Sosa caught with cork in his bat

[K-Town-Yankee]

Sosa shatters his bat and umpire discovers cork in his bat.Wonder how long this has been going on?I always figured he was putting something illegal in his body,but didn't think he was corking his bat.

[RSgal]

Suuuuuuuurprise surprise surprise....

He will be referred to as 'Corky' from now on. Makes ya wonder who else is cheating, doesn't it?

[PantherPaul]

So much for creditability

[Chisox17]

damn northside cheaters!

go sox

[two-six]

he's been striking out all this and last week with a corked bat....what a waste

[DaveW]

said he used the bat for batting practice to put on a show for the fans. I'm calling bullshit. A baseball player KNOWS his bats like the back of his hand. He would have immediately known that was his batting practice bat and not his game bat.

[two-six]

Originally posted by DaveW
said he used the bat for batting practice to put on a show for the fans. I'm calling bullshit. A baseball player KNOWS his bats like the back of his hand. He would have immediately known that was his batting practice bat and not his game bat.

amen on that one.......cork has ben berry berry gud to him

[LarryD]

the chicago columnists are ripping him a new one.


By Phil Rogers, Chicago Tribune

CHICAGO — Talk about overkill.
Sammy Sosa needs a corked bat like Jennifer Lopez needs a little publicity. Or a new boyfriend.
Against those pitching-heavy Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the great Sosa should need to cheat about as much as Tom Hanks would to win the lead in a Drury Lane production. He should need a good woodworker about as much as George Clooney needs card tricks to impress women.
Yet, as Texas songwriter Jimmy La Fave says, desperate men do desperate things.
For a hitter, there isn’t much worse for his image than being caught with a corked bat. Albert Belle hit 381 homers in 12 seasons, but the first thing many people think when his name comes up is the Comiskey Park game in 1994 when he was ejected for using a corked bat. Graig Nettles still is haunted by the night in 1974 that Super Balls came flying out of his Louisville Slugger.
This is the honor roll of cheaters that has welcomed Sosa into its ignominious company. Corking his bat--which Sosa says he does for home run exhibitions--isn’t going to keep him out of the Hall of Fame, but it might as well be included in the inscription on his plaque.
Nobody’s going to forget it. Not now. Not next month. Not next year. Not ever.
Sosa achieved his status as a icon during the glory years for home run hitters, 1998 through 2001. Along with Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds, he has had to live with the suspicion that he has gotten some of his power out of a bottle or a syringe.
But this time it wasn’t cheap talk about steroids, which Sosa always has been able to deflect. This time it was a cracked bat that revealed doctoring.
Nope, this was not a false positive.
Sammy can’t say it ain’t so.
What a pity.

[LarryD]

By Mike Downey, Chicago Tribune

CHICAGO — It was as if someone had caught Superman using brass knuckles, or suspected Robin Hood of stealing from the poor, or accused King Arthur of rigging it so that the sword would slide easily out of the stone.
However it happened, a hero’s shining-knight image has been tarnished. And those who believe in him can keep right on believing if they so please, but those who govern over him could have a very sad judgment to make as to his future.
If the cork fits, they can’t acquit.
If it turns out to be absolutely, 100 percent true that Sammy Sosa came to bat Tuesday night at Wrigley Field with a bat that was stuffed with that stuff, then they have to suspend him from baseball.
For a week, for two weeks, for four, for more.
Oh, what a blow this would be.
For the Cubs, for the game, for the fans, for the man.
I do not believe for a minute that Sosa hit many, or even any, of his 505 home runs with anything but a perfectly legal slab of wood.
But the umpires didn’t boot him out of Tuesday’s game against Tampa Bay because they wanted to give the Devil Rays a fair chance.
They gave the heave-ho to Chicago’s greatest active superstar because when his bat split open in the first inning, they found something funny inside of it.
Chicago knows a corked bat when it sees one. Albert Belle’s was confiscated here once.
Tampa Bay also knows a corked bat when it sees one. Jose Guillen, a right fielder for the Devil Rays, got caught using one in 2001.
He drew a 10-game suspension, confessed that the illegal bat was indeed his and was quoted in the St. Petersburg Times of June 25, 2001:
‘‘I wasn’t the first one, and I probably won’t be the last one.’’
Pretty prophetic.
And pretty pathetic. Because with so much precedent set in disciplining Belle, Guillen, Wilton Guerrero and other hitters who got busted for something concealed inside their weapons, a player today hardly could say that he hadn’t been warned.
Sosa was kicked out of this game. If found guilty, he could get kicked out of many a game.
He probably wouldn’t be the last one, just as he wouldn’t be the first one.
But for baseball fans near and far, this could definitely be the worst one.

