The Sports Rumors

Turn the Page-Close the Chapter-Move On

“I’m not here to talk about the past. I’m here to be positive about this subject.” - Mark McGwire

Quite frankly, I’ve had enough. There are times when events or situations take place for which justice needs to be served. There are circumstances for which an intermediary is needed to settle things so that all parties feel that a fair conclusion has been reached. The Barry Bonds indictment and possible jail time is not one of those situations.

First off, let me make a few things perfectly clear. I don’t think Barry Bonds is a good human being. I wouldn’t want to be his friend or hang out. I think he’s an arrogant, moody, pompous prick to be blunt. I think that there have been numerous situations where he could have handled himself with more class than he has shown. For years, he was a rude individual to reporters from the media who were just trying to do their job and ask the star athlete questions. I’m not talking about the post steroid accusations. I’m talking about before that. I’m talking about when he wasn’t 260 pounds with a head the size of an 18 pound bowling ball. Whatever his reasons may have been for being impolite is irrelevant. The mere fact that he was unapproachable to many is irrelevant. His character and public demeanor is irrelevant.

The fact of the matter is that we cannot pick and choose who we want to persecute and go after based on their looks, attitude, nationality or race. We need to go by the specifics and the whole story. So let’s talk facts.

Fact number one says that it is moronic to think that the vast majority of baseball players during the “Steroid Era” were not using some sort of performance enhancing substances. It was called the Steroids Era for a reason; not because three guys used and the rest of the league didn’t. It is immature to think that people were not experimenting with such substances. I don’t care if you’re as straight edged as Charlie Brown. If the guys you are competing with for a roster spot are getting healthier or stronger quicker than you are because they are using, you’re going to either start using too or start filling out applications for another profession. That’s as clear as it gets.

Fact number two says that baseball knew about this all along and they turned a blind eye to it. Baseball ratings were at all time highs while McGuire and Sosa battled for the single season homerun record, followed by Bonds setting it in 2003. Do you really think that baseball was going to step up and say “Wait! Everybody stop. There is some illegal stuff going on here. We need to stop with the selling of the jerseys, the high TV ratings, and the interest in the sport and make sure everything is clean and ethical.” Absolutely not. They took a chance; rolled the dice. They thought that either they can put this problem off till later, or hope that it gets swept under the rug without people finding out. They were just as arrogant and full of themselves as we accuse Bonds to be. They took you, me, and the rest of the public to be fools. And for those of you who are naïve to think that baseball didn’t know, and I know there are some of you out there, let me paint this picture for you.

Colin has a house. He’s letting Shaun crash in his basement for a year. Everything looks good from the outside and the house is decorated really nicely. The lawn is nicely kept, the driveway is freshly paved, and there are no cracks in the brick front or the windows. Picture perfect house. Colin comes down unexpectedly one day and sees Shaun slinging cocaine out the back of the basement door. Now Shaun is making tons of money because he’s the best dope dealer on the block, and Colin starts getting money out of it for staying quiet and letting him do what he needs to do. Do you think Colin is going to make a lot of noise if he’s getting an extra 10 G’s a month for not saying anything?

Same concept. Bud Selig knew. Of course he knew. His top players, the Bonds-McGuires-Sosas, were the best dope dealers on the block. Baseball was getting their cut because of the increased interest in the homerun chase. Why squeal?

And again, as bad as steroids are, I don’t have a problem if baseball addresses it as a mistake and comes forward along with Bonds as being the enabler of the problem. But to sit there and get the government involved and put together four years of investigation to go after your dope boy? That’s wrong. For Bud Selig to turn his back on Bonds for the past several years is wrong. For everyone to make Barry Bonds as the scapegoat of the entire problem while Giambi, Sosa, and McGuire quietly go about their business is wrong. The government is trying to bring justice to this whole situation but the ironic part about it is the way they’re doing so is unjust. Taking Barry Bonds and making him the poster boy for steroids and what was wrong with baseball is not only unfair, but immoral.

