Sammy Sosa, hits his 64th and 65th home runs and racks up his 400th total base

This Day In Baseball

On September 23, 1998 — Sammy Sosa breaks an 0 for 21 slump, hitting his 64th and 65th home runs as the Cubs build a 7 – 0 lead over the Brewers.

Milwaukee fights back, however, and scores three in the last of the 9th when Chicago OF Brant Brown drops a routine fly ball with the bases loaded and two out to allow three Brewers to score. Rod Beck is on the mound when the Merkle-like error occurs (Fred Merkle’s boner occurred exactly 90 years ago). Milwaukee wins, 8 – 7, and the Cubs remain tied for the wild card spot with the Mets, who lose to Montreal, 3 – 0. With his eight total bases, Sammy has now topped the 400 mark.

Sosa’s blast ty Mark McGwire for the historic home run lead. After both sluggers blast their 66th in two days to stay even, ‘Big Red’ will collect four more round-trippers in the final two days of the season to finish with 70.