Babe Ruth, 60. Roger Maris, 61. Then came McGwire and Sosa

	A low-flying shot just cleared the left-field fence, not far from where the fence meets the foul line.	Mark McGwire made the most out of the least Tuesday night, setting major league baseball's home run record by hitting his 62nd and shortest home run of the season. Swinging at the first pitch from Steve Trachsel of the Chicago Cubs with two outs in the fourth inning, the St. Louis Cardinals' first baseman lined a low-flying shot that just cleared the left-field fence not far from where the fence meets the foul line. The drive was estimated at 341 feet, 6 feet shorter than McGwire's previous shortest this season. McGwire thus beat Sammy Sosa of the Cubs, who was playing right field, to 62. The two talented and likable players have been engaged in a spirited race to the record that has captivated the nation and returned to the sport many fans who had become disenchanted by the disastrous labour dispute of 1994-95. DISSECTING THE RECORD They came in all shapes and sizes, but mostly in XXL. They were hit in almost every inning -- but none were hit in the second. They flew in almost every direction -- but mostly they were hit to left. The Marlins and Cubs were his favorite victims (7 each), and he had no preference whether he was playing at home or on the road. Here is a breakdown of Mark McGwire's record-breaking 62 home runs. HOME 32 AWAY 30 OFF RIGHTIES 50 OFF LEFTIES 12 SOLO HOMERS 30 GRAND SLAMS 2 AVERAGE DISTANCE 426 ft. COMBINED DISTANCE 5 mi. 26,413 ft. TOP INNING 4th 11 home runs WORST INNING 2nd 0 home runs McGwire, a 34-year-old right-handed hitter, has hit five home runs that soared more than 500 feet, the longest estimated at 545 feet at Busch last May 16. The blow that made McGwire the greatest single-season home run hitter in major league history was not typical of his patented high-flying projectiles, which soar majestically into the air and descend into some distant seat in the stands. This one nevertheless broke the tie that the red-headed McGwire had forged only the day before. In 1961, Maris hit his 61st home run in the Yankees' 163rd and last game. In 1927, Babe Ruth hit his 60th home run in the Yankees' 154th and last game. This was the Cardinals' 145th game, including a tie that does not appear in the standing.
	His patented high-flying projectiles soar majestically into the air and descend into some distant seat in the stands.	McGwire now leads Sosa by 62 to 58, but the man who will enter the record book will be the one who has the most home runs at the end of the season on Sept. 27. It is at least possible that McGwire will be known as the player who broke the record, but Sosa will be the one who winds up with the record. The record-breaking home run came against Trachsel, a 27-year-old right-handed pitcher, who entered the game with a 14-7 record and a home run ratio of one for every 9.5 innings. McGwire's 62nd home run was his seventh against the Cubs this season, matching the seven he slugged against the Florida Marlins for the most against any team. When McGwire swatted Trachsel's pitch at 8:18 p.m. central daylight time, expectant fans in the sold-out stadium were not sure whether the ball would stay fair and whether it would clear the fence. McGwire began cautiously running down the first-base line, following the flight of the ball, and when he reached first he missed the base as he nearly went into the arms of Dave McKay, the Cardinals' first-base coach, who is his favorite batting practice pitcher. "I was so shocked because I didn't think the ball had enough to go out," McGwire said right after the Cardinals' 6-3 victory. "When I saw the ball leave, I looked up and Dave McKay was in my way and I sort of missed first base and I had to come back and touch it. I don't remember anything after that. I came in and everybody was hugging me. They said, we still have to play a game. I said, 'Oh, my God, I can't believe this.' It's an absolutely incredible feeling. I can honestly say I did it."
	When he reached first he missed the base and nearly went into the arms of Dave McKay, the Cardinals' first-base coach.	McKay, keeping his coach's head, quickly pointed to the base so that McGwire would go back and touch it. McGwire did as the fans let out a constant roar, then began trotting toward second. As he rounded the bases, the Cubs' infielders congratulated him. Just short of home plate, Scott Servais, the Cubs' catcher, shook his hand, and McGwire grabbed him around the neck. The Cardinals mobbed McGwire after he stepped on the plate, and Fernando Tatis, the young third baseman, who batted ahead of McGwire, leaped on top of the mob to try to reach McGwire. The exuberant McGwire then hugged his teammates individually. Suddenly, a figure wearing a Cubs uniform penetrated the Cardinals' celebration. Sosa ran in from right field to congratulate McGwire, a man he had come to have great fondness for. McGwire, who has grown to feel the same way about Sosa, picked him up, and they embraced and slapped hands. Then McGwire ran to the box seats next to the St. Louis dugout, jumped into the stands and embraced each of the Maris children. Before the raucous, impromptu celebration was over, McGwire took a microphone on the field and said over the public address system: "To all my family, my son, the Cubs, Sammy Sosa, it's unbelievable. Thank you, St. Louis." A couple of hours before the game, McGwire and Sosa met separately with two officials from the Hall of Fame to discuss the items they might give to the Hall to commemorate the home run record chase that has captivated fans and players everywhere. The officials had with them the bat Maris used to hit his 61st and they handed it to both players to hold and swing.
	"To all my family, my son, the Cubs, Sammy Sosa, it's unbelievable. Thank you, St. Louis."	After McGwire swung it, he rubbed the barrel of the bat across his broad chest and said, "Roger, you're with me." In the Cardinals' clubhouse before the game, Delino DeShields, their second baseman, walked over to the mirror where the lineup card was posted. "Is this the Hall of Fame card?" he asked no one in particular, suggesting that McGwire would hit his 62d in the game, making the card worthy of the Hall. The card had been made out by Rene Lachemann, the team's third base coach, in the absence of Manager Tony La Russa, who was on his way back from his mother's funeral. La Russa was in the dugout when Sosa and McGwire batted in the first. Facing Kent Mercker after Mark Grace singled home a run, Sosa rapped a single past third base. The hit led to a second Cubs' run. McGwire hit Nos. 60 and 61 in the first inning of games Saturday and Monday. After tying the record Monday, he singled and hit two fly balls for outs. In this first inning Trachsel threw the first three pitches to McGwire out of the strike zone, much to the noisy consternation of the fans in the sold-out Stadium. With camera flashes exploding all over the park, McGwire, given a green light instead of the take sign usually signaled on that count, swung at the 3-0 pitch and hit a grounder to short, where Jose Hernandez routinely fielded the ball and threw him out. Sosa batted again in the third inning and again hit a grounder toward third. But this time Tatis scooped up the ball and started an inning-ending double play.
	related: a trip down baseball's lost highway Further reaction to McGwire's Marvel.	In the fourth, McGwire stood on the grass several feet from the on-deck circle. He held his 33-ounce, 35-inch bat against his right shoulder and stared at Trachsel as he waited his turn at bat. After he stepped into the batter's box and scraped the dirt with his right foot, he stepped back from the plate, then moved back into his batting spot. He swung his bat easily several times waiting for Trachsel to go into his pitching motion. Then he cocked his bat and swung at the first pitch. Bedlam followed. Given the attention focused on recent weeks on the fans who caught the baseballs McGwire hit for home runs, the trajectory of the record-breaking home run defused the issue of whether the fan would sell the ball for hundreds of thousands of dollars, as some entrepreneurs had offered to pay, or would give it to McGwire, who has said it belongs in the Hall of Fame. No fan got the ball. It was retrieved behind the left-field fence by a member of the Cardinals' grounds crew.