On one hand, I want A-rod out of the game, to be shipped back home and have to read about MLB and the Schmuck stops here from his newspaper. On the other, I'd like to see him surpass Bonds as the home run king. I just didn't expect this roids thing to be linked to him. I truly believed he had the natural talent all along.

Hi Pete,

I think you are right in that A-Rod does have time to prove that he is a very good player with or without steroids. However, I don't think you should compare him to Kobe Bryant or Ray Lewis. Both Kobe and Ray did things off the field to tarnish their image. The purity of their games and performances has never been in questions. That is why it has been easier to forgive them as athletes (however misguided that may be). When athletes cross the line and sully their sport, people have a much harder time forgiving them than if they, say, allegedly rape or kill someone.

Can MLB do anything to A-Rod? Strip him of his MVP? Suspend him? Is it too late now? Were those substances banned then? Any info?

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Pete's reply: Baseball can do nothing. The survey testing program came with a guarantee of no discipline for anyone testing positive.

A-Rod will also have 10+ years of his career in a testing era - even if he was juicing back a few years ago he will still have most of his career in an era of testing and heightened scrutiny. If he plays this the right way in the next few days he can make his juicing a relevant but still distant memory when he passes the Babe, Hank, and Barry in the record books and when he becomes eligible for Cooperstown. This is an opportunity that Rocket and Big Mac will have missed out on.

Arod, or, for that matter, "no" baseball player will "ever" be "clean" to me any longer. With the money involved in US sports I'll bet there are more people working on undetectable steroids then on a Cancer cure. And furthermore, if there are already drugs which can be cycled so quickly as to make discovery more difficult, and unscrupulous people such as Gene Orza (or, so he has been accused), to inform athletes of testing schedules, then why should I EVER believe that these recent records were created honestly?

We, as a nation, helped create this problem by demanding human players perform super human feats on the field. What has happened to the game I love? We all share blame.

Go O's!

Only the home town fans forgive but, nobody forgets. How much money does Ray and Kobe make in endorsements?

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Pete's reply: Plenty.

When do you head down for Spring Training?

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Pete's reply: Friday morning.

Really Peter? Really? Comparing Ray Lewis to A-Rod? Thats ridiculous. First off Ray Lewis is not viewed as a muderer today( with the exception of the Ray Lewis haters out there) and second A-Rod like Bonds, Clemens, and McGuire were cheating to boost their numbers up. Majority of the fans don't like cheaters and we will never forgive them including A-Rod. The reason why A-Rod will always be mentioned for taking steriods is because he lied. People who lie will face the consequences if they don't tell the truth. Thats why Brian Roberts, Jason Giambi, and Andy Pettite are not in this mess today, since they told the truth right away instead of holding anything back.

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Pete's reply: Don't get your panties in a bunch. I'm not comparing anyone, just pointing out that time puts things in a different perspective.

Funny you should mention Kobe Bryant. I honestly can't believe he's been forgiven for what he did in Colorado. And I've never been a fan of Ray Lewis either although it seems his specific case is a bit more sympathetic (he was an accessory to a crime, if I remember correctly).

I think you're generalizing when you say these people are forgiven and that probably goes for A-Rod as well.

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Pete's reply: To be precise, Ray was only on the hook for obstruction of justice because he was not immediately truthful with police in the investigation of the two deaths in Atlanta.

Kobe and Ray Lewis's performances on the field after their "mistakes" did help them. I don't doubt either will make into the hall of fame of their respective sports. The big difference between their "mistakes" and A-Rod's is that they did not do something to cheat their game. Their "mistakes" were off the field. A-Rod cheated in his game. So, to me, the bigger question is in 15 years do the Hall voters view this cheat as more of a Gaylord Perry cheat, or a Pete Rose cheat.

Pete , you make a valid point . But the way I see it re: Kobe and Ray , basketball doesn't have a big following anymore , Ray plays in , lets face it Baltimore . Aroid plays in the media capital . Eventually , because he's retired ( I think) , thoughts of Clemens will go away . Much like McGwire , only to resurface with Hall discussion . Aroid will face the scrutiny 162++ days out of the year for the next nine years on that contract and then some .