And again, let me reiterate so I don’t get stupid emails calling me a steroid-condoning prick; steroids and any form of cheating in a sport is not the thing to do. I don’t condone it. But enough with everyone playing the morality card as if we’re all angels who run a straight route our whole lives. The same people who are criticizing Bonds, like Chicago Sun Times beat writer Jay Marrioti, are the same ones who collectively said that Shawn Merriman of the San Diego Chargers should be the defensive player of the year even after he was suspended for half the season due to steroid use. They are the same people who quickly dismiss the notion of putting an asterisk next to the New England Patriots perfect season, even though they were caught cheating and punished for it; but definitely want an asterisk next to Bonds homerun record even though he was never caught cheating.

Do you really think that the NFL is a clean sport where 350 pound lineman can run 4.8 second 40 yard dashes, and guys can come back from a grade three knee sprain in a matter of a week or two when in reality, it’s a month long injury at minimum? You really think that NFL players can be that big and that strong naturally? Don’t kid yourself. Quit throwing the “Steroids sets a bad example for the kids” card around so freely, just so that you can justify Bonds being put behind bars of banned from the game. You know what sets a bad example for the kids? I’ll tell you.

• Gambling on a sport (MLB)
• Most popular player found guilty of dogfighting (NFL)
• Reinstating repeat marijuana-use offenders into the league (NFL)
• Steroid using player, who was found guilty of it, winning Defensive Player of the Year (NFL)
• Having starting point guards blackmail their head coach (NBA)
• Sexual harassment cases in the front office (NBA)
• Players’ posse shooting up strip clubs (NFL and NBA)
• Coaches using cameras to cheat (NFL)
• Quarterbacks getting actresses pregnant while dating other super models. (Yeah, you’re damn right I just went there. I don’t care if it’s Tom Brady or not) (NFL)

Since we’re all so conscious and adamant about what’s good for the kids and about being role models, let’s open our eyes to other things that we either ignore or put on the backburner after a few days or weeks blow by. If you’re going to walk around with a stick and discipline people, don’t slam the stick down on certain people because you don’t like them, and lightly tap others on the wrist. That’s not fair.

The steroids problem in baseball was a terrible predicament. It is something that I’m sure, in hindsight, baseball regrets having let happen. There are a lot of things not only baseball would have done differently, but Bonds, McGuire, and Sosa would have done differently as well. However, if we want to move on with the sport and have it rehabilitate itself, we need to close the chapter on that era. There were steps being taken to instill a stiffer drug testing policy. The repeat users are being weeded out. The steroids era was looking like it was put to a close and a new era, “The Post Steroids Era”, was beginning.

But just like always, the MLB in conjunction with the government have stepped in and basically hit rewind on the whole drama. Going after Bonds doesn’t solve anything now. It’s a far stretch to think a jury will find him guilty. And suppose that they do; Then what. What are you going to do? Pretend that he didn’t break the record? Once something has been broken, justly or unjustly, it’s broken. You are not going to convince me or anyone else who is into sports that Hank Aaron is still the homerun king. He’s not. You can’t undo the past.

Baseball had a great story this year with the Yankees surging back the way they did and the season finishing with the Red Sox winning their second title this decade. There are lots of great players that are on the trade block and teams will be realigning soon. There is so much to look forward to for the sport but now we’ve all gone back into the debate mode regarding steroids.

I look at this like when two divorced parents finally get back on good terms and the child is starting to feel comfortable again. There is a sense of calmness in the air giving one the impression that “hey, everything is going to be alright now.” Then, one of the parents brings up something nasty from the past and they get back to fighting. Congratulations to the MLB and the United States Government. You have managed to throw fuel on a dying fire; once again.

“I’m not here to talk about the past. I’m here to be positive about this subject.” - Mark McGwire

Who would have thought that McGwire’s famous remarks in 2005 would make the most sense in 2007.

