Colon-oscopy

Doctors injected stem cells into pitcher Bartolo Colon's injured arm. Does that really work?


By Brian PalmerPosted Friday, May 13, 2011, at 5:45 PM ET

Bartolo Colon. Click image to expand.Bartolo ColonDoctors extracted fat and bone marrow stem cells from baseball pitcher Bartolo Colon and implanted them in his injured shoulder and elbow in April 2010 to help rebuild tissue. The 37-year-old Yankee is now pitching like he did when he was a younger man, leading some to question whether banned substances, such as human growth hormone, were involved. Can injecting some stem cells into a damaged joint really help that much?


Maybe. In recent years, orthopedists have been tinkering with the use of stem cells to help heal fractures, replace worn cartilage, and repair torn ligaments. As David Epstein explained in Sports Illustrated, the most popular technique is called micro-fracture surgery, in which the surgeon drills holes in the bone and allows the marrow to seep out into the area of the injury. The hope is that the stem cells in the bone marrow will release a cocktail of proteins and other chemicals to stimulate tissue repair. Researchers recently postulated that, if micro-fracture accelerates recovery, an even bigger shot of stem cells might speed it further. So they began experimenting with extracting bone marrow, centrifuging it to concentrate the stem cells, and injecting them into the injured joint. Implanting stem cells, either as the only treatment or in conjunction with micro-fracture surgery, has shown promise in a variety of animals, including horses and goats. But there have been very few trials on human patients, and it's considered experimental at this point.

The few human trials that have been performed have yielded underwhelming results. The Maryland-based biotech company Osiris Therapeutics collected 55 patients with injured menisci, the disk of cartilage in the knee. After removing the damaged cartilage, they injected Chondrogen, the company's special brew of stem cells, into some of the patients' knees. After a recovery period, the patients who got the stem cells reported less pain than the control group. That's nice, but the more important goal was regenerating cartilage, and there was no evidence of that.
Advertisement

Shouldn't the animal trials be enough to prove the technique's efficacy? Not really. Horses, for example, have thicker cartilage than humans, which may alter the healing process. They also get arthritis, one of the main disorders in the trials, in different places than humans do.

In fairness to Colon's doctors, convincing evidence can be hard to come by for any surgical procedure. Unlike in animal studies, in which doctors can surgically impose the same injury on all the patients, every human injury is a little different. The human patients' behavior after surgery, including their commitment to rehab, can vary widely. Surgeons are famously individualistic, each putting their own personal twist on the procedure. Some are also just better than others. All these factors combine to make it difficult to coordinate large-scale, well-controlled trials.

As for the murmurs about Colon's surgeon including HGH along with the stem cells, there's no evidence at this time. But the principle behind the two therapies is the same. HGH is a single-ingredient growth-promoter. Stem cells release a wide variety of growth-promoting chemicals. That diversity might, in theory, offer more benefit. Stem cells are also smarter than HGH, because they can respond to their environment. For example, if there is significant inflammation in an injured joint, the stem cells seem to ramp up their production of anti-inflammatory chemicals.

Got a question about today's news? Ask the Explainer.

Explainer thanks Jennifer H. Elisseeff of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

http://www.slate.com/id/2294008/

AC will get a kick out of this.

Time to admire Jose Bautista's greatness

May, 18, 2011

12:56
PM ET

By Steve Berthiaume



Jose BautistaAP Photo/Jim MoneJose Bautista leads the majors with 16 home runs and a .370 batting average.

We ignore Jose Bautista. At best, we politely pay half-attention, not ready or willing to acknowledge the numbers he's putting up and maybe hoping he stops. The Blue Jays' right fielder leads the major leagues in batting average, home runs, runs scored, total bases, on-base and slugging percentage and OPS. Bautista is the tree in the forest. Yes, we hear, but why do we pretend not to? He's a quiet, understated man who plays for a Canadian team that is virtually ignored in the U.S., even among baseball fans. Where is he from? Why is he never on TV? Does he speak English? How did he get so good?

