MLB to Begin Steroid Investigation

[badgercub]

Other than penalties imposed by the criminal justice system (assuming they can convict in a court of law) what can MLB do? They had no policy for steroids on the books. There is no way they can go back and suspend someone for breaking a rule that did not exist prior to last year. While I think the players should be exposed I think this is just a dog and pony show. with no physical evidence and a case that is going to be based mainly on hearsay I highly doubt there will be any convictions other than in the court of public opinion. If you really want to stop the used of steroids you have to go after the source.

 

MLB can do whatever it wants. MLB is a private club, protected by Federal legislation.

 

The White Sox players were acquited in a trail and still got banned.

 

The players didn't have a union back then either. The players union is too strong today. I have a feeling they will drag this investigation out for quite sometime and release their findings towards the end of the season or even after the season is done. Therefor if someone like Bonds is definitively found to have used steroids he will just retire anyway. A second thing to think about is, what about some of these players from foreign countries where steroids are no illegal and baseball had no rule against them, what do you do about that?

 

There were rules against using steroids, they just didn't have a rule that allowed for testing of steroids. Getting caught with them was similar to getting caught with other illegal drugs.

 

IIRC wasn't there a big debate that a lot of these steroids were not on the banned list of substances until the last few years. I may be wrong, but again I am just playing devil's advocate. Looking at it from a defensive standpoint as to what the players and their union might argue.

[badgercub]

Other than penalties imposed by the criminal justice system (assuming they can convict in a court of law) what can MLB do? They had no policy for steroids on the books. There is no way they can go back and suspend someone for breaking a rule that did not exist prior to last year. While I think the players should be exposed I think this is just a dog and pony show. with no physical evidence and a case that is going to be based mainly on hearsay I highly doubt there will be any convictions other than in the court of public opinion. If you really want to stop the used of steroids you have to go after the source.

 

MLB can do whatever it wants. MLB is a private club, protected by Federal legislation.

 

The White Sox players were acquited in a trial and still got banned.

 

I don't think it really matters what is done to the players who are "proved" to have used steroids. It's about exposing the guilty. It's about showing the fans all of the evidence against those who used steroids. If they can finally prove that Bonds/Big Mac/Sosa/whoever was a steroid user beyond a reasonable doubt, this will be a success.

 

Selig has done a very good job in the last 2 years of cleaning up a mess that he was probably partially to blame for. The current steroid punishments are excellent, the testing policy is going in the right direction, and I expect this investigation to provide information about the recent history of the game.

 

I like it.

 

Selig is a boob.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

Selig is a boob.

 

Can't be -- I like boobs.

[Wilson A2000]

Closing the barn door after the horses already left comes to mind when I first read about this investigation.

 

To investigate properly and completely I would do the following.

 

I would give Barry Bonds, Mark McGuire, Sosa, and all the others a "get out of jail free card". Free and clear (Clear haha). Autonomy.

 

I would allow them to tell of what they used, how they used, whom they bought it from or how they got it. I'd have them tell everything without the threat of prosecution. If not, then the investigation will chase it's tail and never come up with anything of value.

 

I would have the statements of those individuals sealed for all time too.

 

You might ask why?

 

It's simple, if steroid's were really an issue before say 2005 then testing would have already been in place. But it wasn't.

 

So for the future health of the game why not ask the major players of that era to tell all for the benefit of the game? You can't expect to punish someone if it wasn't illegal at the time, but you can use their knowledge to shape the future of the steroid testing.

 

Just my $0.02.

 

 

It's to late to go back. Shame on baseball but it has an opportuinity to make things right again at least for the future.

 

They won't admit anything. They can find it out just about as easily wihtout asking them. Then their records can be x'd out. What steroids were illegal in MLB policy when Bonds hit his 73?

[Guest]

The players didn't have a union back then either. The players union is too strong today.

I'm wondering how much protection Bonds will get from the MLBPA on this one. If remember correctly I think that Bonds has opted out of a lot of MLBPA agreements to promote his own self-interests; independent merchandising deals and so forth.