[PantherPaul]

Albert Belle got 7 games suspension when he corked a bat. I am betting around 10-14. Court of public appeal will be a lot stiffer. Heres a great article about cheaters in baseball Baseball Cheats (http://espn.go.com/page2/s/list/cheaters/ballplayers.html)

[mathmajors]

I believe him.

[HighPoint49er]

http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20030604/capt.1054688657.devil_rays_cubs_sosas_bat_cxc101.j pg
Chicago Cubs' Sammy Sosa breaks his bat on a first-inning ground ball Tuesday, June 3, 2003, at Wrigley Field in Chicago. After the play, home plate umpire Tim McClelland examined the bat and ejected Sosa after finding cork in the bat. (AP Photo/Steve Matteo)

[DaveW]

Originally posted by mathmajors
I believe him.

which part do you believe?

[Piper]

Know what the funny thing is? A corked bat actually takes distance off a ball. That's why the penalties are not larger.

Any player using a corked bat is stupid. They are more likely to break, meaning you will likely get caught, and you take distance off the ball. The only thing it does is lighten the bat without reducing the surface area of the bat head.

Damn Sammy, you are stuuupid.

[mathmajors]

Originally posted by DaveW

which part do you believe?

That he picked up the wrong bat.

[The Brain]

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/sports/6007828.htm
-------------------------------------
Sosa admits using corked bat
By JOHNNY ROSENSTEIN
Chicago Tribune

CHICAGO - If Sammy Sosa didn't have enough questions to answer since his return from the disabled list a week ago, the inquiries became magnified Tuesday night at Wrigley Field.

On the season's first day of interleague play, Sosa was tossed out of a come-from-behind 3-2 victory over Tampa Bay in the first inning for using a corked bat.

With runners on second and third and one out, Sosa hit what seemed to be a routine broken-bat, run-scoring groundout. After Tampa Bay second baseman Marlon Anderson threw Sosa out at first, pieces of Sosa's shattered bat were being picked up.

When the umpires finished a huddled discussion, crew chief Tim McClelland gave Sosa the thumb for using a corked bat.

Sosa, who has been booed and questioned during his 2-for-15, one-RBI performance since his return, claimed the corked bat was used only for batting practice and home run exhibitions and had been inadvertently mixed in with his game bats.

"This is something I take blame for," Sosa said after his replacement, Troy O'Leary, scored the game-winning run on a ninth-inning wild pitch by Tampa Bay reliever Al Levine (2-2).

Sosa claimed he used the corked bat only for batting practice and that it had been mixed in with his regular bats.

"I just picked the wrong bat," he said. "I apologize to my team. ... I apologize to the commissioner of baseball."

Sosa said the league offices confiscated his bats and he wasn't worried anything else would be found.

"I believe Sammy didn't know it was in there," manager Dusty Baker said. "My reaction is to wait to see what the league office does.

"I believe Sammy didn't know it was in there."

After Sosa's dismissal, Tampa Bay took a 2-0 lead in the second inning on Carl Crawford's two-run bloop single to left field.

The Cubs managed to cut the margin in half on back-to-back one-out doubles by Hee Seop Choi and Ramon Martinez in the sixth inning. They tied it in the eighth when Lenny Harris knocked in Choi on a bases-loaded forceout.

"Sammy was pretty sad about it," Harris said of Sosa talking to the team after the game. "He feels like he let everybody down."

Harris went up to Sosa after he spoke to the team and told the slugger to "just deal with it."

As for a possible suspension, Harris said: "That's what so bad. Pretty much, we lost our best player. We need him."