Is he taking steroids?

It's that last question that's our greatest fear and, let's be honest, a main reason Bautista's spectacular performance has yet to be given its due. We're afraid he's using PEDs, and that's an issue we're all tired of dealing with. Our energy and attention spans regarding the steroid era are exhausted; we're Barry Bondsed out. Bonds, however, might wind up being the name that surfaces here. Look at the similarities between Bonds' numbers through the Giants' first 40 games of 2001, when Bonds hit 73 home runs at the age of 36, and Bautista's numbers at age 30, through the Blue Jays' first 40 games of 2011.

Player Year G PA AB HR RBI AVG OBP SLG
Barry Bonds 2001 37 153 118 16 36 .271 .431 .739
Jose Bautista 2011 32 150 114 16 27 .370 .516 .849


Bautista is hitting home runs at a historic pace and he's doing it in what we like to refer to as the post-steroids era. So we watch and hold our collective breath, hoping we're not being lured into enthusiasm for a home run chase that degenerates into something like the joyless march to the inevitable through which we all slogged in 2007, when Bonds finished his career with 762 home runs.

J.P. Ricciardi, now a special assistant to Mets general manager Sandy Alderson, was the Blue Jays' GM who brought Bautista to Toronto. "The commissioner has done a great job of cleaning up the game," he told me. "There is definitely testing going on. You don't think this guy's getting tested? Obviously he's passed every test. Everybody's skeptical about certain things. This guy has had to have gone through the whole process and nothing has come up on this guy. He's being tested like everyone else. I never thought he was a steroid guy and I don't believe he is."


Since May 15, 2010, Bautista has hit 63 home runs -- 22 more than Albert Pujols' next-best total of 41. Remarkable considering that in his first 1800 career at-bats, Bautista hit just 60 home runs. Born in the Dominican Republic, Bautista attended junior college in the U.S. and speaks fluent English with no trace of a language barrier. Selected by the Pirates in the 20th round of the 2000 draft, he became a Rule 5 pick by the Orioles, but was later waived. "He never really got to play," Ricciardi said. "Those guys get passed along." During a two-month span of 2004, Bautista passed through the Orioles, Devil Rays, Royals, Mets and back to the Pirates. With Pittsburgh from 2006 through 2008, he never hit more than 16 home runs in a season. In August of 2008, he was sent to Toronto for a player to be named. "Any team could have had him," Ricciardi said. "He was on waivers. We thought he might be a super-utility guy and now he's recreated himself."

Bautista's evolution has produced a .708 slugging percentage over the last calendar year, more than 100 points higher than reigning NL MVP Joey Votto, and a 1.129 OPS that is the best in the majors. I asked Ricciardi what suddenly changed. "He's the Karate Kid -- you watch him, he's wax on wax off," he said. "He would take batting practice and absolutely put on a show, hit 10 into the second deck, high and far and deep -- and then in the game, he'd get very rotational. His timing on his front foot wouldn't be right. He'd either be late and try and rush everything and make up for it with his body instead of making his hands work. When he was early, his front side would come with him and he would never get to his power because he'd always be drifting toward the pitcher. Now he's timing on his front foot and hitting down through the ball and not being rotational."

A generic team now dressed in odd, denim-colored uniforms and black hats, the Blue Jays seem eons removed from Joe Carter's jubilant trip around the World Series bases. Given Toronto's lot in the AL East, competing against more lucrative franchises like the Yankees and Red Sox, some fans might believe the Blue Jays will never see the postseason again in their lifetimes. Without consistent national television exposure, it's easier to rationalize overlooking Bautista's place in the game. "If he was playing in New York or Boston, forget it," Ricciardi said. "They'd be erecting statues of him. I love the kid. I honestly love the kid. He's a great person and all the things that are happening to him couldn't happen to a better guy."

