McGwire, Sosa keeping fans interested in baseball even though football is near

Steve Carp

Monday, Aug. 10, 1998 | 11:17 a.m.

The man wanted to leave the sports book at Caesars Palace. As he began making his exit, he asked his friend, "You coming?"

"Wait a minute," was the response. "I want to see McGwire hit first."

It may be the dog days of summer, but fueling the heat in the interest in baseball is the marathon chase being made at Roger Maris' home run record.

Even though the start of football is just around the corner, the assault on Maris' 61 homers, set 37 years ago, will keep the interest in baseball at a peak level.

In Las Vegas sports books, that's a welcome commodity.

Because Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Ken Griffey Jr. and even Greg Vaughn have been going after the vaunted Maris mark, it has stimulated betting interest in the game as well as the home run proposition bets around town.

McGwire leads the majors with 46 round-trippers with Sosa close behind with 44. Griffey has 41 and Vaughn has 39.

"Baseball has had a tremendous amount of interest," Bally's director of race and sports John Avello said. "It's the most ever. And people are really into the home run thing. We've booked a lot both ways."

At Bally's, you can't bet just McGwire or Sosa. You get everyone who dons a big-league uniform. The wager is whether anyone will hit 61 1/2 dingers. Right now, the over is favored at 6-5 with the under at even money.

At Caesars, there's a similar prop. There, the number is 60 and the over is minus 200 with the under at plus 180. But for those who want to bet individuals, Caesars still offers its popular "Great American Bash Time." You simply bet who will hit the most homers, regardless of whether Maris' record is broken.

Right now, McGwire's the overwhelming 2-5 favorite, with Sosa next at 2-1 and Griffey at 4-1. If you think Vaughn still has a shot to overtake the three ahead of him, he's available at a very attractive 30-1 as part of the field.

"Ever since the all-star break, the interest has been picking up," Caesars sports book manager Richie Baccallieri said. "Everyone likes to see home runs hit and it's the one statistical category people can keep track of easily."

Baccallieri said by the time betting closes on the props, the handle should be six figures.

"It's a fun thing. The people want it, so we give it to them," he said. "They've asked for it in the past and there's more interest with the chase going on."

Avello said as the sluggers go through their ups and downs, so too, does the action.

"At one point, it looked like a lock to go," he said of Maris' record. "A week and a half ago, I thought someone would do it. Now, I'm not so sure.

"It's like the stock market. It really fluctuates. For something like this, people get on the bandwagon. Then when it cools off, they jump off."

With 46 games to go, Avello and Baccallieri believe it's going to be tough to pass Maris.

"I think Mac's going to have to get to 50 by the 20th to have a shot," Avello said. "He just needs to go in and relax."

Baccallieri said: "It'll be close. But I have a hard time believing pitchers are going to throw to him. He gets walked twice a game, so he's only getting two at-bats. Plus, the closer he gets, the media scrutiny will increase. They've been fueling this thing from the start.

"You turn on the television and it's the lead story on sports -- 'Did anyone hit a home run?'

"People don't realize that it's tough to hit a home run."

It was tough Sunday. The weekend series between Sosa's Chicago Cubs and McGwire's St. Louis Cardinals, dubbed "The Bash at Busch," yielded just two homers -- one each by Sosa and McGwire.

Perhaps they should have put up a total at the books for number of walks. The duo drew a combined 12 free passes in the three-game set.

But just the threat of hitting one out kept fans in their seats in the book -- and their friends waiting momentarily.