With Mark McGwire hitting his 69th and 70th HRs
yesterday, and the NL wild card race concluding with a one-
game playoff, MLB continues to dominate the news. In an op-
ed in Sunday's MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, MLB Commissioner
Bud Selig wrote that MLB's "very powerful recovery ... is
complete, and it has happened much quicker than anyone could
have imagined." Selig: "This has been a great season -- one
for the ages and one, for those of us who help administer
the game, for which we are very grateful" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL
SENTINEL, 9/27). MLB took out a full page ad in USA TODAY
featuring photos of Sosa and McGwire at bat, Cal Ripken
ending his consecutive-games streak and David Wells' perfect
game. Signed by Selig, it reads, "Thank You Fans! For
Helping To Make This An Unforgettable Season" (THE DAILY).
THE GRAND OLD GAME: MLB's final Sunday -- and McGwire's
accomplishment -- earned front-page treatment in today's USA
Today, N.Y. Times, Boston Globe, N.Y. Post, N.Y. Daily News,
Philadelphia Inquirer, Washington Post, L.A. Times, Detroit
News, Detroit Free Press, Miami Herald, Chicago Sun-Times,
Cincinnati Enquirer, Salt Lake Tribune, St. Louis Post-
Dispatch, Rocky Mountain News, Dallas Morning News, among
other markets. USA TODAY's Rudy Martzke writes, "For yet
another weekend in September, baseball has stolen front-page
headlines from the vaunted NFL." NBC Sports Chair Dick
Ebersol: "When baseball started the wild-card system, they
said it was for one reason only -- to win back September,
which they had lost to the NFL. This year they succeeded.
They've won September" (USA TODAY, 9/28). As for the entire
season, NEWSDAY's Jon Heyman writes, "There were more cheers
than ever before. More headlines. Bigger crowds. More
excitement. And best of all, no labor talk" (NEWSDAY,
9/28). In Denver, Woody Paige writes under the header,
"Sweet Season Reclaims The Joys Of Summer" (DENVER POST,
9/28). In Philadelphia, Claire Smith writes, "It is a
marvelous power the sport holds, one too long untapped"
(PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 9/28). In St. Petersburg, John
Romano wrote that MLB "is back on people's minds" (ST.
PETERSBURG TIMES, 9/27). In Phoenix, Pedro Gomez called '98
MLB's "finest hour" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 9/27). A N.Y. TIMES
editorial says MLB had a "wonderful year," but "whether
baseball's owners and players can capitalize on their sudden
good fortune remains to be seen" (N.Y. TIMES, 9/28).
ON SUNDAY: MLB's revival was the subject of front-page
features in Sunday's WASHINGTON POST and S.F. EXAMINER. In
DC, Richard Justice, under the header, "The National Pastime
Is Back In Full Swing," wrote that the "biggest winner will
be the game itself" (9/27). In S.F., under the header,
"Baseball's Tremendous Comeback," Jon Rochmis wrote that MLB
"enjoyed its own Summer of Love in 1998" (EXAMINER, 9/27).
CHEERS FOR THE HEROS: In Boston, Peter Gammons, on
McGwire and Sosa: "In the end, they cared, they made us
care, they allowed us to care. ... In this season in which
baseball regained one generation and gained another that
some felt never would turn its MTV/Nintendo eyes, it was
McGwire and Sosa ... that grabbed the audience" (BOSTON
GLOBE, 9/28). A N.Y. DAILY NEWS editorial called McGwire
and Sosa "the ultimate example of pure sportsmanship. They
have lifted not only their sport, but the spirits of
America" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 9/26). The FINANCIAL TIMES'
Jurek Martin wrote that MLB's "good guys" -- Sosa, McGwire
and Ripken -- overshadowed an "otherwise depressing American
summer" (FINANCIAL TIMES, 9/26). Sosa is featured in
NEWSWEEK's Latin American edition, which says he handled
himself with "dignity and good humor" (NEWSWEEK, 10/4).
WELL WORTH IT: The attendance bonus in McGwire's
contract -- $1 for ever ticket sold over 2.8 million --
provided him with a bonus of $395,021 (N.Y. TIMES, 9/28).
