So now it has been revealed that Alex Rodriguez used steroids between 2001 and 2003 while he was with the Texas Rangers and he has been lying about it ever since, like, for example, in the Katie Couric interview on 60 Minutes. His name was on a list seized by Federal officials during evidence-gathering on the BALCO investigation. The list was supposed to be anonymous as well as destroyed but wasn’t—the Player’s Association is responsible for that—and somehow got in the hands of Selena Roberts of the New York Times who is writing a book about Rodriguez. It means that Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Mark McGuire, Sammy Sosa, Raphael Palmiero, Roger Clemens, and Andy Pettit, now constitute a Rogue’s Gallery of allegedly juiced ballplayers. Then throw Pete Rose in the mix for his gambling infractions, you have a tarnished All-Star team and eight players who were largely a cinch to get into the Hall of Fame, but now that achievement is possibly out of reach, probably for a generation, if not forever. Shoeless Joe Jackson, move over!
So what now? Do we now pack up our love of the game and stay home rather than go to the ball parks or watch them on TV? Or do we assign an asterisk to the era and go forward hoping things have changed? I say the latter; we have to put it behind us, mindful that the use of steroids was part of baseball’s culture, just like pot was a big part of the counterculture of the 1960s and 1970s, and indeed, according to some polls, has been tried by almost 50% of Americans. I don’t state that as an excuse, more like a fact. The wonders of chemistry, legal and illegal, natural or synthetic, have touched us all. It is our cultural ambience. Anyone for a Tylenol PM?
A-Rod’s name was on a list with 104 names on it. Would anyone like to guess if the other names will come out? I’d bet they would.
I’m sure that Michael Phelps is happy that the media has abandoned him for A-Rod. I told you something would come along to change the focus.
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