this season and 24 RBIs, while batting .285.

Sosa has the most 60-homer seasons in major league history, hitting 66 in 1998, 63 in 1999 and 64 in 2001.

Chicago's then Comiskey Park was the site of one of baseball's biggest corked bat capers in July 1994 when the bat of Belle, then with Cleveland, was confiscated.

Umpires took it to their dressing room before an Indians teammate crawled across the ceiling and switched Belle's confiscated bat with one belonging to a teammate.

Once the caper was discovered, the original bat was finally examined and Belle was suspended for 10 games, a penalty that was reduced to seven games.

Guerrero, then with the Los Angeles Dodgers, was suspended for eight games in 1997 for using cork in his bat. Sabo, a part-time third baseman with Cincinnati, was suspended for seven games and fined $25,000 for using a corked bat against Houston in 1996.

Hatcher was suspended for 10 days in 1987 after using a corked bat for Houston. It was the first such ejection since Nettles, then with the New York Yankees, was tossed in 1974 after six superballs came out of his bat during a game against Detroit.

Chicago won Tuesday's game in the ninth when Al Levine (2-2) threw a wild pitch that allowed Troy O'Leary, who had replaced Sosa, to score from third.

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Bumper
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #1 on: Jun 4^th, 2003, 3:37pm »

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If U R reading these old posts, know that we were once a great, active cyber-community, but as in all things..Time moves on. This is now a Ghost Town.

MzWings
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #2 on: Jun 4^th, 2003, 3:45pm »

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I dunno - I'm having a hard time imagining that Sammy did this on purpose. Huh

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Rhune
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #3 on: Jun 4^th, 2003, 5:46pm »

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Whether he intended to do it on purpose or not for an actual game, is probably something we'll never know. Frankly, I'm a little disgusted that he uses a cheater's bat in practice to make people ooh and ahh. My oohs and ahhhs are reserved for people who do something on their own merit. I would also think that if someone has been using a cheater's bat like that in practice, they would be smart enough not to bring it to an actual game with them. It may have been a mistake, but it was not an "honest" mistake in my opinion.

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Rhune
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #4 on: Jun 4^th, 2003, 6:41pm »

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Sosa's confiscated bats come back clean

Posted: Wednesday June 04, 2003 7:15 PM
Updated: Wednesday June 04, 2003 7:28 PM

CHICAGO (AP) -- Sammy Sosa's 76 bats confiscated by baseball officials showed no signs of cork in X-rays taken the day after he was ejected for using a corked bat in a game.

The bats were taken from the Chicago Cubs' locker room during the game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Tuesday night. Cork was found in Sosa's bat when it shattered after he grounded out in the first inning of the Cubs' 3-2 victory.

"The bats were clean and had no foriegn substances in them," said Sandy Alderson, executive vice president of baseball operations in the commissioner's office. "That is consistent with Sammy's explanation of the incident last night."

Sosa said he accidentally pulled out a bat he uses to put on home run displays for fans in batting practice. He has had dozens of bats break in the past few years with nothing suspicious found.

He was in the lineup for Wednesday night's game against Tampa Bay.

"I stood up yesterday like a man and took the blame," Sosa said. "But the media today, they've got me up there like I'm a criminal."

Sosa could face a suspension of up to 10 games, but Alderson said the decision will be made by Bob Watson, baseball's vice president in charge of discipline.

Watson was expected to arrive in Chicago by Thursday morning and will conduct interviews at the ballpark.

Alderson said commissioner Bud Selig was "very concerned."

"He has strong personal affection for Sammy," Alderson said. "At the same time, he instructed his office to conduct a thorough investigation."

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Rhune
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #5 on: Jun 4^th, 2003, 6:43pm »

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I'm glad to hear his other bats check out ok. I still find it very dishonest that he uses a corked bat in practice.

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MzWings
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #6 on: Jun 5^th, 2003, 9:45am »

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I'm not expert on the subject of baseball (or anything) but my understanding is that the majority of the players use cocked bats during practice. Huh

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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #7 on: Jun 5^th, 2003, 9:58am »

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Maybe he wouldn't get confused if he wrote practice bat right on the outside or CORKED bat on the outside. That way it would be easy to remember.

« Last Edit: Jun 5^th, 2003, 9:59am by Addams »

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Rhune
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #8 on: Jun 5^th, 2003, 11:04am »

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Maybe it's just me, but shouldn't they be practicing with the actual equipment that they use in real games? When you practice with equipment that's not game legal and gives you an extra advantage, how is this helping you really?

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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #9 on: Jun 5^th, 2003, 11:30am »

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Having been a baseball fan for four decades I can tell you the game has changed much. Yes they tend to use "cork" bats for batting practice so balls are more easily hit into stands to excite the home crowd. Sammy Sosa strikes me as a HONEST MAN therefore i dont believe he actually did this on purpose! Furthermore if he had why did he have only ONE bat. The crowd loves the ideas of keeping balls hit into stands and yes it can be very exciting to see your favorite player blasting them out of the park during warm up. Sammy made a mistake no doubt and paid for it by being ejected from the game and rightly so. Players are encouraged to hit and throw balls into stands it excite fans. Ecited happy fans return! They need fans to pay the high price of tickets so owners can pay these over grown children to play! But thats another subject I wont get into. Sammy did nothing that almost all of the players do! If they did random checks of practice bats from guys like Mark Mcquire Barry Bonds Ken Griffey Jr. etc i would bet you wouold find the samething! Sammy is one of the TRUE role model in the Sportsworld I have seen and I am glad he has been cleared (in my eye) and I feel the rest of baseball

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Pocket
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #10 on: Jun 5^th, 2003, 12:16pm »

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I'm another that thinks this was a mistake. Who's responsibility is it to remove the corked bats from the area during the game? The player, the batboy, the coaches? It's a shame that Sosa's rep has taken a blow, and that his record is now suspect. Too bad!

On another note, there was a discussion among sports commentators, who argued that corked bats have been tested and don't give an advantage. We'll hear more on this subject, no doubt.

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david
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #11 on: Jun 5^th, 2003, 1:24pm »

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It seems Sammy has overwheeming support so I dont think his "REP" has been that damaged. Good point about BATBOY I hadnt thought of it your right it is BATBOY who takes care of bats NOT player!

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Rhune
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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #12 on: Jun 5^th, 2003, 1:37pm »

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I'm sure it was a mistake that he used that bat, what I find about it that is dishonest is that they would use corked bats in practice. Even if it's the norm for all ball players, I still find that dishonest. He should have been more careful about what bats he brought with him, I firmly believe that.

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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #13 on: Jun 5^th, 2003, 9:57pm »

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After hearing developments of "the day after", it sounds to me like Sosa or possibly the Batboy, made the error. As far as using a corked bat in batting practice, I'm not concerned, and most likely the powers that be aren't concerned there either. Batting practice is PRACTICE, it is NOT the game. What he does in PRACTICE should not have any bearing on what he does during the game. Golfers use weighted or speciality training clubs in practice but not during a match. Practice is just that, PRACTICE.
I think the redeeming bit of info gleamed from this is that in an x-ray of seventy-some of his other bats, all were regulation.
A mistake was made, he owned up to it and will accept the punishment for that mistake. I don't think Sammy Sosa should hang his head, he's a true athelete.

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Re: Sammy Sosa gets caught corking his bat
« Reply #14 on: Jun 6^th, 2003, 1:58pm »

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Sosa received an 8 game suspension

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