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Change of pace New season, special cause await Mac
Posted: Tuesday May 02, 2000 02:54 PM
It's appropriate that the St. Louis Cardinals training camp is in Jupiter, Florida because when it comes to power, Mark McGwire is on another planet. But the big slugger says he wants victories more than home runs. Big Mac chats with CNNSI.com's Mark Morgan in our Page One report. Mark Morgan: You've talked about being "on top" in the game of baseball. For you though, it's not always about hitting the long ball.. Mark McGwire: I think I've dealt with almost everything you can possibly deal with in the game. I've been on top. I think the most satisfying thing is when you hear children and adults come up and say "thanks" for helping bring the game of baseball back. And I think it's great now when you see young kids and their fathers coming to ballgames. You didn't see it for quite a few years. Morgan: And just like any other player, you've experienced the "lows" of the sport as well. McGwire: I've been on the bottom. I've been through terrible, terrible slumps, through a whole year. I've been through the injuries. You play to be competitive and for somebody to say it's easier to play on a losing team than a winning team, you're crazy. It is not fun going to the ballpark in August when you're 20 games out. It's dreadful. But it just goes to show you that one individual doesn't bring a championship for anybody in baseball I don't care who you are. It takes a total team effort. Morgan: People were saying all of a sudden "Well, Mark's home runs don't matter." What was that all about?
McGwire: When did a home run not matter? I didn't know. I thought it was an RBI? You drive in a run, I didn't know (laughs). All because this donkey writer in St. Louis wrote an article about it and all of a sudden everybody caught on and said, "Oh, now the home runs don't mean anything." Well if they don't mean anything then I guess a lot of guys don't mean anything to their teams. Morgan: Do you feel that you are playing better now than at any point in your career? McGwire: I've gotten better with age. I've gotten smarter with age. I've always thought every human being is always equal. It's just what you do that might set you a little bit higher. I've worked hard at what I do and it's paid off for the hours and hours that I've spent in the batting cage as a kid. Morgan: Because of what you've done, everywhere for the rest of your life as you go in public at a restaurant, people are going to go, "There's Mark McGwire just like they say, "There's Willie Mays," or "There's Hank Aaron." How tough is that now and how tough will that become? McGwire: When I go out and do things, restaurants, or when I go out and have drinks with friends, I have to mentally prepare myself. It's not easy because people always want to come and shake hands. People want to tell me stories. And I try to accommodate them as much as possible, but it's hard to do it every second of the night. Morgan: You have a passion to teach young children or young baseball players. Now you've become involved in a documentary about sexually abused children. Why have you done that and what does that mean to you?
McGwire: People think it doesn't happen in every walk of life. They think it happens in low income and poor lives, but it happens in every walk of life. I just don't understand how we can talk about somebody getting shot and killed and cut throat whatever, but it's not okay to talk about sexual abuse because its sex. Here in America everybody thinks its disgusting to talk about sex but when you're talking about a young child being sexually abused, we have to do something about it. Morgan: Has the only negative for you during the past two years been the controversy over the use of the Andro product? McGwire: I've never considered it a dark issue. There was nothing illegal about it. The media made it sound like it was illegal. The only thing that I got angry about is the way I was portrayed and I didn't think it was right. Morgan: How much do you like the fact that there are no longer150 guys following your every move? McGwire: I love it. It's the way it should be. Up until last year, it was pretty much last year. I understood last year. Everyone wanted to come and talk what can you do? How can you repeat 70? This year it's been fantastic. I've gone three or four days without talking to somebody. Hopefully it keeps going (laughs).
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