After the Devil Rays failed to break the 2-2 tie when Jared Sandberg struck out with the bases loaded in the ninth inning, the Cubs pushed across the winning run in their half.

O'Leary led off with a single up the middle, moved to second on Moises Alou's single to left and advanced to third on Choi's sacrifice bunt. With Martinez at the plate, Levine uncorked a wild pitch, allowing O'Leary to score the winning run.

Both starters pitched well. Mark Prior yielded just two runs, striking out five over eight innings for the Cubs, while former Cub Jeremi Gonzalez allowed just one earned run through seven innings for the Devil Rays.

Mike Remlinger (4-0) picked up the victory in pitching the ninth.

"He came up and faced the music," Kerry Wood said. "He faced the press and dealt with it. The guy made an honest mistake and he's sorry."

[Ssstern]

I thought that the cork made the bat "springier" causing the ball to go farther. Just like the superball loaded bats. I have just always heard that. The lighter bat idea makes sense though-bat speed.

[DaveW]

Originally posted by Ssstern
I thought that the cork made the bat "springier" causing the ball to go farther. Just like the superball loaded bats. I have just always heard that. The lighter bat idea makes sense though-bat speed.


it does..you can take the caps off of aluminum bats and stuff raquet balls in them to give the same effect as corking a wooden bat.

[slydevl]

Originally posted by DaveW



it does..you can take the caps off of aluminum bats and stuff raquet balls in them to give the same effect as corking a wooden bat.

Should the Beerbarians try this?

[DaveW]

yes..just make sure the top is glued back on really good.

[Piper]

Nope. Wives tale.

Bart Giamatti was thinking of making cheating with a cork bat into a more severe penalty to protect the integrity of the game.

But first he asked Yale Physics proffesor Robert Kemp Adair to determine what effect it actually has.

Adair discovered that a corked bat would actually decrease how long a ball is hit by an average of 3 feet. Why? Simple physics. You are decreasing the density of the bat.

Adair then included his findings in his book "Physics of Baseball."

edit.

Corking aluminum bats might work, by making them more dense, since they are hollow.

[slydevl]

Originally posted by Piper
Nope. Wives tale.

Bart Giamatti was thinking of making cheating with a cork bat into a more severe penalty to protect the integrity of the game.

But first he asked Yale Physics proffesor Robert Kemp Adair to determine what effect it actually has.

Adair discovered that a corked bat would actually decrease how long a ball is hit by an average of 3 feet. Why? Simple physics. You are decreasing the density of the bat.

Adair then included his findings in his book "Physics of Baseball."

edit.

Corking aluminum bats might work, by making them more dense, since they are hollow.

Hit a tennis ball with a baseball bat. Now hit a steel ball. The steel ball is denser. Which flies farther?

[Patti]

Sportscenter just reported a corked bat increases velocity about 1%.

[Piper]

Originally posted by slydevl


Hit a tennis ball with a baseball bat. Now hit a steel ball. The steel ball is denser. Which flies farther?

You slept through Physics, right Sly? :)

Since the steel ball is object being hit, the lighter, less dense object will travel a farther distance, and will be effected less by gravity.

When you hit a ball, you are transferring the kinetic energy of the bat to the ball. Reducing the weight and density of the bat reduces the kinetic energy of the bat.

But hey, it wasn't my study.

[Piper]

Why corks don't work (http://www.bostonbaseball.com/whitesox/baseball_extras/physics.html)

[slydevl]

Originally posted by Piper


You slept through Physics, right Sly? :)

Since the steel ball is object being hit, the lighter, less dense object will travel a farther distance, and will be effected less by gravity.

When you hit a ball, you are transferring the kinetic energy of the bat to the ball. Reducing the weight and density of the bat reduces the kinetic energy of the bat.

But hey, it wasn't my study.

OK

Throw a steel ball at a concrete wall.

Now throw a steel ball at a rubber wall.

Which one causes the ball to bounce further?

[mathmajors]

It's the bat, not the ball, that's in question, Sly. Hit a baseball with different types of bats.

[slydevl]

A pound of gold.

A pound of zinc.

Which is more important to your health?

