MLB Discussion

[Jason Harris 31]

You're not putting it into context with the timeline of other players being outed.

Essentially, it's gone from McGwire not wanting to talk about the past, to Bonds and Clemens denying, to Tejada and Palmiero being caught, to Pettite admitting he inhaled just a little, to A-Rod being caught. All the while, the government showed no signs of relenting on prosecuting for perjury, as well as steroid use. Consequently, players recently have started fessing up, such as Tejada did last week, while those who backed themselves into a corner are probably wishing for a mulligan.

I would have given A-Rod credit if he didn't lie last year to Katie Couric when directly asked if he ever used steroids. Think about it. If he truly had used steroids for three seasons only, that was the perfect opportunity to beg forgiveness: "Actually, Katie, I'm ashamed to admit I did use steroids during my time with the Rangers. I had placed so much pressure on myself to live up to that contract that I foolishly turned to steroids."

If he had done that, he'd deserve a world of credit, because it was obvious that MLB was going to sweep this under the rug. Instead, given all the strange or contradictory responses we've heard over the past year -- didn't know what it was, how long he was taking, who administered, blah, blah, blah -- I think we'd have to be very naive to assume his usage was limited to his time with Texas.

[RadioGaGa 162]

So, for the longest time it was "As long as A-Rod is clean...MLB has a chance to get through this..."

Now that he isn't...who is the (potential) savior of Professional Baseball?

Jeter?

Pujols?

Wright?

Halladay?

Ichiro?

[JR Boucicaut 3759]

Pujols.

[RadioGaGa 162]

Pujols.

I really hope he's not one of the other 102... <_<

[mack 44]

I'm so glad the worst thing my favourite player has done is have a bastard child with a chick from Hooter's. You know, old school scandals.

[Jason Harris 31]

Pujols' name was in the rumor mill a few years ago. Then I thought you had written Holliday, to which I thought, "No way is Matt Holliday clean!"

[chippa13 1844]

I'm getting really sick of people saying A-Rod "came clean" and was "honest about his steroid use"...

He only went on TV and made whatever statements/admissions he made BECAUSE HE GOT CAUGHT!!!

Yeah, but at least he didn't lie to Congress about it like everyone else.

He wasn't asked by Congress. Dollars to donuts he would have denied it. The only reason he spoke up is because they had the smoking gun.

And they've had smoking guns for Bonds and Clemens too, neither of them have admitted it yet.

Give the guy some credit....

I give him zero credit. Bonds and Clemens are in legal battles. The rule as one facing jail time is: Deny, deny, deny. Any admission in the press becomes evidence for the prosecution.

[LkptTiger 1]

I'm so glad the worst thing my favourite player has done is have a bastard child with a chick from Hooter's. You know, old school scandals.

I'm a huge fan. Great ballplayer and a really nice guy. I was really young when he came into the league (like, 4-years-old), so I've pretty much grown-up watching him play.

Now if only he could stay off of the trainer's table...

[cptjeff 0]

Pujols.

I really hope he's not one of the other 102... <_<

103.

And if you come forward and admit something while in a legal battle, you get a reduced sentence. It's to your favor, especially when the evidence is damning. That's why people plead guilty or no contest fairly often.

[LkptTiger 1]

103.

104 - (Bonds + Rodriguez) = 102.

[Jason Harris 31]

And if you come forward and admit something while in a legal battle, you get a reduced sentence. It's to your favor, especially when the evidence is damning. That's why people plead guilty or no contest fairly often.

Yes, but if you live in America with fame and wealth, there's a good chance your lawyers can get all charges dropped. So if you can't afford the best lawyers, you plea bargain; if you can afford the best lawyers, you say nothing and let them earn their millions.

[mrusse01 0]

Pujols.

If you throw out all the 'roid tainted MVPs...Albert probably would have 5 by now, I believe nobody else has more than 3.

[cw91 0]

the ridiculous thing about the whole steriod ordeal is that bonds was a great player before them and just got greedy for power numbers. it is quite possible that bonds could have won MVP's without the roids, and would still have been a surefire hall of famer. greed destroyed reputations of so many players who were already great before the steriod era

[mrusse01 0]

it is quite possible that bonds could have won MVP's without the roids

He had already won 3 MVPs prior to 1994. He could have retired in 1998 and would have CERTAINLY been a Hall of Famer.