Today’s Rundown 9/27

Whats up people. It’s Thursday… which means we’re one day away from Friday, so get excited. I got a lot coming today and tomorrow as far as articles and posts are concerned. It’s been a while since I’ve written an in depth piece on something going on in sports so I’ll be putting out two in the next two days. Here’s the plan:

Thursday:

- College Football Weekly Picks (sometime this afternoon)

- Article with some thoughts on the NBA, it’s been a while (sometime this afternoon/evening)

Friday:

- State of the Quarterbacks in the NFL article (Morning)

***The article will be my thoughts on who’s good, who’s not, where certain qb’s will be next season (i.e. McNabb, Grossman, Culpepper etc)***

- Weekly NFL Picks Outright (Afternoon)

- NFL Picks Versus Spread (Afternoon/Evening)

Now that you know the plan, lets move on to Today’s Rundown.

*This will be the first and last time that I ever talk about the Women’s World Cup on here but there is a specific reason for me doing so today. The US Women got waxed 4-0 by Brazil and this is significant ONLY because there was a goalie change announced yesterday. The reason to replace Hope Solo (what a name) with the other goalie (who’s name I have forgotten) was because she had an undefeated streak going against Brazil. My thoughts are this. Don’t tinker with something that works. And more importantly, you can’t replace a goalie who has played well, and has ‘hope’ as her first name! That’s just bad karma. Moving on…

*The New Yawk Yankees have clinched their 13th consecutive playoff birth and will be facing off with the Cleveland Indians in the opening series. This is only news because nobody, including myself, thought they could pull this off back in June. Just goes to show that you should never count the Yankees, Lakers, or Dallas Cowboys out of anything.

*Barry Bonds played his final game last night as a member of the San Francisco Giants. The Giants honored him by having his jersey number etched into outfield where he stands. Bonds went 0-3 in the Giants’ 11-3 loss.

*Speaking of Bonds, if you haven’t heard already, Cooperstown will reportedly accept the 756 ball with an asterisk branded into it by designer Marc Ecko. Ecko held an internet voting poll for the fans to determine the fate of the ball. The other two options were to put the ball in the Hall of Fame as is, or to shoot into space on a rocket. Fans apparently felt the asterisk was sufficient.

*I’m sure you’ve heard by now, Michael Vick tested positive for marijuana on a test taken September 13th. It’s somewhat sad to see that this guy still doesn’t understand the importance of making wise decisions, given what he’s already gone through and what he’s about to go through.

Today’s Rundown 7/25

I was too infatuated with my Draft Day endeavors to really pay attention to what was going on today in the world of sports, unless it was something really important. Fortunately, I didn’t miss all that much. Here’s the rundown:

*USA Basketball is looking like it’s back to the way it used to be. The National Team spanked Canada by 50 points, improving their record to 3-0. Kobe Bryant threw in 15 points. The United States is averaging 116 points a game, not far off from the 1992 Dream Team who was dropping 121.2 per contest. It’s good to see that the men’s team is back to dominating after having such embarrassing outings the past few years. It doesn’t hurt that Kobe is on the team either. USA plays undefeated Brazil for the top seed in Group B on Sunday.

*Barry Bonds blasted homerun number 761 against the Brewers today, a day after being given the key to the city in San Francisco. Whether you hate him, love him, or are indifferent; there is no question that Bonds can still play in this league come next year.

*Michael Vick was suspended indefinitely by Commissioner Roger Goodell last night. No surprises there. The Falcons are trying to get somewhere around $22 million back from Vick as well. Moving on…

The Steroids Era: 1998-August 7th, 2007

The steroids era has officially come to an end. Last night, as Barry Bonds’ 756^th homerun sailed into right centerfield shattering Hank Aaron’s record, it brought along the conclusion of the most damaging time in MLB history. We don’t know the exact figure of how many MLB players were juiced up from the end of the 90’s through 2004. We know how many were caught, but not how many were really using. The fact of the matter is, we never will. Pitchers and hitters both used steroids to better themselves and for the most part, the MLB turned a blind eye and allowed it.