[slydevl]

Originally posted by mathmajors
It's the bat, not the ball, that's in question, Sly. Hit a baseball with different types of bats.

The secret is cork or rubber that is the same weight and density as ash but that will compress and rebound giving the ball extra spring. I think that is called "Flubber".

[DaveW]

dont believe the hype, piper. If cork didnt give an adavntage to hitters it would be used in bats. Cork is part of wood. Bats have to be an approved wood.

[slydevl]

Flubber was also the name of DaveW's last girlfriend

[mathmajors]

I remember reading a report on this a while back, but I can't remember: do they not use aluminum bats in the majors because of the purity of the game or because of injury concerns?

[mathmajors]

Originally posted by slydevl
Flubber was also the name of DaveW's last girlfriend

Yeah, whatever happened to ol' FlubberBryant?

[DaveW]

flubber? I dont even know her

[DaveW]

Originally posted by mathmajors
I remember reading a report on this a while back, but I can't remember: do they not use aluminum bats in the majors because of the purity of the game or because of injury concerns?


because pitchers, third and first baseman would be getting killed.

[mathmajors]

Originally posted by DaveW
flubber? I dont even know her

:soda:

I thought you'd said you'd lobster and then you flounder?

[mathmajors]

Originally posted by DaveW
because pitchers, third and first baseman would be getting killed.

So you're agreeing with Piper that a more dense bat (like aluminum) transfers more kinetic energy to a hit ball than a less dense bat (like wood) and therefore an even less-dense bat (like corked wood)?

[DaveW]

metal is harder than wood

[Patti]

Is the arguement that the more dense the bat is the farther the ball will go, or because the bat is lighter the harder the batter will swing?

[Ssstern]

The ball may go comparable less distance at the same swing speed. You increase the swing speed, you will increase the velocity of the ball coming off the bat and gain more distance. Does this work? The same reason you use a heavier bat or "donut" on the end of the bat on deck- to make it easier to swing when get your normal weighted bat at the plate.

[slydevl]

Originally posted by mathmajors


So you're agreeing with Piper that a more dense bat (like aluminum) transfers more kinetic energy to a hit ball than a less dense bat (like wood) and therefore an even less-dense bat (like corked wood)?

Aluminum bats are lighter than wood and have a recoil effect because they are hollow.

[Ssstern]

And they go"PING"!:D

[mathmajors]

But aluminum is more dense than wood, right?

[kshead]

Sosa is a dumbass. Fuck him. 10-15 games I figure.

Baseball physics:

http://www.exploratorium.edu/baseball/howfar.html

[Piper]

Originally posted by DaveW
metal is harder than wood

And it is more dense.

The link I provided gives other reasons.

"The natural frequency of wooden bats is around 250 cycles per second, or 250 Hertz. Because the ball leaves the bat so soon (a millisecond), the energy transfer to the ball is not too efficient. If the bat has been hollowed and corked, it's no longer as stiff, and it will get an even lower natural frequency and an even less efficient transfer of energy to the bat. The baseball bounces off the bat, faster than the cork can store the energy that could be put back in the ball. The cork might deaden the sound of a hollowed out bat, but it doesn't propel the ball. It can't. So, balls hit with corked bats don't go as far."



And yall thought you'd never need to use Physics. SCIENCE NERDS OF THE WORLD UNITE!

[mathmajors]

Originally posted by Piper


And it is more dense.


Just like Dave!






























































:D

[Piper]

Originally posted by Ssstern
The ball may go comparable less distance at the same swing speed. You increase the swing speed, you will increase the velocity of the ball coming off the bat and gain more distance.


No. It doesn't make up the distance lost. If this were true, everyone would use lighter bats.

One of the reasons guys use heavier bats, other than having a larger sweet spot, is that the heavier bat will allow you to hit farther with the same amount of force.

What corking bats can do is allow you to make more contact by increasing bat speed without decreasing surface area. Bat speed is faster, meaning you catch up to more pitches, meaning more contact.

[mathmajors]

While all that's true, Mark McGuire used a relatively light bat. He made it work, though.

