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  The Game of Baseball as I Know It

My lifetime surrounded by steroids

By Andrew Armida, Special FCP Correspondent

Overview

As mentioned previously on FCP, I am 13 years old.  As you can guess, there are many things about baseball that I cannot remember, or I just wasn’t born yet for.  I never saw all-time greats like Hank Aaron and Mickey Mantle.  I never saw current players like Griffey Jr. and Pudge in their prime.  I never saw the strike of ‘94, any additions of teams (I saw the Expos move to Washington, but they weren’t added to the league), or the tragic loss of Thurman Munson.  But the biggest thing I never saw or can remember is the game of baseball without the use of steroids, HGH, or any other performance enhancing drugs.

As I still see all of the after-math of the releasing of the Mitchell Report, I get sick.  I just hate thinking that I haven’t ever seen a game with a level playing field.  Seeing players like Clemens, Pettitte, and Tejada who I thought were just raw, talented players, being accused is just horrible.  Yes, all of these accusations may not be true, but still you have to wonder. You think of all of the innocent players who used hard work to get better may have been affected by this.  Pitchers may throw harder to blow past excellent hitters.  One thing that really makes me angry was how players said, “It’s not fair that he is using steroids and taking my job.”  It’s just terrible that a good player is playing behind a player on steroids.

Confessions

I have to give kudos to players like Brian Roberts and Andy Pettitte for confessing to this horrible thing.  I wouldn’t completely let these guys off the hook though.  They did an unfair thing and even though some of these people are saying they only did it once, I think they should still receive some sort of penalty.  I think it would be too late for a suspension, not to mention that it wouldn’t affect the retired players.  I think a fair penalty would be some sort of fine.  Sure, what’s been done is in the past, but I think they should be punished.  But again, I appreciate the players being man enough to admit what they did.  It’s got to be tough and I think the rest of the people with this on their chest should fess up.  One last thing, I think if they are confessing they should tell the truth on how long they did it.  This way the MLB can decide what kind of penalty they deserve.  And again, I think any player who used banned substances for whatever amount of time should be penalized.

Denials

Of course, many are people are denying use of performance enhancing drugs.  I’m sure there are many people have been falsely accused, but I wish the people who did use them would confess.  There are some people you just know never did anything, but you can tell with some others that it is obvious they used steroids, HGH, etc.  They should just confess and take their penalty, if any is given.  Of course, the player with the most headlines on his denial is Roger Clemens.  I sure hope he didn’t do anything but you have to wonder.  It is extremely unlikely for a pitcher to win four Cy Young awards from the age of 35 and on (1997, 1998, 2001, and 2004) and win 192 games from the age of 35 and on.  They are speculating that he used some sort of performance enhancing drug from 1998-2001, so 1997 might have been clean but you’ll never know.  We will probably never know with anybody until this mess is straightened out.

 Records

As you know many records have been broken in the “steroid era.”  One of the most immoral things in baseball to me now is how some of these players who have been accused of using steroids or have been mentioned in the Mitchell Report have set records that may stand.  The biggest one has to be, of course, Barry Bonds.  If he is charged, I think his records should be wiped clear from the record books.  It is horrible for the MLB, Hank Aaron, and all of sports that a player who has maybe used performance enhancing drugs will be able to hold the most cherished record in sports.  I think it was best put by a fan in one of the Giant’s game leading up to 756 when he or she wrote “Ruth did it with hot dogs and beer.”

 Another thing is if Clemens is really guilty, he hasn’t set or doesn’t hold a major record, but the numbers he put up would have to be skewed.  If he didn’t use steroids for 98-01, he wouldn’t have over 4000 strikeouts and he may not even have three hundred wins.  I am not trying to insult any of these players because believe me, Clemens is one of my favorite pitchers and I hope he didn’t do anything. But it is bothersome that a player who may or may not has used steroids, HGH, or any other performance enhancing drugs may hold records or numbers that may not be true. One thing this brings me back to a lot is how Pete Rose never made it to the Hall of Fame because he gambled.  You want to tell me that players in the Hall like Ruth never gambled when they played?  It is unfair for Rose that he holds a great record for most hits and he is not celebrated for it.  It’s not like gambling made him a better player.  If anything it would have made him worse if he did bet on his games and he tried to throw them.

Concluding Thoughts

As you can see, nothing can come that is good from the releasing of the Mitchell Report or anything about steroids for that matter.  It is just sad for the MLB to see great players being accused of using performance enhancing drugs.  But these players need to confess if they did anything.  But the worst part for me and for any baseball fans from the 90’s on is that we have never seen a clean baseball game with a level playing field.