Fifty-four home runs last season was enough to say "Wow," but not enough to force historic comparisons or stare the PED issue square in the face again. The consensus reaction to Bonds' perjury trial this year might best be described as our long national indifference. I hope we don't remain indifferent to Bautista, or to the Blue Jays for that matter. Bautista is the best hitter in baseball and, eventually, we have to relax and trust what we're seeing again.

Follow Steve on Twitter: @SBerthiaumeESPN.

http://espn.go.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/11072/time-to-admire-jose-bautistas-greatness

Meet the game's best new slugger

By Jon Paul Morosi

Jon Paul Morosi is a national MLB writer for FOXSports.com. He previously covered baseball for the Detroit Free Press and Seattle Post-Intelligencer. He began his journalism career at the Bay City Times in his native Michigan.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/toronto-blue-jays-jose-bautista-has-the-stats-and-the-game-to-prove-he-is-best-in-baseball-051711

Updated May 18, 2011 12:42 AM ET
DETROIT

One afternoon during spring training, I asked a major leaguer to identify the best player in baseball. It’s the sort of question I like to pose to players, because I value their opinion. They are on the field. I am not.

Anyway, the reply was immediate: Albert Pujols. This answer led to a larger conversation about methods of evaluating a hitter’s production.



“The proper way is adding RBIs and runs scored and subtracting the home runs, because you’d get double credit for that,” the player explained. “Then you divide that by the number of games played.

“If your index is over 1, or close to 1, that’s amazing. If you had nine players like that on your team, then you’re scoring nine runs per game, and that’s never happened, ever, in the history of baseball.”

The thoughtful speaker: Jose Bautista.

Two months later, there is plenty we can say about him — beginning with the fact that his index is indeed over 1.

In fact, it is well over 1. After singling twice and scoring in Toronto’s 4-2 win over Detroit on Monday night, his index is 1.40, best in the American League and second only to Lance Berkman in the majors.

To put that in perspective, consider that Josh Hamilton and Joey Votto checked in at 1.23 and 1.21, respectively, last season. And they won MVP awards.

When Pujols was the unanimous choice as the 2009 NL MVP, his index was 1.33.

You get the idea.

“He’s arguably the best player in the game right now,” Blue Jays manager John Farrell said.

If that sounds like a bold statement, it shouldn’t. Farrell is a former big-league pitcher who spent the past four seasons as Boston’s pitching coach. He has watched the best hitters in baseball from the mound and the dugout. And more than once on Monday, he said of Bautista, “I have not seen anything like this.”

On Monday, I updated Bautista on his performance according to the, uh, “Bautista Index.” His reaction was similar to that of baseball fans who have witnessed his on-field exploits: initial disbelief, followed by acceptance, and finally an appropriate measure of awe.

“Are you subtracting the homers?” Bautista asked, almost incredulous. “I don’t think it should be that high. Divided by the games?”

Yes. Math was never my best subject. But I didn’t mess up this one.

The Blue Jays have played 41 games. Bautista missed eight — three for the birth of his daughter, five because of a stiff neck.

MLB STANDINGS
Division races are on. Where does your team rank?

“Oh yeah,” he said. “I forget about that. I was thinking 41 games.”

And then Bautista smiled, as if to acknowledge what the numbers have already told us: He is one of the best players on the planet — certainly in the top 10, perhaps even higher than that.

Let’s take a moment to contemplate what this means: Bautista, 30, was one of the great stories in baseball last year. He led the majors with 54 home runs. He made his first All-Star team. He did it all while playing through a sports hernia he sustained in April. He became a star, the embodiment of hope for journeymen everywhere, despite a baseball card that tells you four organizations gave up on him during the 2004 regular season alone. The Dominican slugger found a home in Canada — along with a five-year, $65 million contract.

He even has a great baseball nickname: Joey Bats.