[DaveW]

so does barry bonds. swings a 31 oz bat

[Patti]

So is SportsCenter wrong? :confused:

[kshead]

Originally posted by Piper
And yall thought you'd never need to use Physics. SCIENCE NERDS OF THE WORLD UNITE!

Fuck Physics. Hated it except for those problems that involved a guy jumping off a cliff or being shot out of a cannon. Took it with a bunch of stinkin EE's too - who already knew electricity - but we skipped the parts that involved PChem and ideal gases. All I know now is that when I flip the switch, the light comes on. Most of the time anyway.

Ok. Whine over. Carry on.

[Piper]

Well, the primary force that propels balls comes from the strength of the batter, he's adding his own force to the potential energy of the bat, turning it into kinetic energy, but his own energy is much greater.

For example. You can probably swing a wiffle bat faster than a wooden bat. But if you are going to hit me with one, make it the wiffle.

[Piper]

Originally posted by Patti
So is SportsCenter wrong? :confused:

Who was their source. This was a myth that was generally accepted as true in baseball until someone actually looked into it.

And it does increase velocity. Of the bat.

[kshead]

Originally posted by Piper

For example. You can probably swing a wiffle bat faster than a wooden bat. But if you are going to hit me with one, make it the wiffle.

You volunteerin' for some class experiments? :D

[Patti]

Originally posted by Piper


Who was their source. This was a myth that was generally accepted as true in baseball until someone actually looked into it.

And it does increase velocity. Of the bat.

They had a clip of some guy showing you how to cork a bat. I didn't catch his name. But they have shown it more than once so I'll try to pay more attention next time.

They basically are saying it would increase distance about 1%. Making a 400 foot hit a 404.

[Piper]

Originally posted by Patti




They basically are saying it would increase distance about 1%. Making a 400 foot hit a 404.


Well, that's at odds with the laws of physics, then. I always knew that Newton was full of shit.

[mathmajors]

Originally posted by Patti
They basically are saying it would increase distance about 1%. Making a 400 foot hit a 404.


Bobby Valentine on Baseball Tonight said pretty much the same thing. He is the voice of experience, I guess.

Barry Bonds has his bats made out of maple, too.

[slydevl]

Could the compression of the bat allow the ball to stay in contact longer thus transfering more kinetic energy :thinking:

[Piper]

Originally posted by slydevl
Could the compression of the bat allow the ball to stay in contact longer thus transfering more kinetic energy :thinking:

According to Adair, the exact opposite is true. The cork actually decreases the effeciency of the energy transfer, because it "absorbs" energy from the ball.

It would be cool if we could disprove his theory. I'm kind of thinking that would have already happened though.

It does kind of show how an accepted "myth" can be very persuasive in society. Sort of how people thought we got malaria from bad air, for years after scientists knew mosquitoes spread the disease.

Damn, that was geeky of me.

[Big Russ]

Adair was just on ESPN explaining, or trying to explain, his findings. Anyone else catch it? He wasnt all that convincing on the tube.

He seemed to be claiming that the only reason a corked bat would hit it farther would be the less weight. Drill a hole in it, leave the cork out, and it'll go farther. Why not just order a lighter bat.

Didnt address the density issue. Did say that the ball isnt on the bat long enough for the cork to affect it. Most of the analysts were were smiling respectfully and nodding. You could tell they werent convinced.

EDIT: I must not have listened too closely. Bobby V. and Joe Morgan both admit they think it doesnt help.

[chipshot]

What corking bats can do is allow you to make more contact by increasing bat speed without decreasing surface area. Bat speed is faster, meaning you catch up to more pitches, meaning more contact.

Thank you! They had film footage of a bat maker showing how to make a corked bat. That is exactly what he said.

Am I the only one who thinks this is being blown way out of proportion? Pitchers and batters will do anything they can to get an advantage. If they had a rule that said all bats must be identical it would be much more significant. Untill baseball starts testing and enforcing steroid use this is minor.

Should Tiger Woods have an be thought of any less since he has much better clubs and balls then most others? Suspend him and move on.

[Patti]

They have tested 77 of Sosa's bats and none of them contained cork.

