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Steroids in baseball question

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by ScribePharisee, Jun 17, 2009.

  1. Smasher_Sloan

    Smasher_Sloan Active Member

    Once we stop celebrating our birthdays at Chuck-E-Cheese, we should be past a point where the behavior of ballplayers disappoints or shocks us.
     
  2. TheSportsPredictor

    TheSportsPredictor Well-Known Member

    Jamey Carroll.

    -30-
     
  3. CollegeJournalist

    CollegeJournalist Active Member

    No one would upset me more than Ken Griffey Jr. No one in baseball. I don't know anyone my age (I was a youngster during the early years of Griffey's career) who doesn't like Junior. Being in an area where the return of Griffey to Cincy was huge local news, I don't know anyone who didn't want to see him succeed in Cincinnati. Griffey was *that* player for so many people during his career, and to hear that he was/is a fraud would be devastating.

    That said, I don't think he was. Maybe that's wishful thinking, maybe it's 100 percent correct. But I would be shocked and devastated if Griffey was a cheat.
     
  4. KevinmH9

    KevinmH9 Active Member

    It wouldn't surprise me, but it would upset me if David Ortiz was found guilty of doing steroids. Ever since the finger pointing starting, Ortiz has been right in front of the media saying how bad it is, blah, blah.
     
  5. GB-Hack

    GB-Hack Active Member

    Here's a hypothetical for you. What if, after his form continues to be poor for the remainder of this season, and he doesn't hit 20 homers, and then comes back next year, appearing to be his old self, do you suspect him of some funny business in the offseason?
     
  6. KevinmH9

    KevinmH9 Active Member

    It could be very likely, yes. I mean I wouldn't want to jump right out there and say, "Yes, he's doing steroids;" but I'd hope he'd get tested on the spot when/if speculation began.
     
  7. chilidog75

    chilidog75 Member

    Rafael Belliard. I've lived my whole adult life thinking that little son of a bitch was clean. I would hate to be disappointed now and thus have that 1995 World Series championship tainted.
     
  8. Mark2010

    Mark2010 Active Member

    No name out there would surprise me anymore. Apparently the culture and pressure to cheat was overwhelming to the point where guys couldn't resist. At least that's what we're hearing.
     
  9. Shaggy

    Shaggy Guest

    Pudge Rodriguez is a pretty obvious user to me. On top of that, Jose Canseco accused Pudge of using in his book.

    Like it or not, Canseco opened our eyes and has pretty much been spot-on in all of his accusations to date. I see no reason why Pudge would be different.
     
  10. Shaggy

    Shaggy Guest

    I want to believe that Thome, Griffey and Pujols are all clean. But I wouldn't be shocked if none of them were.

    Jim Thome was a 13th round draft pick who came to the majors with little power. He started hitting booming home runs around 1996. His best three power years in the majors were 2001, 2002 and 2003--the three seasons before punishments for positive tests went into effect. He turned into a 600-home run hitter after his first 500 ABs of his career produced about 13 home runs.

    Ken Griffey Jr. had some amazing power seasons right smack in the middle of the steroid era. Why should I think that he was the only power hitter of that time who never touched the stuff? Is that really believable? Frank Thomas might go here too, but he gets the benefit of the doubt because he talked in the Mitchell Report, didn't have a sudden surge or sudden dropoff in numbers, etc.

    Pujols has been rock-solid consistent from day one, and his career goes right through the testing regulations that caused a noticeable change in performance for many users. So I could realistically believe that he is clean.

    But again, the players' widespread abuse of the public trust and the owners' idiotic negligence in doing anything about the madness in the clubhouse has made it come to this: players are guilty until proven innocent in my mind. And sadly for them, there's no way to prove something that didn't happen.
     
  11. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    Greinke and Halladay

    If they tested positive, I would be very pissed.

    And before anyone laughes, Nolan Ryan.
     
  12. Beef03

    Beef03 Active Member

    Really the only guys that would shock me are guys like Maddux, Moyer or Wakefield as pitchers or Grace or Olerude as players.

    I don't think anything would upset me about any player being named for taking a PED. I've long since passed that point. At this point I just consider it a part of the era. Those that succeeded without taking anything I view in a higher light. Those that did take something, I'm no longer appalled, I'm no longer standing on my high mountain and cursing their names and actions. I truly believe most players have taken some substance at some point -- whether it is illegal or not -- to improve their play. Shit we had Jim Bouton going on and on about greenies in Ball Four almost 40 years. Greenies are now illegal and considered PEDs. Say Doc Halladay suddenly becomes linked to amphetamines, do we suddenly throw his name on the scrap heap with A-Rod and Bonds but give a pass to the generations of players that came before who popped them?

    It's easy to point a finger now and try to blackbook every name that comes up now, but really until we know for sure everyone who has, it's kind of tough to say that only these players have cheated the game.

    I am very encouraged that the game is finally taking steps to clean itself up, but really it is too late to the party to all of a sudden expect that a culture of the game will disappear over night and that we can definitively say who are the good guys and who are the evildoers.

    And really I'm not sure how much the fans care. I mean how many Yankee fans suddenly forgave A-Rod in his return to the game off of his injury this spring when he homered in his first at-bat? And will the rest of the world forgive him if he hits 45 homers this season? As Maddux and Glavine informed us all -- Chicks dig the long ball. And the owners and players know that. The only group that really seems to care whole heartedly are those who cover the game, and then I am starting to question that now if it is more because of their moral high ground or because it's a story that will put up big headlines for a couple of days in today's 24/7 newsworld.

    So yeah, it would take a whole lot to shock me now.

    rant over
     
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