…perhaps he thought “for the record” meant “say something other than the truth”.
Curiously, when Jose Canseco claimed knowledge of Rodriguez’ juicy ways, he was mostly dismissed (not for the first time) as a desperate, sleazy character willing to smear a colleague without providing evidence. Conversely, SI.com’s report — far more damaging to the Third Baseman’s rep than mere charges of vanity, is based on the claims of anonymous sources. Who are obviously more credible than Jose Canseco, despite being invisible.
It’s becoming increasing clear (duh) the influence of PED’s — hardly limited to fringe types like F.P. Santangelo or Manny Alexander — came to bear on the careers of multiple Hall Of Fame candidates and MVP’s. While the likes of A-Rod, the Sultan Of Surly and Roger Clemens suffer tremendous scrutiny and public ridicule, not nearly as many fingers are being pointed at the persons who employed them and profited wildly from their otherworldly performances. Take a bow, Bud Selig, Tom Hicks, Peter Magowan and George Steinbrenner — if the above athletes perpetuated a fraud, rest assured they couldn’t have done it without you.
A-Rod blinks almost as much as Blagojevich when he’s lying.
Tom Hicks profited wildly off of Alex Rodriguez? $252 million over 10 years and still wound up with a last place team. I bet he was the one that leaked these documents in a spectacular display of buyer’s remorse.
With Rafael Palmeiro, Jose Gonzalez and Ismael Valdez all on the team that year, maybe they can collectively find a way to blame Miguel Tejada.
Every division title and WS ring during the steroid era gets an asterisk, too, not just player stats. Torre slams Brian McNamee in his book, yet Torre’s got how many WS rings off of Sheffield and Giambi and Pettite and co? What a f’n joke.
Ben
Why is Canseco considered to not be credible? Look, I’m not playing the race card here but nobody gives this man the credit for being almost 100% accurate in his assessment of the game and the players who used PED’s (including himself). Dismissing Canseco has more to do with the dumb macho code that does not allow for anything said or done in the locker room to leave the locker room than it does with the truth. Ridiculous. I’m not even Cuban-American but I would buy the guy a drink if I ever saw him. He’s been right and has gotten crucified for it, period. I hate everything that he brought into the game but I’m sick and tired of him somehow being considered worse than the heroes of the game that have gotten any sort of slack (Pettitte, Sheffield, Giambi) while he figures out how to withdraw from this shit without frigging dying. Fuck MLB and fuck every Barry Bonds apologist who mocks the effects of steroid abuse.
In response to the steroid relativists who exonerate Bonds and McGwire because “they were all on juice,” I hereby inaugurate the CSTB Definitely Not On Steroids list.
Tom Glavine: Definitely Not On Steroids
Brian Doyle: Definitely Not On Steroids
Burt Hooten: Definitely Not On Steroids
Roger Cedeno: Definitely Not On Steroids
Doug Simons: Definitely Not On Steroids
Rog,
just to be clear, I was being sarcastic about Jose’s credibility. He might be a vindictive boor, but that doesn’t mean he was untruthful (most of the time). He doesn’t do himself any favors in (allegedly) shaking down Magglio Ordonez, but Jose trying to flog a book or a screenplay doesn’t make him any more or less credible. The guys he went after had commercial interests to protect, too.
Paul Assenmacher: Not On Steroids
Paul Assenmacher’s Era-Defining Salt n’ Pepper Goatee: On Steroids
Also, Roger Cedeno seems like someone who might’ve been on steroids at some point. Or maybe he was just drinking a lot of creatine and then not working out back when he showed up at Orioles camp weighing 260 pounds a few years ago. I miss that dude. He could probably start in left for the Mets this year if Daniel Murphy makes it at second base.
Rog, Jimmy: Who is an apologist or a relativist for steroids? I was happy to see the Mitchell Report out, and I want to know more. What I’m tired of is the Federal gov’t blowing time and money on guys like Bonds and Clemens – not that Clemens didn’t provoke it in the dumbest Hill testimony since John Howard Lawson. The government has been throwing people in jail over this bullshit (Greg Anderson, at least) so they can prove they’re On the Job? Is anyone in jail over Katrina yet? The banking collapse? Does Bernie Madoff even wear a house arrest bracelet? Martha Stewart went to jail and no one from FEMA? Obama did an ESPN interview where he said the gov’t has much more important priorities, and I’m with him.
