Sadaharu Oh on A-Rod: 'He Has the Ability to Hit 1,000 Home Runs'

This Sadaharu Oh dude has always seemed mythic in nature to me. Hitting 868 home runs over 22 seasons -- even with smaller stadiums and lesser competition in Japan -- is rather remarkable, let alone somewhat hard to fathom. (Watching footage of the guy only perpetuates these feelings. Although, I guess Hank Aaron doesn't really "look" like a home run hitter compared to today's sluggers.)

Anyways, Oh seems to be a pretty big fan of Alex Rodriguez. So much so he think A-Rod's got a shot at launching 1,000 home runs by the time it's all said and done.

"I think the 868 record will be broken," Oh said Monday. "Nobody in Japan is close, but I think Alex Rodriguez could do it, he has the ability to hit 1,000."

Not to take anything away from A-Rod -- because I do enjoy his game -- but there's no way he's hitting 1,000 home runs. He'd have to average about 48 homers a year for the next ten years to get to 1,000. I just don't see it. At this point, Oh's record is perhaps equally as daunting and reaching Barry Bonds' record certainly isn't a given. But hey, we can all get behind Oh's enthusiasm about this, no?