However, it is clear that the poster boy of the entire steroids era was Barry Bonds. He was tagged with the villain figure. The MLB and Bud Selig have done everything, and continue to do everything to isolate Barry Bonds from the game of baseball and make him the scapegoat. Fans and media have also taken a liking to putting the tag on Bonds. Whether it was fair or not, he was given that role because he was the one chasing down the greatest, most hallowed record in sports. The goal of the entire steroid investigation wasn’t to catch every player who had used during the given time period. Stiffer testing policies were put in place to prevent players from using in the future. The goal wasn’t to go after those who used in the past because the MLB knew that if they tried to do that, and even if they were successful in doing so, they would have to suspend over half the league.

Most of players who were juiced up during the past decade simply stopped when the testing got tough, they went back down to their average numbers, and essentially got a free pass. Players like Luis Gonzalez, who out of no where blasted 57 homeruns in 2001 at age 33 (when his previous career high was 31) are back down to their 20 homerun average and free and clear of any trouble. The media doesn’t go after these players though. They go after the big fish. The big fish were Sosa, McGwire, and most importantly, Barry Bonds.

The whole reason MLB went after Bonds so hard was because they knew that if he broke 755, there would be nothing they could do about it. They knew that once that record fell, they could suspend him for life if they wanted, but he would still be the king of homeruns forever. They knew that the all time leader of homeruns would have come from the steroids era. That’s not good for baseball. Having a villain and an accused cheater as the king of all records important is not something baseball could stomach. Well karma is a hell of a craze isn’t it?

Bud Selig and baseball rode Barry Bonds’ curtails to the high ratings, the increased sales, the sold out stadiums, the television contracts. They turned a cheek to all that was going on, all that was wrong with baseball. Well they got what they deserved. Baseball got exactly what it deserved. The record is forever broken and until Arod breaks it down the road, Barry Bonds is king.

Hank Aaron appeared on the video screen with a congratulatory message for Bonds after he broke the record last night. It was unexpected and very surprising to me. I was disappointed at first that Aaron wasn’t going to be a part of the celebration because it’s awkward to break someone’s record, without having them there to pass the crown onto you so to speak. However, Aaron came through with immense class and showed a lot by delivering the congratulations to Bonds. The approval of Aaron meant a ton to Bonds despite what he had said before and I’m sure it changes the views of the public, at least some of them. Hank Aaron’s endorsement means a lot in this equation. It was indeed a great moment.

Bug Selig delivered a message saying that what Bonds accomplished was great, but hinted quite bluntly that there was still an investigation going on. Well guess what? It’s too late. The fans have recognized Bonds as the homerun champion, the media for the most part has, and now it’s time for baseball to drop it and let history be what history is. No matter what happens from here on forward, whether they find something on him and suspend him, whatever happens, Barry Bonds hit 756. No one can take that from him or from history.

As number 756 dropped into the stands of AT&T Park last night shortly before midnight, I came to a realization. I realized that I just saw a huge part of sports history. I also just saw the last big homerun that Barry Bonds, the best player of this generation and one of the best of all time, will ever hit. His final homerun won’t have the excitement and anticipation as 756 did. I’m never going to stay up like a little kid, glued to the TV to see if Barry breaks the next record in line because he is now at the top. He climbed the mountain that a lot of us didn’t think he could conquer at various times during the past five years. Despite everything, all the hate, the negativity, the investigations, the 24/7 media coverage, Bonds overcame it all and now stands alone at the peak. I respect that.

I turned off the TV, got into bed and went to sleep last night knowing that the steroids era was finally over. I went to sleep knowing that I got to witness history; that’s a good feeling.

(It’s all over now. 756 is in the books.)

Bonds hits 755

Barry Bonds has done it. Homerun #755 was knocked out of the park at Bonds’ first at-bat in the second inning against the San Diego Padres.

Congrats to Barry Bonds.