I'm not going to stand here and defend A-Rod, but this is all getting ridiculous. Clearly it's a smear campaign, and I'm very disappointed that SI jumped on the bandwagon.

I have long hated Barry Bonds, but I even find myself siding with him now because of these "witch hunts". The feds, and to an extent even some MLB officials, are looking to make a name for themselves by taking down the "Kings" of the sport.

Let's say A-Rod was on that list...why is he the only name of 104 we're hearing? To me, guilty or not, it's nothing but a smear campaign against A-Rod by someone with a vendetta.

I absolutely love Mark McGwire, but did you notice how we've never heard his name linked concretely to anything positive?

I know his career ended before most of the new testing, but it's because he was a fan favourite and got along with pretty much everyone; not a prick like Clemens or Bonds, or socially awkward like A-Rod.

I hope whoever leaked this AND SI get charged with violating confidentiality agreements. Let's see the feds jump on that.

Until the media demands and gets full transparency every time another name is leaked, we or more appropriately put, you media types will go through this exercise in futility time and time again. I have total disdain for this type of over hyped piecemeal journalism. If you're going to publicly hang A-Rod, then lets hang the other 103 as well. Fair is fair. Do it once and get it over with.

And while the media is at it, how about releasing the names of those 4 unidentified sources that broke the law when they defied a court order
that sealed that document.

Care to comment ?

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Pete's reply: I think if they had the whole list, they would have published it. I love it when people want to punish the ones who are telling the truth rather than the ones who broke the rules.

ARod will also have a new set of undetectable drugs in the coming years to keep him fueled up. Players are wising up from those free wheelin' days before testing.

I am continually amazed at the forgiveness of Kobe Bryant, who should be serving a life sentence.

Great comment, If he just comes clean says he made a mistake and moves forward he would still take a beating this year, but people would get over it. BRob did the same thing and he still gets a positive reception at the Yard.

WHO ARES...JUST THE RADIO SHOW HOST'S AND BLOGGERS. I AM TIRED OF MANNY..AFRAUD..AND THE REST OIF THEM..LET'S PLAY BALL AND GO BIRDS..JUST WIN GUYS

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Pete's reply: Since I am a talkshow host AND a blogger, does that mean I care twice as much?

Pete--I disagree with your comparison for the following reasons. Major
League Baseball's career home run record compels interest, fascination
that the careers of Kobe Bryant and Ray Lewis, as accomplished as they may be, do not.

Also, just as many of us were not surprised by this "revelation," do you
not think it likely that Alex Rodriguez is using something right now that
is at least one-step ahead of the testing apparatus?

The Yankees reupped A-Rod to the long contract so that they could cash in on the celebration of a Yankee becoming the all-time home run leader. Call it the revenge of Babe Ruth.

So much for that investment.

There is a major difference between Ray/Kobe and Arod's problems. Ray/Kobe's problems happened off the playing field. Arod essentially cheated his way to greatness, Ray/Kobe did not. I'm not excusing their poor decisions but it is hard to overlook cheating in regards to HOF voting.

Disagree, time wounds all heels.

The thing A-Rod must not do now is LIE. Andy P. became more respected after he told the truth.

Saw a Schmuck scooper on ebay today. What does it do?

Peter,

Kobe and Ray Lewis are in a different situation, they didn't cheat their games. Cheating the game kills A-Rod's integrity. Nobody cares that Barry Bonds lied and is being charged for perjury, they care that he cheated the game. I assure you that A-Rod's transgression will not be forgotten.

Pete:

We do care about those who break the rules, but why should we ignore the others?

Anyone who leaked this also broke rules...court ordered rules, I might add.

And guys like Canseco, who throw EVERYONE under the bus to make a buck, and then try to sell it as them wanting to clean up the game.

To me, they're all just as bad. At least ARod has now manned up and taken responsibility for it.

Guys like ARod and McGwire should be in the hall, because they still had phenomenal years when they were off the stuff. Hell, Mac hit 49 in his rookie year, and then 70 in 1998. If we believe his brother, Jay McGwire, who I think is a much more reliable source than Canseco, Big Mac wasn't using steroids in either of those two seasons. And Andro was perfectly legal at the time. The guys clearly have hall of fame talent, even if they made wrong decisions for a couple years.