Maybe the public perception of him is part of the reason why he decided to juice. Not to single you out specifically, but apparently you didn't realize that prior to his absurd 2000-2004 offensive binge, Barry Bonds was already arguably one of the top 5 or so outfielders of all-time. I remember hearing a talk radio program in probably 1998 where the subject was 'who is currently playing that will get into the HOF?' and it took about 45 minutes for someone to call in and say Barry Bonds. The thing is, at that time, there was probably nobody in the league who was a more sure shot of getting in the Hall.

It wasn't against the rules, nobody was testing you for it, McGwire and Sosa were clearly doing it in front of everybody on the planet and were actually being celebrated for it...hell, if I was a baseball player I would have taken steroids in 1998 too. Why the hell not?

[fieldofdreams 0]

Pujols.

If you throw out all the 'roid tainted MVPs...Albert probably would have 5 by now, I believe nobody else has more than 3.

That's only if we assume Albert is clean as well.

[cw91 0]

it is quite possible that bonds could have won MVP's without the roids

He had already won 3 MVPs prior to 1994. He could have retired in 1998 and would have CERTAINLY been a Hall of Famer.

Maybe the public perception of him is part of the reason why he decided to juice. Not to single you out specifically, but apparently you didn't realize that prior to his absurd 2000-2004 offensive binge, Barry Bonds was already arguably one of the top 5 or so outfielders of all-time. I remember hearing a talk radio program in probably 1998 where the subject was 'who is currently playing that will get into the HOF?' and it took about 45 minutes for someone to call in and say Barry Bonds. The thing is, at that time, there was probably nobody in the league who was a more sure shot of getting in the Hall.

It wasn't against the rules, nobody was testing you for it, McGwire and Sosa were clearly doing it in front of everybody on the planet and were actually being celebrated for it...hell, if I was a baseball player I would have taken steroids in 1998 too. Why the hell not?

i agree with you that bonds was a great player before the roids. he won 8 gold gloves, 7 silver sluggers, and made 8 all-star appearances before 1999. he was a five-tool player before turning into the one dimensional hitting machine he became in 2001. in the post strike era what brought baseball back and got peoples attention was tape measure homeruns and astronomical power numbers. Bonds most likely realized what was going on around him, and wanted a piece of the action.

[mrusse01 0]

it is quite possible that bonds could have won MVP's without the roids

He had already won 3 MVPs prior to 1994. He could have retired in 1998 and would have CERTAINLY been a Hall of Famer.

Maybe the public perception of him is part of the reason why he decided to juice. Not to single you out specifically, but apparently you didn't realize that prior to his absurd 2000-2004 offensive binge, Barry Bonds was already arguably one of the top 5 or so outfielders of all-time. I remember hearing a talk radio program in probably 1998 where the subject was 'who is currently playing that will get into the HOF?' and it took about 45 minutes for someone to call in and say Barry Bonds. The thing is, at that time, there was probably nobody in the league who was a more sure shot of getting in the Hall.

It wasn't against the rules, nobody was testing you for it, McGwire and Sosa were clearly doing it in front of everybody on the planet and were actually being celebrated for it...hell, if I was a baseball player I would have taken steroids in 1998 too. Why the hell not?

i agree with you that bonds was a great player before the roids. he won 8 gold gloves, 7 silver sluggers, and made 8 all-star appearances before 1999. he was a five-tool player before turning into the one dimensional hitting machine he became in 2001. in the post strike era what brought baseball back and got peoples attention was tape measure homeruns and astronomical power numbers. Bonds most likely realized what was going on around him, and wanted a piece of the action.

Maybe Bonds was 'one-dimensional' post 2000, but he still DOMINATED that one dimension unlike any player since Babe Ruth. He won 4 straight MVPs and it would have been 5 except he finished 2nd....to the guy hitting behind him, Jeff Kent. I'm not holding my breath to see another player get 120 intentional walks in a season in my lifetime, A-Rod currently has 79 for his CAREER.

[Neal 41]

How do we know that Bonds wasn't using before 2000? Steroids and other performance enhancing substances don't mean you have to get huge. You can use them to add lean muscle and improve training results and recovery as well.

Maybe he just changed his training approach and pharmaceuticals of choice.

We just don't know.

[mrusse01 0]

That's true, but you could really say that of any player in professional baseball/sports from the 1970's or so up until a testing policy was put in place.