European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - July 12, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday. July 12. 1987 the stars and stripes Page 23 commentary Home runs Gong going. Too far in 1919. Babe Ruth hit 29 Home runs. Tinl was about 14 percent of the Home runs the rest of inc league hit Ihal year la was 19 More than his closest pursuer George Sisler and 17 More Lahait the top slugger in Llie other league. It was also More than 10 of the 16 teams in the major leagues hit thai year. In 1920, babe Ruth hit 54 Home runs. That was More Home runs Hart any other learn in the league. It was More Home runs than All but one other team in baseball the Philadelphia Phillies had 54 hit. In 1921, babe Ruth hit 39 Home runs. Only two teams in the league hit More. At late As 1927, when babe hit his historic 60, that was More Home runs than any other team in the league. That was about 16 percent of the Home runs he my of the league hit that year. When you talked Aboul one Man teams you were talking about Ruth. In 1938, Hank Greenberg hit 58 Home runs. That we Only about 7 percent of the number the rest of the league hit Ana nol More than any team in the league. In 1961, Roger mans hit 61 Home runs. For the record that was Only 4 percent of what the rest of the league kit and not even half of what most leans hit. In 1907, there were 100 Home runs total hit in the american league. Last year there were 2,290. This year it sometimes seems Ai if there Are that Many hit a week. This year there were 1,271 Home runs hit by the end of june. Babe Ruth what have you done John Mcgraw where have you gone a nation turns its lonely eyes to you. It s raining baseballs Oul there. Just when we thought Speed and daring and Craft had made a comeback Here comes brute strength stand around and Wail for be big inning baseball. Pitchers Are afraid to Lei go of the Ball. Outfielders Are getting Fence bums backing up for the Long drive. The jokes Are endless. If you grip the Ball tight you can head its heart beating. If you run Oul of balls just drop two of them in a bag and Presto they la multiply. Ruth s record is going to be broken by some Rookie right out of College. Maris record is going to be broken by so Many Guys they re going to run out of asterisks. What has happened Well it s the Ball of course some say. It s atomic. It s wound Loo tight. No others say it s the pitchers. It s mass hysteria. They throw Gopher baits Oul of panic babe Ruih put the Home run in baseball. Prior to him it was considered an aberration not a True product of the game. A Fluke like a triple play. The babe wrestled the game away from the to Cobbs and the John Mcgraw and the Brand of the game now called mockingly Little Ball Ruth played big Ball. The game before Bun had been kind of bean bag hit pm where they Ain t exercise. The joke went Ihal babe hit pm where they la Nevi be. The Home run itself in t that exciting. It s the anticipation of the Home run that brings the fan to his feel that sets his heart to pounding his Throat roaring. It makes a three run Lead precarious. It makes a routine 4-1 game obsolete. In Mcgraw s Day when a team went Inlo the ninth inning leading by three he game was Over. In the Day of the Home run it May have isl begun. A walk an error and a Pitcher s mistake and you have a tie game. It s nol like a triple bounding around Between fielders with the bases loaded but the Public likes it. Americans like inc big game pitching duels arc for purists. Home runs Are for hard hats. But has it gotten out of hand do we need a Homer every other time at Bat in t there some thine wrong when Banjo hitters Start hitting oppo site Field Home runs there was a period when the pendulum seemed to have been swinging the other Way. First of All there were the new ballparks. Round symmetrical protected from helpful currents of air they offered none of the cheap Home run opportunities of the older More eccentric Ballpark whose Geometric design had to be folded to fit ensling City streets. The new Parks also featured carpeted playing surfaces that encouraged Speed base running base stealing and inc Small skills Hal threatened to Lake the game Back to its roots. The american league was always the league with the big shoulders. With its legacy from Ruth it scorned the Small game where you stored up runs like squirrels in Winter in favor of its big inning theory of baseball. So the fans might like Home runs. But a Man might like Ketchup too. But nol too much of it. Not to the Point where it smothers the meal. The Art of any sport is constantly at Odd with the science. You have 10 keep the Man with inc Smock and inc slide Rule at Bay. He has the Power to wreck any game. Golf could make a Ball and a club to hit it Wilh that could carry 500 Yards if n wanted to. Automobiles could go 500 Miles an hour if you had robots driving them. Do we want to turn ballplayers Inlo Bat wielding robots baseballs Inlo computerized pro Jechil ctr John Mcgraw once complained that the Home run look the thinking Oul of baseball. Well it might take the sport out fit. A game with nothing but Home runs would be worse than one without any. Baseball has always depended on the delicate balance Between of lense and defense. Today it seems beleaguered by modern technology artificial turf and artificially powered balls which seems to be cheapening the stolen base and the Home run. Maybe it s time to put a title sawdust Back in baseballs and dirt Back into in Field t. Before some one is moved to Start writing Home run As in he hum to a i and Tot in Toronto s Lorg Mulliniks duo wanders off third i atm Naili. Shifted 10 do Toronto a Garth lore and Ranee Mullio Iki two members of to Ronto i past Hope they have a place on the Blue jays in the future. Once an effective third base platoon combination for the Blue jays both Bave been watching from the Bench this season. Kelly Gruber starts at third. Lorg 32, Playa behind 22-Ycar-Otd Manny Lee at second. Mulliniks also 32, led american league third baseman in Fielding percentage .975 for the third straight sea son in 1986. This Vear manager Jimy Williams uses m Ull Miks As a left handed designated hitter. During Spring training when there were rumours Mutl Nilu would be traded or released he hit .441 with three Hom ers and nine runs batted in. It s been Tough for me this year i think More defensively than anything else Mulliniks said. Mulliniks batting .268, said he had to readjust hit attitude earlier this sea son. I be always understood my role Here Mulliniks Taid. I think if you re negative Only bad things can happen. Bui if you slay positive and work hard then sooner or later that s got to pay off. And it s not Only going to pay on for me it s going to help the Ball  whereas Mulliniks lakes extra bal Ling practice every Day to maintain Hii stroke Lorg wonders How to get his Bat going Lorg i .265 hitter in right seasons has been unable o find his Balling Eye. This season he is hitting .220. Offensively i be just been brutal Lorg said. It s jus one of those things. I Hope to pick it up in the second half of the season. I be been playing enough. That s not really a valid excuse. 1 just Haven t done Well. You go out there every Day and you just try to gel a hit in every at bal 1 Oon l even want to look at what i m doing right  Lorg an original member of the Blue jays welcomed the appearance of Gruber on the scene for at least one reason. It has re cast hint in the Utility role he played for several years. While playing mostly second Lorg also 11 9 in at third base and shortstop. I m feeling like i m More of a Sec Ond baseman than a third baseman Lorg said. You look at a third baseman and Mike  or George Brett comes to mind somebody to provide a lot of offensive Power. At second you look for a Guy who can turn a double play and get some  during 1985, the year Toronto won the Al East the third base duo of Mulliniks and Lorg combined for 191 bin 17 homers 93 Bis and 48 double impressive numbers but those arc fading memories. They have new roles now. Whatever heir personal contributions they umut the Blue jays have what it takes to overcome the new York Yankees for . We just have to do what we Are Ca Pable of doing Lorg said. "1 think we have a better team than i he Yankees. If we play Garcal and Iney play great our greater should be belter thin their  gait Lwft. Backup second baseman