Last year, his index was 1.11. This year’s 1.40 merely suggests to Bautista that he is having a “pretty good” season and “helping my team win.” But with numbers like this, why bother with humility? He’s leading the majors (again) with 16 home runs. He’s first in walks. He’s first in OPS. He leads the American League in batting average at .370. He’s playing Gold Glove-caliber defense in right, despite spending most of this spring as a third baseman.

The pennant races won’t be decided for months. The first managerial firing has yet to occur. But as of this early date, with frost warnings persisting in some corners of the Lower 48, we have the answer to one of the summer’s most pressing questions: Can Jose Bautista repeat what he did last year?

The answer is no.

He’s even better.

“This game naturally brings critics, always wondering, ‘What’s next?’ Can he do it again?’” Farrell said. “Well, we’re seeing it. He’s doing it. It’s not a fluke. That’s the thing that really stands out: You see the preparation, the ability to adjust, the game awareness. He’s made obvious changes to the timing in his swing, going back to August of ’09, when they really took hold. The performance has been unlike anybody else.”

How unlike? Well, Bautista hit 63 home runs from May 15, 2010, through May 15, 2011. That was the most in the majors during the period, spanning 157 games played.

Bonds, McGwire and Sosa aside, when there is a 60-homer pace over the equivalent of a full season, it’s time for us to clear the cobwebs from our collective conscience on the subject of home run records.

When last year’s spike raised (unfair) suspicions about performance-enhancing drugs, Bautista answered the questions, patiently and completely. “I know what the history of baseball was,” he told me last September. “And if being successful and hitting home runs is going to make people ask me questions, I don’t care if I have to answer them, because I have nothing to hide. So, I’m not worried about that.”

Steadily, appreciation has supplanted skepticism. Bautista entered this season as a known commodity to American League pitchers, yet he is hitting more than 100 points higher than he did last year. And he’s doing it as Toronto’s No. 3 hitter, with the cleanup committee behind him plodding through the season with a .715 OPS, the AL’s fourth-worst in that spot.

Teams have little incentive to pitch to Bautista. They are still doing it more often than they probably should. And he is more adept than ever at sending mistakes into the outfield stands. He crushed five home runs in last weekend’s series sweep of the Minnesota Twins, including three in Sunday’s win. Two of the five went to the opposite field — a rarity for him … until now.

“Loud noises all over the place,” teammate Aaron Hill said.

“He’s worth the price of admission, just to watch four at-bats, home or road,” Farrell said.

“The more you watch him,” Toronto bullpen coach Pat Hentgen admired, “the more he grows on you.”

Bautista has gone from zero-to-superstar faster than just about any other player in recent baseball history. Monday’s game provided further evidence. Detroit fans are not the type to boo, reserving their jeers for Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez — the rich and famous of the rich and famous.

But when Bautista stepped to the plate during the first inning on Monday night, audible boos emanated from the sparse, bundled-up crowd on a 44-degree night.

It happens when you’re a superstar.

“I guess so,” Bautista said with a shrug.

Which brings us back to Pujols. During that spring conversation, Bautista insisted that he didn’t belong in a discussion of the best 10 players in baseball, because he hadn’t been great enough for long enough. Of Pujols, he said, “The consistency sets him apart. Not only is he consistent with a good year, he’s consistent with GREAT years.”

Now that hallmark — consistent greatness — is becoming Bautista’s own, even if he isn’t quite comfortable with comparisons to the St. Louis slugger.

“I wouldn’t put myself in that category yet,” Bautista said. “He’s done it for 10 years, and I’ve (just) managed to turn the corner.”

Maybe so. But look at it this way: Bautista is nine months younger than Pujols, offers more defensive flexibility and is having (by far) the better 2011 season. Had Bautista not signed the contract extension in February, he would have become a free agent, along with Pujols, after this season.