[two-six]

the cork is only there to keep the bat from sounding hollow. to keep it sounding like a legal bat. they move the weight, making the bat lighter, yet the same length which results in a faster swing. this is along the same lines as to why high school and college bats now have to have a -3 length to weight ratio. for example, a 33 inch bat can be no lighter than 30 ounces. this came into effect in the last few years to reduce the exit speed of the ball off of the bat. the -5 ratios from back a few years, along with always-changing stronger metals were resulting in too fast of an exit speed, so it was changed for safety.

i have an older 33 in 28 oz Easton, and a newer 33 in 30 oz Easton if anyone wishes to do their own comparison

thats all i have to say about that.

[Patti]

I think Sammy is telling the truth and I think Rick Reilly from SI is an asshole.

[two-six]

Originally posted by Patti
I think Sammy is telling the truth and I think Rick Reilly from SI is an asshole.

i really want to believe him, and so far it looks like the truth...and what did reilly say, i must have missed that

[Patti]

He is just pissed because Sosa wouldn't take a piss test for him when the steroid controversy was going on. Now he is taking the stand that Sosa can't be trusted and that since he cheats with his bat it can't be that far of a stretch that he cheats with his body.

[two-six]

oh, gotcha patti......well reilly is a prick anyways.......altho his columns are good

[vpkozel]

Originally posted by CharPirates26
i have an older 33 in 28 oz Easton, and a newer 33 in 30 oz Easton if anyone wishes to do their own comparison


Careful what you offer - builder or fred might take you up on that.....

[two-six]

Originally posted by vpkozel


Careful what you offer - builder or fred might take you up on that.....

now thats a troubling thought:D

[RSgal]

Originally posted by Patti
I think Sammy is telling the truth and I think Rick Reilly from SI is an asshole.


Rick Reilly is indeed a jackass, and he needs to shut his big yap.

As for Sammy, I'd like to believe him...and the fact that none of his other bats were corked makes me slightly more apt to believe him. Slightly. But seriously, I find it difficult to believe that he couldn't feel the difference between the corked bat and a regular bat. It would have to be significantly lighter, otherwise he wouldn't have bothered putting the cork in there in the first place.

[Xcaliber]

I just think he simply used it to try and get out of his slump. He was probably curious to see if the corkedbat made any difference in a game situation than in BP. He used it, got caught, should get 8-10 games and everyone move on.

[Patti]

Originally posted by RSgal



Rick Reilly is indeed a jackass, and he needs to shut his big yap.

As for Sammy, I'd like to believe him...and the fact that none of his other bats were corked makes me slightly more apt to believe him. Slightly. But seriously, I find it difficult to believe that he couldn't feel the difference between the corked bat and a regular bat. It would have to be significantly lighter, otherwise he wouldn't have bothered putting the cork in there in the first place.

The thing I saw on Sports Center said the bat would only be about 1-2 ozs lighter after you corked it. I don't think that would be enough to notice just by picking it up.

[two-six]

Originally posted by Patti


The thing I saw on Sports Center said the bat would only be about 1-2 ozs lighter after you corked it. I don't think that would be enough to notice just by picking it up.

i agree with what someone said earlier (dave?). a hitter knows his bat. in the case with wood bats, i'm sure they sort through several picking out the ones that feel the same.

also, for me its possible to tell a difference between 2 aluminum bats without looking at the #'s. but they are also shorter or longer depending on the weight.

so in conclusion, yes, its possible that he didn't know, but i'm leaning towards he did know

[Patti]

Originally posted by CharPirates26


i agree with what someone said earlier (dave?). a hitter knows his bat. in the case with wood bats, i'm sure they sort through several picking out the ones that feel the same.

also, for me its possible to tell a difference between 2 aluminum bats without looking at the #'s. but they are also shorter or longer depending on the weight.

so in conclusion, yes, its possible that he didn't know, but i'm leaning towards he did know

But didn't he have 77 bats that he picked from? And the corked one would look the same from the outside.

