Mark McGwire’s record-setting tally of 70 home runs in the 1998 season will always be viewed with an asterisk next to it, but Big Mac himself believes that he could have done it just the same had he been clean.
In an interview with Jayson Stark of The Athletic that was published Monday, the retired slugger said that he still could have reached 70 homers if he had not used performance-enhancing drugs, which he has admitted to doing.
The interview the baseball world is buzzing about: @Jaysonst goes deep with Mark McGwire over his PED use and so much more.
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“Absolutely,” McGwire said. “I just know myself. I just know. I was a born home run hitter. I mean, unfortunately, I did [take PEDs]. And I’ve regretted that. I’ve talked about that. I regretted it. I didn’t need to. That’s the thing.
“But I know,” the former St. Louis Cardinal added. “Deep down inside, I know me as a hitter. And I know what I did in that box. And I know how strong my mind is. And I know what kind of hitter I became. And yes. Yes. Definitely.”
The 54-year-old McGwire, who is now a San Diego Padres bench coach, broke Roger Maris’ single-season home run record of 61 as a Cardinal that year in what was an unforgettable race with Chicago Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa. But Sosa has also since been linked to PED use, as has Barry Bonds, who topped McGwire’s record of 70 with 73 homers for the San Francisco Giants in 2001.
Granted, McGwire did indeed seem like a born masher, hitting 217 homers from 1987 to 1992 as a member of the Oakland Athletics. But it’s hard to take him for his word here, especially since the revelations of an ex-A’s teammate call into question just how much of his career McGwire was juicing for.
H/T ESPN
