Saturday, July 6, 2013

Baltimore Orioles: Chris Davis' Record-Chasing Season Isn't Getting Media Attention it Deserves

Michael Moraitis--Featured Columnist

As Chris Davis socked home run No. 33 in the Baltimore Orioles' 88th game of the 2013 MLB season, it's quite apparent the national media isn't paying as much attention to Davis chasing Roger Maris' 61 homers as it should and did with the likes of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa back in 1998.

Davis is currently on pace to belt at least 60 homers, but it's certainly plausible he puts together a week where he hits more home runs than his average to give him a better shot. It's also possible he flames out and doesn't break the record, but that doesn't mean he shouldn't be getting more credit than he is now.
There may be a few reasons for this being the case.

Maybe the media as a whole still views Barry Bonds as the home run king in MLB history, thus that would mean Davis is not on pace to eclipse Bonds' 73-homer mark set back in 2001. If that's what is driving this lack of attention, it couldn't be more troubling.

If you are a die-hard baseball fan, there's not a chance in hell you consider Bonds or any of the steroid era players to be in control of this prestigious record. Steroids in baseball has been considered cheating by the vast majority of fans of the sport, so cheating shouldn't mean you earned any record.

A vast amount of evidence out there has no doubt convicted Bonds in the eyes of the public.

Therefore, Bonds doesn't hold Maris' record in the court of public opinion and he will never get the respect associated with his record-breaking mark over a decade ago. The record books may say one thing, but it doesn't mean as much as what you and I believe as fans of the sport.

Also, if the media is still compliant in the notion that Bonds is the record-holder, it couldn't be further from reality than it currently is now.

Even Davis himself has admitted he still considers Maris the record-holder in an interview with ESPN's Mike and Mike, per NESN.com. It's safe to say he's in the majority with that thought process.
The other side of this puzzling coin is quite possibly the media is afraid to follow Davis too closely in the event that he is found to have been doing steroids all along. That would be bizarre at best because Davis hasn't been found to be doing anything wrong and only baseless accusations from a few fans really exist in the matter.

Logically speaking, Davis must be taken seriously in his approach of 61 homers.

He would be the first player to eclipse the mark cleanly (as long as no evidence pops up) and should be recognized as the new home-run champion should he get there. It would set a dangerous precedent if Davis hits 62 homers and the public writes him off as a cheater.

Granted, baseball fans and the media have been trained to be skeptical of anyone approaching any home-run record, but just because it isn't likely to be done doesn't mean it is impossible to do so without the aid of foreign substances such as performance-enhancing drugs.
Since there is no evidence of that in Davis' season, there is really no reason not to get on the bandwagon and cover Davis' every move for the last three months of the year.

The media is seriously missing the boat on this one, but there is still time to start giving Davis the attention all potential record breakers get when they approach one of the most coveted marks in sports. I'm not looking for the 24/7 media circus that was 1998 and 2001, but a mention once in awhile for Davis wouldn't hurt.

On top of just breaking this record being a news story in and of itself, Davis breaking Maris' mark would be great for the game because it would reinstill the faith back in the sport that great, special and record-breaking things can happen without needing to cheat in any way, shape or form.
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