[badgercub]

The players didn't have a union back then either. The players union is too strong today.

I'm wondering how much protection Bonds will get from the MLBPA on this one. If remember correctly I think that Bonds has opted out of a lot of MLBPA agreements to promote his own self-interests; independent merchandising deals and so forth.

 

well, my guess is they will defend him to the hilt because if they don't, it will erode some of their power and it could open the door for other players to be disciplined or suspended or whatever.

[biittner77]

The players didn't have a union back then either. The players union is too strong today.

I'm wondering how much protection Bonds will get from the MLBPA on this one. If remember correctly I think that Bonds has opted out of a lot of MLBPA agreements to promote his own self-interests; independent merchandising deals and so forth.

 

well, my guess is they will defend him to the hilt because if they don't, it will erode some of their power and it could open the door for other players to be disciplined or suspended or whatever.

 

But what can the players assoc. really do? This issue can't help but divide union members some of whom will support Bonds on principle while others will gladly let him burn.

 

Here's the best case scenario for everyone involved:

 

Bonds gets banned for 5 years with a chance to be reinstated.

 

This makes Selig look like a responsible disciplinarian for the the politicians.

 

The Players union can formally protest and then shrug their shoulders as if to say "Sorry Barry, we did what we could."

 

This Helps Bonds because he gets a way out that gains him sympathy from his remaining fans and he doesn't have to crawl away and hide. Bonds can then bemoan his fate for as long as he likes. Just like Pete Rose he can play the "I didn't do anything wrong card" for years thus creating a cottage industry around himself.

[abuck1220]

anybody see latroy hawkins freaking out on sportscenter?

 

'it's bs. it's [bleep]. nobody's guilty.'

 

something along those lines.

[badgercub]

The players didn't have a union back then either. The players union is too strong today.

I'm wondering how much protection Bonds will get from the MLBPA on this one. If remember correctly I think that Bonds has opted out of a lot of MLBPA agreements to promote his own self-interests; independent merchandising deals and so forth.

 

well, my guess is they will defend him to the hilt because if they don't, it will erode some of their power and it could open the door for other players to be disciplined or suspended or whatever.

 

But what can the players assoc. really do? This issue can't help but divide union members some of whom will support Bonds on principle while others will gladly let him burn.

 

Here's the best case scenario for everyone involved:

 

Bonds gets banned for 5 years with a chance to be reinstated.

 

This makes Selig look like a responsible disciplinarian for the the politicians.

 

The Players union can formally protest and then shrug their shoulders as if to say "Sorry Barry, we did what we could."

 

This Helps Bonds because he gets a way out that gains him sympathy from his remaining fans and he doesn't have to crawl away and hide. Bonds can then bemoan his fate for as long as he likes. Just like Pete Rose he can play the "I didn't do anything wrong card" for years thus creating a cottage industry around himself.

 

So Barry get's banned for 5 years, yet Rafael Palmeiro, who actually was caught red handed get 10 games, how is that fair?

[Chris]

anybody see latroy hawkins freaking out on sportscenter?

 

'it's bs. it's [bleep]. nobody's guilty.'

 

something along those lines.

 

That was a wild clip.

[Cubway]

Enough of this steroid investigation. Steroids caught the sports world by surprise back when it was not illegial. The baseball players union would not let players be tested so it was almost impossible to find out who was using them. The only thing we should do is to make sure they are not used now. If they want to put asterisks, exclamation points, question marks, or whatever before the players names in the record books, then so be it. But do not bring some useless political investigation that will accomplish nothing except to give baseball a black eye. Make sure that no players are using steroids now and let’s play ball!

[goonys evil twin]

Enough of this steroid investigation. Steroids caught the sports world by surprise back when it was not illegial. The baseball players union would not let players be tested so it was almost impossible to find out who was using them. The only thing we should do is to make sure they are not used now. If they want to put asterisks, exclamation points, question marks, or whatever before the players names in the record books, then so be it. But do not bring some useless political investigation that will accomplish nothing except to give baseball a black eye. Make sure that no players are using steroids now and let’s play ball!

