Roger Maris’s Major League Record

ROGER MARIS’S MAJOR LEAGUE RECORD of 61 home runs in a season stood for 37 years before Mark McGwire broke it with 70 in 1998. However, McGwire’s mark lasted only 37 months when Barry Bonds slugged 73 in 2001.

With three games remaining in the season, the San Francisco Giants outfielder tied McGwire on the road with a blast in Houston. Facing the Dodgers’ Chan Ho Park less than 24 hours later, Bonds drove a 1-0 fastball out of the deepest part of Pacific Bell Park in the first inning to the delight of his hometown fans.

His next time up, Bonds connected again, hammering the pitch 405 feet to center field. The two massive home runs gave Bonds 72 with two games to go.

On the season’s final day, the 37-year-old outfielder squared off against knuckleballer Dennis Springer. The crowd of 41,257 expected Bonds to walk or fly out since slow pitches rarely generate homers. But in the first, Springer served up a 3-2 knuckler that wobbled to Bonds like a slow-pitch softball. He crushed the offering into Pacific Bell’s arcade for his 73rd round-tripper.

Besides the record-breaking home run mark, Bonds finished the 2001 campaign with a .515 on-base percentage—the highest in the National League since John McGraw’s .547 in 1899. He set a major league record by belting a home run every 6.52 at bats. Bonds’s slugging percentage of .863 obliterated Babe Ruth’s mark of .847 set in 1920.

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POINT Barry Bonds broke several seemingly unbreakable marks. And speaking of Bonds and breaking, it seems like many people today enjoy breaking bonds. New ideas catch on. New friends replace old ones. Change becomes certain.

But there’s one bond we should never break. The Bible says when we draw near to God he draws near to us. A relationship with him isn’t something that can be replaced.

GOAL! Think about things in your life that are unbreakable. Maybe it’s your commitment to God or your love for your family. Are there other bonds you should break? Ask God to help you always stay close to him.