Does anybody know where I can get a foam syringe costume for opening day?

A lot of the bloggers are not going to like my take on this ,but that's OK. Pete, maybe you won't like it either. But it seems to me , that the further they dig the more people used steroids than didn't. It may not be the right thing to do, but the fact remains that, until the last few years, baseball turned their collective back to all of it. After all, supposedly more home runs and more strikeouts were put up because of performance enhancing drugs.And that sold tickets. The bottom line is, no one knows who did use and who didn't . It's kind of like smoking pot. Even our President has admitted smoking pot. And so did Clinton.
What I'm getting to is the ridiculousness of keeping everyone that is tainted out of the Hall of Fame. Regardless, Barry Bonds, Mark McGuire, Rodriguez, Rafael Palmiero, and maybe Conseco should be there, based on their performance. So should Pete Rose, the guy who outhustled everyone and had the most hits ever.
For God's sake OJ Simpson is in the Football Hall of Fame and he's a murderer. How much worse can it get than that. But I agree even he should be there , based on his on field performance.
There is pretty good evidence that most or all of these players would be great, with or without steroids. In short, some parks produce better pitchers or more homeruns, based on their dimensions. Wind plays a part, as does players in the batting order around a player. So what, if steroids also played a part. After all they were condoned for most of the last 20 or so years, maybe more and like it or not, were part of the game.. Did anyone ever hear of the rabbit ball, or a juiced ball? Maybe the onslaught of homeruns that started in the 50's and 60's was caused by steroids. Who knows. I'm 69 , and maybe nuts saying all this, but I never in my life, took any drugs and never even smoked a cigarette. But it's my belief that probably, more did than didn't and we should not let that decide who gets into the Hall. Most of our great players are not going to be there , as things are playing out. I'll close by saying that I will NOT EVER visit the Hall of Fame , as long as Clemens,Palmiero, Rose, Bonds and Rodriguez are not admitted. The Hall is a farce. It does not represent the best players in baseball. It represents the best behaved players. O, and by the way, maybe they should do some "cold case "investigating and eliminate Cobb and Ruth. I hear Cobb was a really mean and hateful guy and Ruth was a drunk. And Fergy Jenkins is in there, and he was arrested for smuggling cocaine into the country at an airport years ago. Some things to ponder, in my opinion.

Ray Lewis got a free pass here in Baltimore. If you talk to people away from this area, alot of them still say he is a murderer that got away with it. Same with Kobe. I think it depends on your love or hate of a team. A-Rod will continue to get paid, loved by Yankee fans, and detested by most everyone else.

It was a great move by A-Rod to go public with the truth. Americans can relate to someone who admits their mistakes, makes their penance and then moves on (Pettite, Giambi). We have all done things that we have had to apologize for and have needed the forgiveness of others. We get upset when people lie about their mistakes even when their hand has been caught in the cookie jar (Bonds, Clemens). I think A-Rod will be able to get past this and we will all be cheering for him in a few years when he passes Bonds as the Home Run king.

So differentiate between what A-Rod did and what Raffy P did... A-Rod plays on and Raffy was disgraced (even though MLB found his denial credible and most sources agree that he tested negative both before and after...). Oh year, A-Rod (and Giambi) played for the Yankees.

As others have mentioned, the Bryant and Lewis issues are different, as they involved outside events. Rodriguez, Clemens, Bonds, and McGwire cheated at baseball, and thus we view their baseball accomplishments differently.

Also, I have to disagree with the statement that Rodriguez has plenty of time to show he can play cleanly. Who can say who's clean these days? Athletes are still doping at the Olympics and in other sports where the testing is much more rigorous than in baseball--how can we be sure that any player is clean?

Frankly, I don't know if I can trust anything that happens on a baseball field anymore. It's a very sad set of circumstances.

All of the 104 baseball players testing positive in 2003 should be identified by baseball as Schilling said. Why? It is the sport including owners and players that scammed all of us. It tells the fans this is how widespread the use of drugs permiated baseball. Baseball has not right to punish them If some like to Congress, in court or to the media and the fans, they should pay the price of their deception.

