You may have heard this phrase before in conjunction with Hank Greenberg, Roger Maris, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds, but SABR 39 is on pace to smash the all-time single-season SABR convention record of 726, set in St. Louis in 2007. This is according to SABR executive director John Zajc in comments he made during an informal "State of SABR" address January 24 during the  Bob Davids (Baltimore-Washington) Chapter's annual meeting, held in Columbia, Maryland, just about in the middle of the chapter's two main cities.

There are already 391 registrations six months before the convention is to begin. That's 53.9 percent to the St. Louis convention's levels. And, as of January 19, 830 room nights had been reserved by SABR members at the J.W. Marriott Hotel in downtown Washington -- the convention headquarters --  61.5 percent toward the convention goal of 1,350.

Zajc came to Washington with SABR knowledge management director Peter Garver to meet with SABR members at the chapter meeting and to conduct a walk-through with chapter leaders of the hotel to determine the best possible placement for events and other convention necessities.

Keep in mind that March 15 is the deadline to submit abstracts for research presentations at the convention, to be held July 30-August 2.

If you want take a longer view... If you'd like to sit in on a SABR board meeting during the convention, then mark Wednesday, July 29, on your calendar. The meeting is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. inside the J.W. Marriott Hotel.

And, for just a slight bit longer. SABR has already purchased 1,000 tickets for the Baltimore Orioles-Boston Red Sox game to be played Friday, July 31, at Camden Yards in Baltimore. The Red Sox are a tough ticket to get in Baltimore, and we believe we've acquired enough tickets to satisfy demand for you and any family members or friends who want to take in the game. While you could drive or take a commuter train from Washington to Baltimore, SABR is reserving buses to enable you to make the trip comfortably and in style.

It's just like we've been saying: SABR 39 -- a monumental convention!