The question of Bautista-or-Pujols could have been one of the biggest dilemmas for teams this off-season. Now, it exists only in theory. That is excellent news for the Blue Jays … and Pujols.

The shortstop shortage
The lack of good shortstops makes Jose Reyes that much more valuable

Check out his Statistical information at:

http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=ss&stats=bat&lg=all&qual=y&type=8&season=2011&month=0&season1=2011&ind=0

By Steven Goldman
Baseball Prospectus
Archive

Eight years ago, the class of major-league catchers was older than it had been at any time in the last 60 years. In 2003, the average major-league backstop was over 30 years old. In the early- to mid-1990s, there had been an influx of strong catchers into the majors, among them Javy Lopez, Jorge Posada, Jason Kendall, Jason Varitek, Charles Johnson, Mike Lieberthal, and Ivan Rodriguez, all of them except for Kendall born between November, 1970 and July, 1972. A few years after the turn of the millennium, those players were now in their early 30s, but the next generation had largely failed to arrive in the interim.

This is not at all unusual; baseball has always gone through cycles in which a position suffers through a dearth of qualified applicants. There was even a moment in the American League of the late 1940s when shortstops outhit the first basemen -- somehow the circuit just couldn't find any solid mashers to stand at the gateway. Currently, the biggest void at any position is shortstop, and that makes the Mets handling of impending free agent Jose Reyes that much trickier because he is one of the game's rarest commodities, a star shortstop in his prime.

http://www.minorleagueball.com/photos/prospect-of-the-day-rubby-de-la-rosa-rhp-los-angeles-dodgers/1892207



Prospect of the Day: Rubby De La Rosa, RHP, Los Angeles Dodgers

March2111_084_tiny by John Sickels on May 26, 2011 8:00 AM EDT


Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Rubby De La Rosa throws during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros Tuesday, May 24, 2011, in Houston. The Dodgers won 5-4. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

David J. Phillip - APMore photos »

3 days ago: Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Rubby De La Rosa throws during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros Tuesday, May 24, 2011, in Houston. The Dodgers won 5-4. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Prospect of the Day: Rubby De La Rosa, RHP, Los Angeles Dodgers

A year ago, Rubby De La Rosa was a little-known pitcher in the Midwest League, just emerging as a prospect with a live arm. Now he's in the majors. Who is this guy, and how did he rise so quickly?

Star-divide

Rubby De La Rosa was signed by the Dodgers as a free agent in 2007, from the Dominican Republic. He pitched in the Dominican Summer League in '07 and '08, then moved up to the Arizona Rookie League in '09 and struggled, posting a 6.06 ERA with 11 walks in 16 innings, then was sent back home for disciplinary violations. He returned to North America in '10 and was a different pitcher, posting a 3.19 ERA with a 55/17 K/BB in 59 innings in the Midwest League in the first half. However, he showed such tremendous arm strength (hitting 102 MPH at times) that the Dodgers promoted him to Double-A for the second half, where he went 3-1, 1.41 in 51 innings with a 39/21 K/BB.

Before his promotion to Los Angeles this week, De La Rosa had a 2.93 ERA with a 52/19 K/BB in 40 innings for Double-A Chattanooga, with just 30 hits allowed.

De La Rosa works at 94-96 MPH when used as a starter, though in relief he's been clocked as high as 102. He has a very good changeup, and a promising, if inconsistent, slider. He's not a big guy at 6-1, 185 pounds, and there is mixed opinion about if his long-term role will be as a starter or reliever, though for now he's in the bullpen. I rated him as a strong Grade B prospect in the 2011 Baseball Prospect Book, but would increase that to a Grade B+ based on his performance so far this season.

SCOUTING GRADES (20-80)
Fastball 75
Life 50
Changeup 65
Slider 50
Control 50
Delivery 60
Arm Action 60

So you got 2 plus pitches and a MLB avg 3rd pitch right now.

