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FacebookAs the Alex Rodriguez steroid scandal unfolded, I traded emails with a buddy of mine. The nature of these letters explored my emotional impact of baseball’s best player being a cheat. I thought they were rather well-written (that and it’s been a slow week) so I decided to post my side of the emails here.
This Arod announcement has taken me to a new level of jaded. Not because I’m a scorn Yankee fan, but because what it means. I now realize there is nothing true from the home run explosion of the 90s. Mark Grace wasn’t mediocre because he didn’t hit enough bombs–he just happened to be the only person clean. Look at the list–all of the great players of the past 15 years are linked to steroids. I’m not going to name everyone because you know every one, but the majority of them have juiced. Not just speculation. Now there’s failed drug tests and BALCO allegations. Camaniti and Canseco’s claim of 75 percent of baseball looks very, very true.
Arod was supposed to be different. I remember when he was a number one pick out of high school. He was always supposed to be great so that’s why I personally never questioned his drug use. In retrospect, how did I miss it (he’s friggin’ huge!). To learn Arod is juicing, it’s like the last straw–the last hero has been caught. I can’t give anyone the benefit of the doubt anymore.
We’ve all seen the home run increase. I remember a time when there only two players in all of history to hit 50 bombs in a season and NOT win an MVP award–that shows you just how special 50 is. If I felt like putting any research into, I’d compare the number of 50-HR seasons over the past 15 years to the number of 50-HR seasons prior to 1995. I’d be willing to bet the past 15 years doubled all of baseball history.
Bonds, Clemens, and Arod–three of baseball all-time greats are cheats. I have no reason to think anyone is clean anymore. Jim Thome isn’t one of baseball 20 greatest hitters yet ranks 15th all-time in jacks. In the past, I’d give him his due; now, he’s a cheat just like everyone else–only he hasn’t been caught yet.
Shawn Green and Luis Gonzalez seemed too thin to be juicing. Yet each one has seasons of unbelievable power numbers. Did I think they were juicing last week? No. Do I think they were juicing now? Yes. They’re both frauds–just like the rest of ’em.
I don’t think I’ll be able to view anybody the same. The fringe “great” players of our generation–Frank Thomas, Sheffield, Thome–I’ll never be able to look at them again the same way. I know Thomas lobbied against steroid use–but why should I believe him? He’s one of them.
I was opposed to Jim Rice’s inclusion of the Hall of Fame. To me, his number’s weren’t that great (that and if it takes more than five votes to get a guy in, he’s not an all-time great). That’s how outta whack my perspective has got. I’m use to seeing these mind-boggling numbers. Sean Casey and Mark Gruizlaink–guys who have decent careers–look like chumps when we’re the chumps for falling for the sexy, majestic flight of a juiced-up long ball. None of the mashers playing today can be judged against previous generations. Five hundred home runs still use to be special to me. But Thome was never special–nether was Sheffield, McGriff, or Delgado. Five hundred isn’t relevant for our generation. I think Andre Dawson and Tim Raines deserve to be in the Hall; Thome, Shef, McGwire do not.
This is getting a little winded. I’m going to watch the Arod interview I DVRed now. But I’m jaded–very, very jaded. Here’s to the Caesar Izturis of the world who never juiced…or at least we think.
I don’t trust anyone anymore. I’m mad at all the players, the union, and the owners–but I think I’m also mad at myself. In ’98 when both Sosa and McGwire were chasing the home run record, I remember questioning the validity of the chase. I knew nothing of steroids back then, but part of me wondered how genuine it could be if no one ever hit more than 61 and two guys were doing it the same season (back then the theories were juiced balls, small parks, and over expansion). Many times I wondered if this was legit since two people were doing it. But I quickly suppressed my concern because I wanted to see the record broken. It was exciting.
I’m sad and pissed because I feel lied to over the past decade. I knew baseball inside and out since I was ten. I knew all the stats, stories, and history of the game. What we’ve seen over the past ten years isn’t real. There was a time when 35 bombs lead the league. Baseball had its .300 hitters and its 30 home run hitters. A player was capable of doing one or the other. Batting well over .300 with power was completely unheard of. The guys who lead the league in batting average were the Wade Boggs-type–guys who hit .330 with little power.
I watched the power numbers grow and came to believe you could hit over .300 with power–real power. Not just the Don Mattingly/Kirby Puckett 25-HR power–but true triple crown threats. We live in a world where Adam Dunn and Pat Burrell get lambasted for only hitting .260. In the 80s, teams would kill for 30 home runs and .260–they called guys like that “clean up hitters.” Thanks to modern perspective, those guys are garbage.
I’m bitter about Arod because it’s obvious now all the great players are tied to steroids. I don’t remember where I read it–I wish I could so I could give him credit. The guy who broke Maris’ record (McGwire) is tied to steroids. The current single season and all-time career home run hitter (Bonds) is tied to steroids. The guy who will break that record (Aroid) is tied to steroids. The most dominant right-handed pitcher over the past 50 years (Clemens) is tied to steroids. Everyone is guilty–we have no reason to suspect otherwise. I feel cheated on and just like a scorned lover, it’s going to be hard for me to get over this.