Speculation, Lies, And More Confusion...
With the results of the Mitchell Report revealed today, players across Major League Baseball can breathe a sigh of relief. Clearly, lots of players got a free pass.
Hours before the press conference, rumors were rampant about some of the names to be released. It was then in which I started to believe we were in for a bigger bombshell than originally expected.
A New York television station released a leaked list of players that were believed to be mentioned, but that list was later retracted after discrepencies were reported. In retrospect, the list was way off base.
George Mitchell provides evidence in his report that several players, including Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, Miguel Tejada, Paul Lo Duca, Eric Gagne, Gary Sheffield, and Troy Glaus purchased or used steroids or HGH. A number of other players were also listed.
The report changes nothing on my view of steroids or Major Leage Baseball, and I'm not quite sure what the investigation accomplished, except ruining the reputation of several ball players. Now, Roger Clemens gets a shadow over his career, while other players who have used performance enhancers - but were able to keep their name off the list - won't.
Only 1% of ball players were on the list, while around 7% tested positive a couple seasons ago. Many players went unnamed, and a select few will take the heat for them all.
In his press conference, Mitchell stated, "Baseball cannot afford to engage in a never-ending search for the names of every player who used illegal substances.'' Having said that, I'm not quite sure why he felt the need to release names at all.
So what's next? Andy Pettitte and Miguel Tejada have never tested postive. Will they be suspended for the first 15 games? Will this change the opinion of fans who support some of these players? Commissioner Selig said he would act appropriately for each individual case.
The evidence against Barry Bonds is quite underwhelming, but the public still ridicules him. If you don't support Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, or Sammy Sosa, will you now not support Roger Clemens?
Let's take a personal step back: if you don't believe Bonds is worthy of the Hall of Fame, then Roger Clemens isn't, either.
Gut check: either admit you were wrong about Bonds and change your opinion, or denounce every other player on this list, as well. Against what politicians say, you're entitled to change your mind.
If you think steroids is cheating, be consistent. You all know where I stand.
Photo courtesy of Richard Drew of the Associated Press.
I don't really care what they do, I just want them to be consistent. This wish-washy way of letting some people get away with it and calling other people out is trashing the sport.
Either allow it completely, say "roid 'er up" and accept it as a part of athletic competition, or enact a strict, uniform, and reliable method of detecting and punishing violators. I don't have a clear preference, because I see bad things about each approach, but anything is better than the status quo.
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Anonymous |
December 14, 2007 at 6:20 PM