He’s a starting pitcher. Dodger’s view him as a starter long term. But with the bullpen in shambles and a way to limit his innings, and give him higher competition exposure, they’ve brought him up to pitch in 2-3 inning spurts.

Prospect of the Day: Juan Nicasio, RHP, Colorado Rockies


March2111_084_tiny by John Sickels on May 27, 2011 8:00 AM EDT


Colorado Rockies pitcher Juan Nicasio (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)

Ed Andrieski - APMore photos »

Colorado Rockies pitcher Juan Nicasio (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)


Prospect of the Day: Juan Nicasio, RHP, Colorado Rockies

With Jorge De La Rosa on the disabled list for Tommy John surgery, the Rockies are turning to prospect Juan Nicasio, who will start Saturday's game against the Cardinals. What can we expect?

Star-divide

Colorado signed Nicasio as a free agent from the Dominican Republic in 2006. He spent '07 and '08 in short-season ball, with decent results, then emerged as a fine prospect with a 2.41 ERA and a 115/23 K/BB in 112 innings for Asheville in the Sally League in 2009. He followed up with a 3.91 ERA in 177 innings for Modesto in the California League last year, with a sharp 171/31 K/BB. Pitching for Double-A Tulsa this spring, Nicasio was 5-1, 2.22 with a 63/10 K/BB in 57 innings and 48 hits allowed before his promotion to the majors.
Nicasio's velocity has been steadily improving, moving from the 88-92 range earlier in his career, to 90-95 last year, to more consistent mid-90s readings this year including some reports of him touching 100 for Tulsa. He mixes in a very good curveball, as well a decent slider and changeup, giving him a complete arsenal. He throws strikes, has a good feel for pitching, and has had no trouble adapting to Double-A.
There are no flaws in Nicasio's statistics and his scouting reports are positive. The only real negative here is his lack of experience in the high minors, but we'll just have to see how he adapts. He has the stuff and command to be at least a number three starter, and perhaps more.

Players With 100-Hr 2-Season Totals
Jose Bautista 2010 54 2011 ?? ??

Player Year HR Year HR Total
Mark McGwire 1998 70 1999 65 135 *
Sammy Sosa 1998 66 1999 63 129 *
Mark McGwire 1997 58 1998 70 128 *
Barry Bonds 2000 49 2001 73 122 *
Barry Bonds 2001 73 2002 46 119 *
Babe Ruth 1927 60 1928 54 114
Sammy Sosa 2000 50 2001 64 114 *
Babe Ruth 1920 54 1921 59 113
Sammy Sosa 1999 63 2000 50 113 *
Sammy Sosa 2001 64 2002 49 113 *
Ken Griffey Jr 1997 56 1998 56 112
Mark McGwire 1996 52 1997 58 110 *
Alex Rodriguez 2001 52 2002 57 109 *
Babe Ruth 1926 47 1927 60 107
Jimmie Foxx 1932 58 1933 48 106
Ken Griffey Jr 1996 49 1997 56 105
Ken Griffey Jr 1998 56 1999 48 104
Alex Rodriguez 2002 57 2003 47 104 *
Sammy Sosa 1997 36 1998 66 102 *
Ralph Kiner 1949 54 1950 47 101
Jim Thome 2001 49 2002 52 101
Babe Ruth 1928 54 1929 46 100
Roger Maris 1960 39 1961 61 100
* Player implicated as steroid user


Jose Bautista in Midst of Historic 2-Season Run, Where Will He Rank All-Time?



By
Brandon McClintock
(Featured Columnist) on June 18, 2011


TORONTO, CANADA - MAY 9: Jose Bautista #19 of the Toronto Blue Jays hits during MLB action against the Detroit Tigers at the Rogers Centre May 9, 2011 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Abelimages/Getty Images) Abelimages/Getty Images

Jose Bautista's improbable rise to stardom in the Major Leagues is one of the best post-steroid era stories in baseball.

