Japanese baseball great Sadaharu Oh said New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez has the best shot at breaking his world record of 868 home runs.
Oh, who hit 868 homers over 22 seasons in Japanese professional baseball, said he thinks it's just a matter of time before someone catches up and surpasses him.
"I think the 868 record will be broken," Oh said on Monday. "Nobody in Japan is close, but I think Alex Rodriguez could do it, he has the ability to hit 1,000."
Rodriguez, who hit 54 homer for the Yankees this season, has 518 homers after 14 seasons. Barry Bonds has major league record of 762 after 22 seasons, but faces an uncertain future after a federal grand jury indicted him on five felony counts of perjury and obstruction of justice following an investigation into steroid use by elite athletes.
Oh made the comments at a reception hosted by the Foreign Sportswriters' Association of Japan.
Oh has always acknowledged that major league home run records carry more weight than those in Japan, where the ballparks are smaller and the level of baseball isn't as high, although that may be changing.
As a manager, Oh led Japan to the title at the inaugural World Baseball Classic in March of last year, when his team played against a US team that included many major league stars including Rodriguez.
Oh said he expects to see more and more Japanese stars heading to the major leagues now that players like Hideo Nomo, Hideki Matsui and Ichiro Suzuki have been so successful there.
"I think it's only natural for them to go to the majors," Oh said. "They want to test their abilities at the highest level and now that some have gone, more will follow and you can't stop that."
Oh is revered in Japan for his accomplishments both as a player and a manager. When Oh passed Hank Aaron's home run mark on Sept. 3, 1977, with his 756th homer, all of Japan celebrated.
The next morning, Oh said about 300 kids greeted him at his doorstep and he signed autographs for all of them.
When Bonds passed Aaron in August, Oh congratulated the Giants slugger, saying "hitting home runs requires tenacity and passion for baseball."
Oh also holds the Japanese single season record of 55 homers, a mark that was tied recently by former major leaguers Tuffy Rhodes and Alex Cabrera.
Oh was manager of the Pacific League's Daiei Hawks at the time and it was suggested that he instructed his pitchers to pitch around both players so they couldn't break his record, an accusation Oh denies.
"There no doubt are people who want to protect my record," Oh said. "But an instruction to do that would never come from me or anyone on my team."
Oh called on Major League Baseball to take a more positive stance in getting baseball reinstated in the Olympic program after the Beijing Games, Japanese professional baseball allows its players to take part in the Olympics while MLB doesn't, one of the reasons why the International Olympic Committee elected to drop the sport.
Japan qualified for the Beijing Olympics on Monday with a 10-2 win over Taiwan.
"MLB has to be more positive about the Olympics," Oh said. "If baseball is to get back in the Olympic program we need MLB to be behind the effort 100 percent."
Oh says he may retire after next year's season but he wants to go out on a winning note.
His current team, the Softbank Hawks, last won the Japan Series in 2003 but haven't won since despite reaching the playoffs every year.
And then there are health concerns to think about. Oh, 67, managed the Hawks this season after being sidelined for the second half of last year's season due to stomach cancer. He had his stomach removed in a successful operation in July last year.
"I've thought about retirement," Oh said. "But it would be very hard for me to be away from the game."
Taiwan’s top women’s badminton doubles duo, Hsieh Pei-shan (謝沛珊) and Hung En-tzu (洪恩慈), achieved a straight-sets victory over Japan’s Kaho Osawa and Mayui Tanabe at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Super 300 Macau Open on Sunday. The Taiwanese pair won the final 21-18, 21-12, marking the duo’s second title this year after their win at the BWF Super 300 Taipei Open in May. The match on Sunday was their first encounter with the Japanese duo, ranked No. 63 in the world. Hsieh and Hung, ranked No. 12, began the opening game well. Hung, who plays left-handed, performed strongly at both the net and the
Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko upset top-seeded Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 on Saturday night to reach the National Bank Open quarter-finals. “Your support was incredible,” Mboko told the crowd in French after a chorus of “Ole, Ole, Ole” chants echoed around the venue. “I’m really happy to win today ... It’s incredible. I’m so happy to beat such a great champion.” Gauff dropped to 2-3 since winning the French Open. She followed the major victory with opening losses in Berlin and Wimbledon, then overcame double-fault problems to win two three-set matches in Montreal. Gauff had five double-faults on Saturday after having 23 in
Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen on Thursday said that he is staying with the Red Bull team next year, ending months of speculation over his future. “Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama, but, for me, it’s always been quite clear, and also for next year,” the four-time champion said ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix. “I’m discussing with the team already the plans — the things that we want to change for next year, so that means that I’m also staying with the team for next year,” he said. Verstappen has a contract with
Alex Michelsen on Thursday rallied for a 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 upset victory over third-seeded Lorenzo Musetti in the men’s singles, converting his seventh match point to reach the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Michelsen reached the last 16 of a Masters 1000 for the first time with his second win over a top-10 player in eight attempts. The 20-year-old American survived nearly 50 unforced errors and converted just two of nine break chances, but it was enough to vanquish Italy’s Musetti, a two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist ranked 10th in the world. “It feels really good,” the 26th-ranked Michelsen said. “I’ve put
RSS