If you guys mean me, I’m serious when I say that everything from stats to division titles to the Series has been corrupted by steroids. That doesn’t mean I don’t want players named — I do, so I can also point to teams, managers, and owners. That’s not relativism. That’s how far reaching this has been. Since half the point of being a baseball fan post-grade school is the history of the game, it matters. I don’t want to see Anderson or Bonds in jail over steroids (ok, perjury and illegal drug dealing is different) unless Peter MacGowan goes, too. Honestly, I think offering immunity or amnesty or book deals to those involved is best, if only so the truth is known. Pills that they are, Bonds and Clemens are still historically important athletes. If being pilloried is the price they pay for the rewards steroids have brought them, big deal. If not being in the Hall is all that happens to them, fine.
I think the Katrina and Madoff lines put this in perspective
Torre has got exactly zero rings off of Giambi and Sheffield.
I think the moral outrage about steroids use is more disgusting than the sin of getting caught cheating. I’m a baseball fan, and am aware that unsavory drug consumption and other bad stuff happens all the time, and will happen no matter how many intrusive “anonymous” drug tests are administered and their results are made public. Where is the moral outrage for leaking evidence?
And again, when are we tossing Mantle*’s achievements for amphetamine use? Haven’t heard a peep about that.
Katrina and Madoff have absolutely nothing to do with this issue. I want to see Brownie and Chertoff being ass-raped in prison as much as the next guy, I’m just not a fan of comparing different cases (or people, or events) that have nothing to do with one another. Compare Stewart’s case with Madoff? Sure, absolutely. The discussion on steroids has nothing to do with those other cases, other than the probability that the .gov probably won’t be able to pin anything on these fellows beyond perjury, which is what Stewart wound up serving time for (and the ImClone guy who gave her the tip served a hell of a lot longer…funny how nobody ever brings up that fact). Let’s stick to comparing apples to apples, if that’s possible in the blogosphere.
And I never opined one way or the other about who should go to prison or not. I just mentioned that every single thing that Canseco said was true, thus far, and that he’s considered a joke because he sold out his baseball brothers.
K –
Indeed, Hicks wanted out from under the A-Rod contract. I suppose it would be more correct to put it this way : the Used Car Salesman is quick to remind us that baseball has seen unprecedented prosperity under his watch. In terms of new stadium construction, TV rights fees, paid attendance and new revenue streams (MLB Advanced Media), he’s absolutely right.
Many (though not all) of these commercial gains however, were built on the back of the star power / statistical wonders that were A-Rod, Clemens, Bonds (McGwire, Sosa, etc.). granted, hicks was unable to parlay the Rodriguez acquisition into a single postseason appearance, but I’m not sure the value of the franchise diminished, either.
Interestingly, a former Rangers strength and conditioning coach was quoted on Saturday as having told his employers that A-Rod’s “performance did not match his level of work in the weight room.” Jon Daniels, Texas’ current GM, doesn’t recall any such conversation.
Rog: I’m agreeing with Obama’s point that the gov’t has a lot more to worry about than catching juiced ballplayers. It’s about priorities, not comparing the cases. He was a US attorney himself, so I’m sure he got that.
Marc: You’re right, no rings: Sheffield (3 division titles), Giambi (two AL pennants). Are you suggesting the Torre-era Yanks were juice free? If you’re simply arguing that Giambi added nothing to the Yankees, I know you’d find some support around here, but still.
I can’t disagree that the gov’ment has better stuff to do than prosecuting steroids cases (or marijuana cases, for that matter) but I wish people would remember players like Lyle Alzado who blamed his terminal brain cancer on years of steroid abuse, or the perceived links between roids and depression, which may’ve been a co-factor in a bunch of suicides by wrestlers. If/when Roger Clemens really does grow an extra ear on his forehead, will any of us be surprised? It seems like there’s no middle ground between the sanctimonious preaching of people like Curt Schilling and the nattering nabobs of the sports blogging world who mock the issue any time that some no-name c-list player gets suspended for 60 games. It should be less about having a witch hunt and more about honest health concerns. Is this who we want to be as a society? It goes far beyond sports.