Recently Yahoo Sport's Jeff Passan wrote a must-read piece (after you finish my article, of course) breaking down Bautista's path to the Majors and the Toronto Blue Jays.

Bautista has his doubters, for sure, that just can't wrap their mind around the notion that a player who had never hit more than 16 homers in any season in his career could jump to 54 in a single season without the use of performance enhancing drugs.

Bautista explains, and Passan eloquently describes, that he was unable to make the necessary adjustments to become the hitter he is now because any decrease in productivity would have jeopardized his career.

Thus, he went through five teams before finding the stability he needed in Toronto. A team that would work with him and allow him to make the adjustments while remaining an everyday player.

As the results began racking up with each ball knocked over the fence, Bautista's confidence grew, and he was able to unload on pitcher after pitcher on his way to his first home run crown in 2010.

The encore performance is underway, and so far he is on a run that could windup placing him amongst the greats of the game, clean and not steroid-tainted.

115469606_crop_340x234 Rob Carr/Getty Images

Passan writes:

"What he did remains inconceivable: evolve from a nobody, a piece cast off by the sport's dregs, into the most dangerous hitter on the planet. He hit 54 home runs last year when no one else hit 40, and he followed up this season with the best two-month stretch since Barry Bonds."

The stretch Passan is referencing by Bonds was his 2001-2002 season in which he had a combined total of 119 homers. The two-year span by Bonds ranks fifth on the all-time list of two-season homer totals.

Eight out of the top ten two-season home run totals are owned by players with ties to steroids, including Bonds' run.

Mark McGwire ranks first with 135 homers between the 1998-1999 seasons.

The two top-10 performances by a player with no steroid implications? Babe Ruth in 1927-1928 with 114 homers, and Ruth again in 1920-1921 with 113 total homers.

The only modern-era player with such a stretch and no steroid implications is Ken Griffey, Jr. Griffey currently has the eleventh best two-year string of success with 112 homers in 1997-1998. Griffey also topped the 100-homer mark for two-year spans in 1996-1997 and 1998-1999 with 105 and 104 homers, respectively, during those spans.

Bautista currently has 75 homers with 92 games remaining in the season. If he continues on his current pace he would wind up with 48 homers according to ESPN. The combined totals would give him 102 for the 2010-2011 combined seasons, good enough for the 19th best two-season total in history, seventh best among players with no steroid connection.

115240998_crop_340x234 Greg Fiume/Getty Images

Pre-steroid use, depending on when you believe that was, Mark McGwire never achieved 100 homers in two seasons. Sammy Sosa, Alex Rodriguez and Barry Bonds only reached those totals during the years they allegedly were on the juice as well.

It is worth noting that today's greatest power hitters, Albert Pujols, Prince Fielder and Ryan Howard, have never accomplished this feat.

Future Hall of Famer, Jim Thome, has only reached the 100-HR-over-two-seasons plateau once in his career, between 2001-2002 (101 homers).

Bautista's rise to stardom already has all the makings of a feel-good Disney movie with a happy ending and a lesson to be learned about determination and never giving up on your dream.

His present day accomplishments, though, have the makings of history written all over them.

Bautista is the same size he's always been. There's no such thing as a magic home run pill or shot or whatever. Bautista isn't on roids. look at his swing. he gets his foot down early, has a huge load and when he swings, his hips are cleared and he is swinging way early to pull the ball. he also holds his hands higher than he did in Pittsburgh and moved his back foot closer to the plate. he is a great pull hitter, but he is not the most feared yet.


Jose Bautista's Highlight Playlists - TopBrassRangers's Channel: http://bit.ly/jknY70

Agree.

La Esquina de Candy: El equipo de estrellas latinas

Fecha de Publicación: 5 de jul de 2011, 18:15 EDT Duración: 03:07


http://espndeportes.espn.go.com/videohub/video/clipDeportes?id=1330364&categoryid=834451&cc=3888