...but not really.
Mark McGwire has finally admitted that he used Steroids during his playing career, including the 1998 season which saw him break Roger Maris' record of 61 home runs. I guess I am torn about this. I'm glad that Big Mac finally came clean and decided to talk about the past, something he refused to do in front of a Grand Jury in 2005, but I'm also pissed because he lied to us for so long.
Now, we all knew he was lying but rather than keep the charade going, this should have come out a long, long time ago. Maybe if he would have come clean in those court hearings, other superstars would have followed his example. Instead, we still "don't know" whether or not Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens or David Ortiz took steroids.
McGwire decided it was time to come clean because he was going to be coaching young ballplayers for the St. Louis Cardinals, something I am vehemently against as noted in my blog back when this announcement was made. Now, if you're the Cardinals, aren't you rethinking the idea of bringing in McGwire, even just a little bit? Do you really want that media storm around your Clubhouse? Every home run that gets hit by a Cardinals player is going to be questioned. "I wonder how much Mark is 'helping' those players!"
The best part about him coming clean is the fact that we will finally find out what the Baseball Writers Association of America is going to think of steroid using players. Next year, when the Hall of Fame voting comes around, we're going to see what McGwire's fate is. I think he knows what will happen, which is why he waited to make his announcement until AFTER this year's balloting.
Anyway you slice it, the man was a cheater and he has tainted the game forever. If he and Sammy don't have that battle that year, maybe Bonds doesn't feel the need to juice, allegedly, and he doesn't blow up and hit 73 homers. He altered the game and there is no denying that fact. McGwire said in his statement that he wishes he never would have played in the steroid era. I wish he wouldn't have played at all.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
The real loser in all of this is the family of Roger Maris. After going through what Roger went through in 1961 I think it's a travesty that McGwire let that charade go on knowing on the inside that he was cheating the whole time. The stress and unfair treatment that Maris received during that home run chase ultimately killed him at the relatively young age of 51 and never seeing the asterisk taken off of the record. Then to see his family follow McGwire around, probably knowing the truth about him, and thinking to themselves (as portrayed in the movie 61*) that it was the most positive publicity their dad had ever really received only to see his record shattered by a chemically engineered representation of a ball player. Just sad really...thanks Mark for simultaneously saving and ruining the great game of baseball.
ReplyDeleteMatt...
ReplyDeleteMcGwire was just one small cog in a messed up baseball wheel that allowed drug use in its sport.
If you're gonna hate McGwire, I say hate them all equally... and that includes LaRussa, Selig and the like.
Here's my take if you're interested...
http://sportschump.net/2010/01/13/a-juicing-big-mac-mark-mcgwire%E2%80%99s-steroid-use-leaves-more-questions-than-answers/2689/