First and foremost, 1998 marked the Summer of Sammy. The Chicago Cubs outfielder battled Mark McGwire and Ken Griffey Jr. in a dramatic home run chase in pursuit of baseball’s all-time single-season home run record.
All summer, Sosa and McGwire were locked in a battle to beat Roger Maris‘ single-season mark. I was in law school and I and a classmate, who is a huge Orioles fan, marveled that not one but two players were vying for the title. We pondered the possibilities – 37 years after Maris and no one had gotten close and now two were on track to do it.