As many people now know, St Louis Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire hit his 62nd home run of the season this week, breaking the all-time majorleague record set by Roger Maris of the New York Yankees in 1961.

The former Oakland A's star McGwire drove a pitch from Chicago Cubs ace Mike Morgan an estimated 430 feet (131 metres) at Busch Stadium in St Louis to equal the record before striking a relatively shorter punt on Tuesday to break it.

Only three players in baseball history have hit 60 or more homers in a season. Maris set the record on the last day of a 162-game season. Babe Ruth had 60 in 1927, but he accomplished the feat in just 154 games.

McGwire, who stands at 6ft 5in likes to supplement his diet with Andro-6, a freely available overthe-counter product. While baseball authorities turn a blind eye to its use, the drug in Andro-6, androstenedione, is on the banned list of the International Olympic Committee, gridiron's NFL and tennis's ATP Tour. It is in fact an anabolic steroid as classified by the Association of Professional Team Physicians. Plainly injurious to the health but not half as disgusting as that other baseball folly - chewing tobacco.