2000 Season Still Lacks a Moment With Real Punch

The highlight of the 1995 regular season was Cal Ripken’s breaking Lou Gehrig’s consecutive-games-played record.

The ’98 season produced the Mark McGwire-Sammy Sosa home-run race and the Yankees’ record 114 victories.

What, then, is the lasting memory from the 2000 season?

The Dodgers-Cubs brawl at Wrigley Field? John Rocker’s return to Shea Stadium? Carl Everett’s confrontation du jour?

Er, ah, well, um . . . next question.

The regular season certainly did not lack for newsworthy events, but each amounted to little more than a prelude.

The real interesting stuff-managerial firings, postseason upsets, free-agent signings-is yet to come.

Without further ado, here are the top 10 stories of 2000 and what they might mean for the postseason and beyond.

* 10. The quests of Helton, Delgado and Erstad

Todd Helton didn’t hit .400; Carlos Delgado didn’t win the Triple Crown, and Darin Erstad didn’t break George Sisler’s record of 257 hits in a season. But none of those players is older than 28, and historic offensive achievements hardly seem out of reach in an age when hitters seemingly possess every advantage.

Helton was batting .400 on August 21. Delgado finished in the top four of each of the Triple Crown categories. Erstad’s 240 hits were the most since Wade Boggs got as many in 1985.

* 9. The twilights of Ripken and Gwynn

Playing on opposite coasts, two future Hall of Famers faced possible retirement after turning 40 during injury-marred seasons.

Cal Ripken reached the 3,000-hit milestone on April 7, but he was sidelined from June 28 to September 1 with back trouble. He seems likely to rejoin the Orioles next season.

Tony Gwynn’s future appears less certain--he did not play after June 23 because of a balky left knee. The Padres can either exercise his option for $6 million or buy him out for $2 million.

* 8. The wild, wild finish

The final day of the regular season began with the Indians, Mariners and A’s vying for the final two A.L. playoff spots.

The Indians won, then had to hope that either the Mariners or A’s would lose and trigger a mind-boggling number of scenarios involving cross-country flights, one-game playoffs--even a makeup game. It could have taken two extra days to sort everything out.

None of it came to pass.

The A’s beat Texas, 3-0, and clinched the A.L. West; the Mariners won at Anaheim, 5-2, which got them the wild card, and the Indians, perhaps the most feared team of the bunch, went home.

* 7. The trades that weren’t

How many times were Sammy Sosa and Juan Gonzalez traded to the Yankees before the July 31 waiver deadline?

A deal for Gonzalez was set until the slugger invoked his no-trade clause. A trade for Sosa appeared so close the back page of the New York Post said, “Sammy Time.”

The Yankees ultimately settled for David Justice, then added Glenallen Hill and Jose Canseco as overkill.

* 6. The misery of Griffey

If it wasn’t one thing, it was another for Ken Griffey, making for a short-lived honeymoon in his much-celebrated return to Cincinnati.

Griffey engaged in a season-long sulk, pressing at the plate, confronting Reds radio announcer Marty Brennaman, even squabbling with his father, Reds coach Ken Griffey Sr. Look for a rebound season in 2001.

* 5. McGwire’s injury

Sammy Sosa was the only player to hit 50 homers, but that was largely due to the patellar tendinitis in Mark McGwire’s right knee, which sidelined him from July 6 to September 8 and has restricted him to one at-bat per game ever since.

Cardinals G.M. Walt Jocketty made perhaps the two best trades of the season, acquiring Jim Edmonds in spring training, then Will Clark to replace McGwire.

The big question for manager Tony La Russa entering the postseason: When to take his one shot per game with Big Mac.

* 4. Pedro

He threw a one-hitter and a two-hitter. He beat Roger Clemens in a memorable duel at Yankee Stadium. He had games in which he struck out 17, 15 and 15.

And he nearly triggered a riot in Tampa Bay by hitting Gerald Williams.

About the only thing Pedro Martinez didn’t do in 2000 was pitch his team into the postseason. Then again, without him pitching every fifth day, the Red Sox would not even have contended.

* 3. Rocker’s revenge

John Rocker’s disparaging comments about gays, minorities and foreigners cost him the first two weeks of spring training, the first two weeks of the regular season and any chance of being named secretary-general of the United Nations.

The Braves demoted Rocker to Class AAA, citing his, uh, control problems. He hurried back, and his return to Shea Stadium in late June caused a media frenzy. The more significant development, however, was his re-emergence as a top closer.

Can Rocker escape from New York twice in the postseason if the Braves face the Mets and Yankees? Why not? Thanks to Carl Everett, he isn’t even the sport’s leading bad boy anymore.

* --2. No managers fired

Yes, it actually happened--for the first time since 1942 an entire season passed without a manager losing his job. But, Philadelphia sacked Terry Francona after the final game of the regular season.

But don’t call it a trend.

As many as 14 managers could leave their present posts now that the season is over.

* 1. Surprise teams emerge

The White Sox and A’s both began the season with payrolls of about $32 million--less than the combined salaries of the Dodgers’ Kevin Brown, Gary Sheffield and Shawn Green.

Both teams featured young pitching staffs, dynamic offenses and questionable defenses. And both made it to the postseason, dispelling the myth that teams can’t win without spending money.

The Giants, Cardinals and even the Mariners qualified as mild surprises, and their presence in the postseason could lead to the most interesting and unpredictable October in years.

As we said, the best is yet to come.