[two-six]

Originally posted by Patti


But didn't he have 77 bats that he picked from? And the corked one would look the same from the outside.

they have several bats in a bin or something. but usually they only pick out a handful to take to the dugout to use in the game. i still don't see how he could accidentally do that. altho, with all those bats, it could easily get mixed in as far as looks go. i really do want to believe the guy, but the more i think about it, i think he would be able to tell the difference in the feel.

[Patti]

Yeah, I want to believe him too. I am assuming by your name you have had a lot more experience with baseball bats than I have, I just thought a bat that looked no different on the outside and only weighed a 1 or 2 ozs different might be easily picked up.

[two-six]

yes, if done properly it should look identical. i'm not saying its not possible to accidentally pick it up. what with adrenaline and all i'm sure it could very easily not be noticed that it was lighter.

can anyone else tell that i REALLY want to believe the guy but am having a hard time in doing so?

[slydevl]

Yeah but he was able to pick that bat out specifically for batting practice. He's a fucking liar.

[Big Russ]

Originally posted by Xcaliber
I just think he simply used it to try and get out of his slump. He was probably curious to see if the corkedbat made any difference in a game situation than in BP. He used it, got caught, should get 8-10 games and everyone move on.

I agree. They've tested his other bats. None others were corked. I DO think he knew exactly what he had in his hands when he was at the plate couple days ago.

[PantherPaul]

I think he is a liar who was looking for a little mental help when he is going through a slump. He has been out for 19 games with injury and now he is looking at a suspension when his team needs him the most. The Cubs are battling and Sosa took the cheap way out. He wouldn't have had to make a "mistake" if he never had a corked bat in the first place. That "doing it for the fans" is a load of shit. He is plenty big enough to hit homeruns and doesn't need to cheat anymore (andro or whatever) to use a corked bat. Moron Cub fans cheer him when he played the next day. Wait until he goes away from Wrigley like the Vet for instance, see if he gets such a warm treatment then. You can't take back all the homers he hit before but he has definately lost his luster

[Turbo]

Originally posted by PantherPaul
Moron Cub fans cheer him when he played the next day. Wait until he goes away from Wrigley like the Vet for instance, see if he gets such a warm treatment then.
I think the moron here is you.

In all of Sammy's history playing pro baseball, has he ever been caught cheating? Has he ever shown that he can't be trusted? Has he ever given reason to doubt what he is claiming as his reason for being caught with a corked bat? The answer to each one of those questions is a resounding NO.

I believe Sammy. He has never given anyone reason to doubt what he's said. The proof is in all the bats which were x-rayed and found perfectly legal.

You mention the Vet. I guess you're right - fans in Philly are world famous for cheering for their teams/players and supporting them. :rolleyes:

[slydevl]

Is it just me or does the fact that all his other bats where fine indicate his guilt???

IF the guy can consistantly pick one bat out of 77 to take to BP can't he recognize that bat pretty well? Also, if he had a corked bat to put on shows in BP wouldn't he have extras in case that one broke during BP so he could continue to put on shows. Its bullshit, the guy is a cheater and a liar. He showed he can't be trusted by evading all the steroid questions.

[wossa]

I believe the corked bat was a batting pratice bat.

I don't hink he used it often or that many of his other hits or homeruns during his career were hit with an illegal bat.

But I do believe that he knew which bat he had in his hand that day. Whether he picked it up by accident or not is irrelevant. He knew when he stood in there that he had his corked bat in his hand.

His arguement that his innocence was established because he didn't go out and pick up the pieces to hide it is ludicrous. I don't think I've ever seen a player run out and retrieve his broken bat. Thats always been the players in the field or the umps that pick it up and hand it over to a bat boy.

Guilty as charged. Suspend him for ten games and then move on

[Piper]

I have a hard time believing he didn't know which bat he was using.

A BP bat would be marked up all to hell, and major leaguers know which bat is which. They tape em and tar em to differenciate the BPs from the gamers.

[DaveW]

I have a hard time believing he didn't know which bat he was using



he knew. Like I said earlier, a MLB knows his bats better than he does his loved ones.

[RSgal]

Originally posted by wossa
I believe the corked bat was a batting pratice bat.

I don't hink he used it often or that many of his other hits or homeruns during his career were hit with an illegal bat.

