We Won't Move On
You know I watched Selig and Fehr and a bunch of commentators talk about the Mitchell Report last night and I was struck by how many of them think this will allow us to move on. I think that is impossible until a couple of things happen.
First, all the current investigations have to come to an end. As Tom Verducci so rightly points out Mitchell essentially got lucky that Radomski and McNamee "fell into his lap". Without them, this report would essentially name the same names as BALCO did. Radomski is sentenced February 8th, other investigations are still ongoing. Until all of that has wrapped up, I would expect we will learn other names.
Next, we can't move on until we know that there is a test for HGH. Reading through the report it struck me how much HGH was being used. I had, somewhat naively, thought that HGH was something that only the heavy hitters did and, most importantly could afford. But look at the names in the report, Mike Bell (19 career games in the majors in 2000) for one admits to using HGH.
In addition, from the prices named, it appears it costs from $1200-$1600 for "a kit" of HGH. While the report specifically says that Chad Allen could not afford HGH I would think that a player on the major league level, making the minimum salary (380K in 2006) could afford a couple of doses of HGH. Players also on the big league roster get $85 a day for road games and travel days. So, a thrifty big leaguer could probably afford a kit of HGH by cutting back on their food purchases. My point is, I don't think any of us can look at any player and know whether or not he is clean. From A-Rod to a fringe major leaguer (like Mike Bell) these drugs are readily available and affordable.
So, the sad lesson I draw from all of this is that everyone is suspect until baseball really cleans things up. It won't stop me from rooting for my team or admiring the game, but I won't look at the players in the way I used to.
Comments
One of my favorites quotes from yesterday was by Bug Selig "...This report is a call to action...I haven't actually read the whole report yet..."
They just want some big names to give to the public, a report with no names would have been a joke. The players made their beds, but as far s moving on? MLb will try to, but as long as there are ways to beat tests, and untestable substances it will continue. Moreover as long as you can make tens of millions of dollar and be treated like a hero for playing a game, some people will do whatever it takes to get there, bet on it.
Posted by: Grant | December 14, 2007 11:45 AM |
I'm angry because MLB just keeps trying to spin this thing. Even a committed organization like the International Track & Field authorities have a tough time catching drug cheats. The cheats always seem to be one step ahead. The union and MLB just seem to want to declare victory and move on, which is ridiculous. You're going to need an enormously intrusive, powerful, and independent drug testing authority to restore the integrity of the game.
I'm also more than irritated at the arbitrariness of the names. I'm about 90% sure they didn't name anyone mistakenly. But it's not the kind of overwhelming evidence they have on Bonds and even that may not be enough to convict beyond a reasonable doubt. And what about the 28 or so teams who were lucky enough not to have clubhouse staff rat out their players? Do you detect an infuriating smugness on the part of teams outside of New York?
It's true that naming what names they can get does create a general deterrent effect. No one will take these drugs in the future without a few second thoughts. But believe me, drug abuse, and more sophisticated kinds of drug abuse, will remain rampant in MLB until they can put much more teeth into detection. There is just too much money and motivation involved.
This doesn't ruin the game for me, but I don't kid myself into thinking that much is really going to change.
Posted by: corey | December 14, 2007 05:06 PM |