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Tuesday, July 14, 1998
Juan's quest merits kudos, no matter what
By T.R. SULLIVAN Fort Worth Star-Telegram
ARLINGTON, Texas - Roger Maris is going down. Mark McGwire
is going to hit at least 62 home runs this season.
But Hack Wilson is safe. Juan Gonzalez is not going to drive
in 190 runs.
Gonzalez has had a remarkable season to this point, and there's
no reason to believe he'll slow down significantly in the second
half. But even though he is only the second player in history
to have more than 100 runs batted in at the All-Star break - he
had 101 - Gonzalez is on a pace to drive in only 188 runs this
season.
Only 188 RBI?
That would break the American League record set by Lou Gehrig
in 1931, but leave him two short of Wilson.
"It's not impossible," Gonzalez said. "I just
need to stay healthy and keep working hard. Then we'll see."
That's a noble sentiment, but Gonzalez is attempting to break
a record that was established under completely different circumstances.
What Rangers fans and people elsewhere must guard against is judging
Gonzalez's season by how close he gets to Wilson and considering
it a disappointment if he doesn't break the record.
That's like judging Tony Gwynn a disappointment if he hits
.400, but doesn't match Roger Hornsby's single-season record of
.424.
"I've thought about that," Rangers pitcher John Wetteland
said. "How is it going to be received if he doesn't break
the record? Will it be disappointing? Will it be disappointing
if McGwire hits 59 or 60 homers? I was amazed to hear that he
has 101 RBI at the All-Star break and still has to pick up the
pace in the second half. Juan already has had a good season. You
wonder about that."
Wilson set his record for the Chicago Cubs in 1930, the greatest
year for hitters in the history of the sport. It was during the
Depression and times were tough for most Americans economically,
so the owners juiced up the baseball as much as possible, hoping
extraordinary offensive performances would spur attendance.
The entire National League hit .303 in 1930. The Cubs hit .309,
and Wilson had a great supporting cast, including two Hall of
Famers, outfielder Kiki Cuyler and catcher Gabby Hartnett. Cuyler
hit .355, stole 37 bases and scored 155 runs. Hartnett hit .339.
Riggs Stephenson led the team with a .367 average, and shortstop
Woodie English hit .335.
Gehrig's 1931 Yankees were another offensive juggernaut. Babe
Ruth, batting ahead of Gehrig, hit .373 and walked 128 times.
Six of eight starters hit better than .300, including Hall of
Famers Bill Dickey (.327), Earle Combs (.318) and Joe Sewell (.302).
Right fielder Ben Chapman hit .315 and stole 61 bases.
The Rangers can't match that kind of support, even if Tom Goodwin
emerges from his slump, Mark McLemore maintains a .400 on-base
percentage and Ivan Rodriguez becomes the first catcher in American
League history to win a batting title.
The day Gonzalez merely drives in his 154th run should be cause
for celebration because it would be the most by a major-leaguer
since 1949. The best since then is 153 by Dodgers outfielder Tommy
Davis in 1962, the same year teammate Maury Wills stole 104 bases.
The next impressive plateau would be 160 RBI, which would be
the most since before World War II. That would push Gonzalez past
Red Sox outfielder Ted Williams, the greatest pure hitter who
drove in a career-high 159 runs in 1949.
But even 160 RBI, far and away better than anything accomplished
by Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle or Stan Musial, would
be only the 18th best in major-league history.
No major-league team in this era can match the offensive numbers
put up during the Depression. There have been 36 players who drove
in at least 150 runs in a season and 22 of them did it in the
years between the stock market crash in October 1929 and the bombing
of Pearl Harbor in December 1941.
Gonzalez actually should be judged by what he does to get the
Rangers in the playoffs. The Cubs finished second in 1930. So
did the Yankees in 1931.
---
Distributed by The Associated Press
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