But I do believe that he knew which bat he had in his hand that day. Whether he picked it up by accident or not is irrelevant. He knew when he stood in there that he had his corked bat in his hand.

His arguement that his innocence was established because he didn't go out and pick up the pieces to hide it is ludicrous. I don't think I've ever seen a player run out and retrieve his broken bat. Thats always been the players in the field or the umps that pick it up and hand it over to a bat boy.

Guilty as charged. Suspend him for ten games and then move on



:applause:

I agree wholeheartedly with everything you just said.

[hasbeen99]

According to CNN, Sosa has been suspended for 8 games.

[PantherPaul]

They didn't go after his extra bats for 45 minutes after he splintered his 1st corked bat. More than enough time to go in and get rid of the rest of the evidence. Either way all of his homers are tainted from here on out. He may or may not have used a corked bat earlier but why would he feel like he needed to? Didn't the andro give him the necessary advantage he needed?

[Big Russ]

Originally posted by PantherPaul
Either way all of his homers are tainted from here on out. He may or may not have used a corked bat earlier but why would he feel like he needed to

I disagree. I doubt this will even be an issue in the minds of most a year from now.

[Piper]

Originally posted by Big Russ


I disagree. I doubt this will even be an issue in the minds of most a year from now.

Shouldn't be, but this kind of thing can stain a career.

But as I said, it shouldn't. He's been in the league how many years? Shatterred how many batts? Like I said previously, a corked bat is more likely to bust up. He'd gotten caught earlier if he used them regular.

Plus, it really doesn't give much of an advantage IMO.

I just think he's been in a slump since his injury, and thought that using that corker might help bust him out. He got caught. Serve your 8 games, and be done with it.

[PantherPaul]

Whats the first thing you think of when you say Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry? Spit ball. Did he throw it everytime? Of course not. Both are Hall of Famers but both cheated. He will have to bare the scrunity for the rest of his career IMO. Like someone said on the radio, why is it almost humorous when I pitcher gets caught cheating, but a hitter cheats he is all but attacked? Strange

[wossa]

I think you're way off here Paul.

Sosa's homers aren't tainted.

and NOBODY wins anywhere close to 314 games throwing an illegal pitch every game.

[Piper]

Actually Perry threw the spitter all the damn time, pretty much every game. And he never, ever got caught, or rather umps didn't care, which was the funny part. He actually showed how he cheated to TV cameras before he retired.

Mike Scott was another one. Never got caught, but them were some messed up balls he threw.

This is more like when Neikro got caught with the file. Foriegn objects seem to be more scandolous, and less funny, than an old man throwing spitters. For whatever reason.

And like I said, I think if he'd used it before, he'd have gotten caught. But even still it doesn't do a damn thing to his home run totals. 2 oz doesn't make up for losing 3 feet in distance.

[PantherPaul]

Originally posted by wossa
I think you're way off here Paul.

Sosa's homers aren't tainted.

and NOBODY wins anywhere close to 314 games throwing an illegal pitch every game.

Wossa, you honestly don't think Perry threw a spitter on occassion whenever he took the mound every game? Hell from what I have read he threw it SEVERAL times during a game. I don't attribute a corked/altered bat to Sosa's homers, hell he is a strong man and didn't need to do what he does in BP or any other time. I just think that he screwed up ROYALLY. Everytime he hits a homer some fans will say "cork" If he cheated once and was caught some will doubt it's/his legitamacy

[K-Town-Yankee]

Sosa has been in a major slump lately and he just got desparate.He knew exactly what he was doing.He should take his medicine(8 games) like a man.

[vpkozel]

I heard on ESPN radio this weekend that there was a "C" on the handle of the bat he used. Couple that with the fact that none of his other bats was corked and, for me at least, the evidence seems to point to the fact that Sammy had a corked bat he used for BP and that bat somehow got mixed in with his normal game bats. At the very worst, he decided to try to use that bat in order to break out of his slump, but that would still make it an isolated case. And he wouldn't need a bunch of corked bats for BP, cause you don't break bats in BP.

[K-Town-Yankee]

I've broken a few bats taking batting practice in years past.Long before the aluminum bats became fashionable.So it can happen.