Sidenote:
Bud Selig stood, did not clap. Coward and a hypocrite.

My Final Verdict on Barry Bonds

Let me preface this article by saying this; I have spent the past two years listening to fans and the media complain nonstop about Barry Bonds and his quest to break the record. I listened how it’s wrong, and how it’s tainted because he “allegedly” used steroids. I watched Philly fans turn their back and face the opposite direction everytime Bonds was up to bat (they should probably do that anyway because their team sucks ass). There have been 392,745,235 Outside the Lines Nightly reports and investigations on Bonds. Yet we have found nothing. No evidence worth a dime to ban this guy from the league. So I’ve had enough of the bitching and moaning. If you’re a Barry Bonds hater and all of a sudden, in love with Hank Aaron even though you’ve likely never seen a full game of his in your life, click the “x” at the top of the screen and save yourself the time of reading this next piece.

I spent yesterday evening watching TV and listening to various sports journalists like Jay Marriotti, Woody Paige, etc. go on about how Barry Bonds has a “responsibility” to participate in the Home Run Derby because the fans voted him in. He is “obligated” to do it for the fans.

No. He’s not obligated to participate in the Home Run Derby and he doesn’t have a responsibility to the fans either. His responsibility, like Arod’s, is to his team. Barry Bonds is obligated to the San Francisco Giants. Not the fans that voted him into the All Star game. If you invite me to a party, I will come. That doesn’t mean I have to do a kegstand. I don’t have a responsibility or obligation to you to get plastered just because you invited me to your party. Same concept with Bonds. If the guy doesn’t want to swing his hardest at balls being tossed 30 mph at him, he doesn’t have to. Him participating in this slugfest would be good for who? For Major League Baseball. Why should Bonds do ANYTHING for Major League Baseball at this point when it’s not even clear yet that the commissioner, the hypocrite that he is, will be at the biggest sporting event of the year (breaking of Aaron’s record). What has the MLB done for Bonds? They are searching as hard as they can to find ANY slight bit of evidence that can get Bonds kicked out of the league. That leads me to my next bit of ranting.

I don’t care if you’re Barry Bonds, Mark McGuire, Sammy Sosa, Luis Gonzalez, or Rafael Palmairo. I don’t care if you had a spike in home runs during those years in the 90’s or not. I really don’t. I don’t care if you did steroids. Do I think it’s bad? Yes. Do I think its bad for the game overall? Absolutely. But the fact of the matter is, pretty much everyone was on the juice. Not just hitters. Do you think pitchers were playing fair and hitters were the only ones sticking syringes in their.. well, you know where. I can’t understand why more people don’t view this matter in the same light as me. The game in those years was artificial to some extent but if everyone is using ‘roids, (for the most part), then the playing field is still relatively even. Yeah so instead of hitting the wall, some balls were homeruns. Same concept with pitchers though. Instead of taking a week to rest up, they were coming back a day or two quicker. They were throwing the ball a bit harder, a bit faster. Everything stayed relatively proportionate. So to single out Bonds, McGuire, and Sosa, after riding their wave and them pretty much keeping baseball on the map is so hypocritical that it makes me sick.

Lastly, we all know Barry Bonds is going to break the record. It’s a done deal. For those of you who are all bitter about how it’s happening, I understand that and that is fine. But be a witness to history because at the end of the day, the steroids era, good or bad, was history. Bonds breaking this record is history. And you don’t have to be bitter for too long because it’s only a matter of a couple of years before Arod becomes the all time home run king. Bonds breaking this record will actually bring closure and we can all move on, no matter what our opinions or beliefs are about the era. And one more thing. Bud Selig had better be there when it happens because he knew this stuff was going on the entire time. That being said, history is a few weeks from happening. Watch it. Love it or hate it, that’s on you. But at least say you were there when the games best hitter, or the games biggest cheater, broke the most hallowed record in all of sports.

(like it or not, it’s going to happen folks. Witness history. Good or bad, it’s still history)