I dont see what the big deal is...I played baseball growing up and I just dont care if the players choose to do roids...its a personal decision. In my opinion it does not give them any edge over anyone else in playing the game...maybe it makes them stronger...recover faster...but it also has its side effects as well...Mcguire and the likes deserve to be in the Hall just As ARod. Bonds I just have never liked and dont care if he makes it. Arod is a great player and good for baseball. Roids to me just are not a big deal..it should be a personal choice if you want to do roids and risk the after effects...go right ahead..its your life.

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Pete's reply: So it's okay with you if that personal choice forces the clean players out of the game because they can't compete. Anyone who says that steroids don't help you perform is fooling himself. If they didn't help you perform, we wouldn't be in this mess because no one would take them. They work, and if anyone is allowed to take them, everyone will have to take them or go home and pump gas. It's a devil's bargain.

John Calhoun: do you really believe that Andy P only took HGH once! If you believe that I understand that there is a bridge in NY that is up for sale!

Pete: Is it known if the senior leadership of baseball (Selig, DuPuy, Fehr, Orza) knew A-Roid specifically faoled this drug test? If they did, aren't they also guilty of fraud by not distancing themselves from a player likely to be the all-time home run champ? Remember Selig's lukewarm interest in Bonds breaking Aaron's record? When is the senior leadership of baseball going to be held accountable for the ruining the historical records including the Hall of Fame? And Orza et al now lawyer up and hide behind the law instead of stepping up and taking action.

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Pete's reply: I don't know what they knew.

I think they should test for it these days...but I do not think it should keep anyone out of the Hall. We have no idea of who has been using roids for the past 20 years...it should not negate anything people have done in the sport. You still have to have talent and skills...You don't all the sudden become an All Star caliber player just by taking roids...still takes hard work and determination.

The truth is, all 104 of the players named were victims of circumstance.

The circumstance was the simple fact that they were tested.

I've heard stories of players as prominent as Steve Garvey, Willie Mays, Bill Freehan, and Johnny Temple using questionable substances for various results.
But who ever tested THEM?

We remember the '79 Pirates as the "We Are Family" team..... but over half of them were using cocaine and the great "Pops" Stargell was one of them.

So who's campaigning to strip any of THEM of their records or HOF qualifications?

Same deal with the "You Gotta Believe" Mets.

I'd bet the farm that there was a long and silent period of ignorance both among the ranks of baseball players as well as fans during which these drugs first began to find their way into the bodies of athletes in general.

Yes.... I'm talking about players from all sports and athletic competition.
The thing is, baseball has always been "above" all the rest when it came to being a suspect.

Think about the very nature of Boxing, Football, Basketball, and Hockey for examples..... the constant necessity in those sports to perform at the peak of one's ability and to rebound from a literally physical beating for practically the entire duration of a contest.
OF COURSE the "edge" provided from some artificial enhancement would always be a sought-after thing.
So OF COURSE we always suspected the players of these particular sports to seek such an edge.

But BASEBALL???
Why??? I mean it's so "pastoral".
Players spend most of the game sitting or standing around waiting for the next play. They are the last ones we would ever suspect.

But the truth is, it has more to do with the individual personalities.... yes, the "kinds" of players who would allow themselves to become dependent upon these substances..... than it does the rigors of the particular sport.

In other words, I'm saying that the same guy who juiced up as a boxer would have also juiced up as a baseball player..... and that's why it's a character flaw..... and that's why we should DIShonor every last one of them.

Unfortunately, though, we'll never know just how many of them really existed or who they actually were before the so-called steroid era because nobody was calling for any tests.

Therefore, we should either stop picking on the guys who tested positive.... or stop glorifying the ones from bygone eras we know damned well would have.

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Pete's reply: Interesting take. Maybe you should be a columnist.

Not to defend the actions of ARod, and the other baseball guys but why are steroids only big news in baseball. Look at the NFL. You don't get 300 lbs with the speed those guys have eating extra donuts and lifting weights.

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Pete's reply: I'm pretty sure this is true because I've tried the donut part.

