Show I 4 II I I Bream Breez Through Sports I w By Eric Bresee It lost a quarter of a season the playoffs playon and a champion It barely started the next season on time It has toiled in a funk for liar the last four years Baseball Baseball was once the king of sports our national pastime Perhaps the fairest of all sports snorts A player gives gives' themselves up for lor the team and it doesn't counts against their average Now that's fair A teammate makes an error and none of the runs in the rest of the inning count against your earned run average That's fair also But the egomaniacal owners tried their hardest to ruin all of that with the 1994 strike An unfinished season season season sea sea- son a canceled World Series and millions millions millions mil mil- lions of fans alienated because the owners wanted fatter pockets For the last three years baseball has sputtered Low attendance an acting commissioner and Jerry Reinsdorf Reins Reins- dorf dory acted as anchors lo no an already sinking ship But a funny thing happened on the way to the ocean floor Its It's called the 1998 sc season on And with the 98 season season season sea sea- son baseball is making a resounding come comeback hack The Yankees are dominant the Cubs could make the playoffs and the Astros Braves and Padres are in a dogfight for the best record in the theN N National league Those five live teams are bring baseball base base- hall ball hack back to the forefront in their respective cities However two players play play- ers are bringing baseball to the fore lire forefront forefront front across the nation Sammy and Mac Mac and Sammy Before Belore the strike no one had heard of Sammy Sosa Before the strike people only knew Mark McGwire McGwire McGwire McG McG- wire as Jose Canseco's Bash Brother Brother Brother Broth Broth- er from the Oakland AsBoth As AsBoth Both now have become household names The reason being heing their chase for the single season home run record Their powered high-powered assault on the 37 year-old year record held by hy Roger Maris Mans has intrigued people nation The casual fan now turns on to get caught up upon upon upon on Home Run Derby Former baseball baseball base hase- ball hall haters now stay slay up 15 minutes later to catch the local sportscast to lo losee see if Sammy or Mac cranked one out of the park Home Run Derby has sparked renewed interest in the national pas pas- time An interest that has pique the interest of the most casual fan and brought the fans back hack in droves Whether Sosa or McGwire break the record now is irrelevant what they have done has revived the love of baseball for most Americans Thank you Sammy Thank you Mac ti l l J |