When Albert Belle was accused by former Cleveland teammate Omar Vizquel of corking all his bats 

Former MLB player Omar Vizquel opened up on some of the lengthy tales regarding Cleveland Indians star Albert Belle's iconic bats.

Vizquel, the Indians' Gold Glove shortstop, disclosed in his autobiography, "Omar! My Life On and Off The Field" that Belle, his Cleveland teammate from 1994 to 1996, used corked bats:

"I can be naive at times, but I'm not stupid. Certainly not stupid enough to steal Albert's corked bat and replace it with one that looked completely different -- one that was autographed by Paul Sorrento. That wasn't even a nice try. The problem, of course, was that all of Albert's bats were corked."

Belle appeared on Jim Rome's radio talk show to refute Vizquel's allegations and maintain his innocence.

"No, I never used a corked bat," Belle said. "... And if I was using cork, don't you think I would have hit 60 or 70 homers in a season? If all my bats were corked, how come they haven't surfaced? A lot of my bats were lifted from my locker."

Belle, who in 1995 blasted 50 home runs, a career-best, also took a couple of swings at Vizquel.

"I'm sure he didn't really like me, so he's not going to say nice things about me," Belle said. "He must not have had anything to write about. He sure doesn't have enough interesting things to write about from his career."

In 1994, Albert Belle received a fine for using a corked bat. It was just one of the slugger's many newsworthy incidents over the course of a stormy career that was cut short by injuries.

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Albert Belle: A five-time All-Star

One of the best sluggers of his period, Albert Belle was renowned for his aggressive demeanor and frightening physique. In 1995, he became the first player to ever smash 50 doubles and 50 home runs in the same season. He was also the first player in Major League Baseball to forego a $10 million annual salary contract.

Albert Belle #88...

Belle is a five-time Silver Slugger and All-Star. Between 1991 and 2000, he had a lifetime batting average of .295 and averaged 120 RBIs and 37 home runs per season. He is one of just six players in MLB history to record nine straight seasons with at least 100 RBIs.