Do you know what would happen to most people in the US if they tested positive for a banned/controlled substance for a job piss test? Fired, out the gate, no questions asked. Why should we give these clowns, who make millions of dollars to play a CHILD'S GAME, a second chance, when the average Joe, living pay check to pay check, would not get that opportunity?

I believe that a positive test for steroids should buy that individual a lifetime ban from baseball. Christ, Pete Rose got one for a MUCH lesser offense. Illegal is illegal, right, eye for an eye and all that. Bud Selig is a moron who asked for and opened a Pandora's box. He now refuses to deal with the contents of that box accordingly, turning a blind eye or merely handing out wrist slaps. If you are serious about making a point you have to set benchmarks. Why not make the ultimate benchmark in banning the "Golden Boy", Mr. untouchable....let these grown children see that you mean business. Compared to every other major market sport out there, MLB's drug policy is a joke! But, this isn't every other major sport, this is baseball, the most storied game on earth...one of the most complex, yet so simple. These "juicers" are destroying that history...every single last one of them, right down to our "beloved" B Rob. Brian Roberts, like the rest of these jugheads, made a conscious decision to cheat the game of baseball, and the fans, the very second the needle hit skin.

Very sad. But...just look at the difference in the bodies on ESPN and ESPN Classic and you know that something is amiss.Those guys were no less committed. They just had less access to tools (as it were) of the beefed trade.
Regards,
the LCA

Funny how people forget, McGwire was one of the crowned stars of baseball, there was not too many that did not like him until he took the stage in front of Congress. He knew he was caught red handed and his denial and stepping on his tongue as he spoke that day was the day that he went from being a loved first time ballet hall of fame player to probably the second most hated steroid user next to Canseco.

How can you say you do not trust the game that has been the "national pastime" for 100 years. It is just a part of history but baseball will survive this and make it through I remember the strike of 1994 and fans were screaming they will not come back to support baseball, but guess what the fans came back in fact larger numbers than before, so before you say something like not trusting, think about all the political scandals, corporate lies and miss use of power that we have in the real world, but we still have a president, congress, corporations and a justice system. This is just a part of the history of the game, which is a small piece of our county but the game and our country will continue, regardless of this mess.

I believe Selig turned a blind eye on the steroid situation and really should have but you look at the facts, the amount of fans and revenue he looks like a genius. As much as I do not like him, you cannot argue with numbers. Remember the year of the great home run race was his first year he was not "acting" as commissioner. The 1994 strike he was "acting" and the players union walked all over him..

Pete: When people look back on the history of the game some 50 years from now, does Selig look like the genius or the goat? Also baseball has had nine commissioners, including Giamatti, who passed away in his first year. How do you rate them and who had the most positive impact?

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Pete's reply: I think in 50 years, Selig's legacy will remain a mixed bag. He presided over the cancellation of the World Series in 1994, but also over the economic renaissance of the sport. He'll get both credit and blame for the handling of the steroid era.

Here is the funny thing of it all. He denied it for years. Then when confronted with the proof, he said talk to the players union. Then he gives a contrite confession to Gammons, who used kid gloves. I say this because Alex redirected and skirted the issue of where he got the roids and Gammons did not push the issue enough. I also can not belive him that he took them from 2001-2003. convenient time period and no way to ever know if he took them beyond 2003. Also convenient it stopped prior to joining the Yankees. There is a good chance he was taking beyond 2003, but we will never know. How about at least throwing out his ridiculous numbers during those three years and accepting his career totals for the others when considering home run numbers and HOF considerations. And hope someone does not come forward saying they injected ARoid in 2005.

The difference between A-Rod and Bonds, McGwire, Sosa and Palmerio is that he admitted it. For some reason, people who are put on a pedestal that admit fault are given many chances to screw up.

I think they should publish all of them and test everyone every year. Or just forget about it and let them all kill themselves and go crazy shooting up.
Have it clean or let it go. Plenty of large corporations require drug tests, even with unions. These guys get paid enough to put up with a little humility.
And how about deducting all of Ariods stats for the years he was positive and let him work on his stats from there.

Pete-

Could that blogger Earl Battey be the same guy who caught for the Twins back in the pre-Cream and Clear sixties??

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