This Is That's Wrong With Baseball.......

Miguel, you have children who are of college age.

I have played organized sports in school since the 7th grade and performance enhancing drugs are a part of life beginning at that age. I would be surprised if your children never discussed this topic with you-I am sure they must of known of classmates who were/are into competitive sports who are juicing up or taking something they aren't supposed to be taking.

In latin american countries it is even more rampant, simply because you can get drugs without a prescription, they are less costly and the stakes are higher.

Out of all the pro baseball players suspended for drug use, 50% or even more are latin.

Would it surprise you that in a sport like amateur cycling, where there is nothing more at stake than a cheap plastic medal for placing in a race in Central Park on a Saturday, there are guys doping themselves to the gills?

You really expect these major league ball players to behave more ethically than their amateur counterparts, with so much more at stake for everyone involved?

Miguel, all I'm saying is, you can close your eyes and not see what's in front of you-this doesn't mean that what you don't see doesn't happen.

Besides, if you were coaching YOU were the guy your players were avoiding. So if you were in the dark, that's because they kept you there.

Amphetamines were the stimulant of choice for years in every locker room of every major league team until it was banned. Are you going to argue this point also?

Just a comment.

Remember that when McGuire was photographed with a jar of "Andro" up on the shelf in back of him, it was not, at that time, a banned substance. While I am sure that Sammy also used whatever his handlers suggested ( I get the feeling that he is not all that bright, but extremely talented in a purely physical sense), it is also true that neither of them ever tested positive AFTER some stuff was put on the banned list.

NOW, it also seems true that the Major League Players Association is also at fault for being so permissive/protective. It does not allow for random testing and other measures that would curtail the use of banned substances.

Look at Marion Jones. She never tested positive, ever. Her conviction, like Bonds, was the result of testimony from other sources. Same as Al Capone, never convicted for anything worse than tax evasion...

There is an anecdote about athletes: If offered a pill that would make them a world class athlete, but take five years off of their life span, would that take it? More than 90% said YES!! Remember the East Germans?? A womens swim team that was all baritone-voiced? Or Alberto Juantorena, the Cuban 400/800 meter world champion and Olympic champion? Blew his Achilles tendon in a race in Scandanavia (Finland?)...a typical result from overuse of steroids...

Athletes can and will do ANYTHING to get an edge...However, this does not preclude a ton of very hard work to go along with their juice.

Tough subject, for sure....

HB

miguel said:

I have faith that ONE day, one of these "winners" get BANNED for life!.

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Keep the faith Sankie Mikey! Soon, a lot of these "winners" will get banned not just for life, but from life. Just wait until all the weird illnesses of the liver, kidneys, pancreas, pituitary, etc. start popping up.

I hope that Lyle Alzedo has room left wherever he is.

...speaking of Maguire and Sosa, I really don't believe Sammy was using roids in '98 and if you look at the following photo of him with Maguire, you can see how much bigger Maguire was. As someone who has done weight training for almost 20 years I can tell you that Sammy didn't spend a whole lot of time in the gym. On the other hand everyone knows Maguire was a gym rat. AND to set the record straight, I used to be a big fan of Maguire, until he decided to listen to his lawyers advice.

miguel said:

"Arguing, me?.....NEVEEEEER!!. LOL.

Listen, I am not 2 years of age and if you had read paragraph 7 (previous post) you can "witness" that you and I, at leat on your last post, are saying the same thing.

I am just NOT going to sit here and say that I saw someone use something illegal when I did NOT see it.

OF COURSE SOME cheat in sports. SHYT, even the Roman Gladiators did it.

When I (as in ME) played and coached, I saw NOBODY do anything they were NOT supposed to do....

That there were those who cheated, OF COURSE.

Can I name those who cheated?. NO.

Can I ASSume?. NO because I don't want to make an AXX out of you and me!!!. Wahahahahahaha!!.

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You know what Miguel? The whole situation just makes me sad. Unfortunately I have seen this garbage up close and personal, so my apologies for sounding a little upset but it bothers me a great deal.

I guess what I should of said was, you really DON'T want to know what goes on behind those closed doors. Athletes are great at hiding their use and abuse, and doping is so far ahead of the testing that only an idiot in this day and age would get caught.

Hillbilly said:

Athletes can and will do ANYTHING to get an edge...However, this does not preclude a ton of very hard work to go along with their juice.

Tough subject, for sure....

HB

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Great comment Hillbilly. Way to put it in a perspective that isn't biased one way or another. It is a tough subject indeed.

Go ask Alice

One pill makes you larger
And one pill makes you small
And the ones that mother gives you
Don't do anything at all
Go ask Alice
When she's ten feet tall
--JJoplin

Hillbilly said:

There is an anecdote about athletes: If offered a pill that would make them a world class athlete, but take five years off of their life span, would that take it? More than 90% said YES!! HB

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Perhaps it?s a jaded point of view, but in a greater sense, this entire witch-hunt could be viewed as an all-too-common culture trait - at least in American culture, and that is ?we? have a habit of building people up, and then ripping them down.

Sadly, the fall gets greater media scrutiny, more people involved (inevitably the police state, in some form) and in turn more emotion. Everyone will have an opinion, doesn?t matter if you follow sports closely or just happen in a barbershop to get your ears lowered.

?We? love the fall, or so it seems, more than the ascension. Doesn?t matter if you?re a politician, slugger or a Hollywood type. In a way it makes ?us? feel better, because the skeletons in ?our? closet aren?t being noticed; it?s someone else?s demons on display.

It?s pitifully sad, this is just sports, a simple diversion to real life.

I?m not absolutely certain of my answer - if I was offered a pill that would make me a world-class athlete. I don?t think any of us could answer - with confident honesty - unless being in that situation, that juncture in life?s choices. Between 16-30 years of age I?ve made more mistakes than I could possibly begin to count. So many variables to consider, but the environment you grew up in would likely have the greatest bearing.

On one hand, you?d want those 5 years of life span to be with your family and enjoy what should be the ?golden years?. On the other hand, if you could provide a comfortable and nourishing environment for your family to grow up in, filled with spoils you may not have had yourself, but always wanted, the ledger on those 5 years becomes debatable in my opinion.

Perhaps I?m glossing over the underlying point of being considered a ?cheater? but my feeling is that?s one of the risks that will end up on the ?long list? of considerations, in sports anyway. Athletes are gifted people, we tell them that from an early age. A pill to them isn?t so much cheating as it is ?enhancing? their present skills. Even the verbiage in the law has been molded to ?enhancement drugs?. Being called an ?enhancer? has a very different feel than ?cheater?.

I wouldn?t want my kids to take the pill, but I?d at least have to consider taking it to provide for them.

I'll call Alice.

why dont they throw the ball nearer so the little man with the bat can hit it