 

The best way to make better decisions in the future is to know how and why you went wrong in the past.

[CubinNY]

Enough of this steroid investigation. Steroids caught the sports world by surprise back when it was not illegial.

 

Steriods are controlled substances, unless you have a legitamite perscription they are illegal. The fact that they were not a banned substance is beside the point.

[Cubway]

Enough of this steroid investigation. Steroids caught the sports world by surprise back when it was not illegial. The baseball players union would not let players be tested so it was almost impossible to find out who was using them. The only thing we should do is to make sure they are not used now. If they want to put asterisks, exclamation points, question marks, or whatever before the players names in the record books, then so be it. But do not bring some useless political investigation that will accomplish nothing except to give baseball a black eye. Make sure that no players are using steroids now and let’s play ball!

 

The best way to make better decisions in the future is to know how and why you went wrong in the past.

 

We know that they used them, we know why they used them, we know how they used them. I really do not care who used them. It's over and done with. Just get steriods out of the game now and let's "play ball". If the players were so upset that some of their peers had as advantage over them, then why did they not speak up when all of this was going on?

[jjgman21]

I heard a quip on the radio this morning from one of the guys involved in the investigation of Pete Rose. he said this investigation is a sham, and his reasoning seemed to make sense to me.

 

George Mitchell is a part owner of the RedSox. he has a built in conflict of interest. how can this investigation be taken seriously when the objectivity of the person conducting the investigation is clearly in doubt right from the start?

[goonys evil twin]

Enough of this steroid investigation. Steroids caught the sports world by surprise back when it was not illegial. The baseball players union would not let players be tested so it was almost impossible to find out who was using them. The only thing we should do is to make sure they are not used now. If they want to put asterisks, exclamation points, question marks, or whatever before the players names in the record books, then so be it. But do not bring some useless political investigation that will accomplish nothing except to give baseball a black eye. Make sure that no players are using steroids now and let’s play ball!

 

The best way to make better decisions in the future is to know how and why you went wrong in the past.

 

We know that they used them, we know why they used them, we know how they used them. I really do not care who used them. It's over and done with. Just get steriods out of the game now and let's "play ball". If the players were so upset that some of their peers had as advantage over them, then why did they not speak up when all of this was going on?

 

So we should just ignore it, and then pick on the non-users?

 

You don't care. Fine. Other people do. And it matters.

[Cubway]

I did not say that we should ignore it. I said that we should spend our time getting steroids out of the game now. I am just not sure what purpose is served by having the news media harp all summer on who used them in the past and who didn't.

Steroids have probably been used in all walks of life from high schoolers who were athletes and even those kids who just wanted to get bigger to attrack the girls. Even adults would use them for different reasons.

It was as sad part of our history and I believe we should just chalk it up to that and move on. We should have stopped it before now but these things just take time. We now know the harm it can do to us.

[goonys evil twin]

I did not say that we should ignore it. I said that we should spend our time getting steroids out of the game now. I am just not sure what purpose is served by having the news media harp all summer on who used them in the past and who didn't.

 

In order to get them out of the game, it is helpful to have a full understanding of just how they affected the game. And when you have guys as close to the situation as Dusty Baker claiming he didn't even know what steroids were, well then obviously baseball needs to find out more about the story.

 

As for your complaint about the media harping, well, that's not MLB's job. You deny thinking they should ignore it, but the rest of your words certainly indicate you'd much rather pretend nothing is wrong and move forward, Mark McGwire style, than actually do something about the problem. Once you admit there was a problem, if you want to solve the problem you better get as much information about that problem that you can get.

[UK1679666180]

Does anyone think MLB is conducting this "inevstigation" moreso to prevent Congress getting involved again as far as questioning the effectiveness of the steroid policy rather than Bonds' setroid use?

 

All this hype over the new book is pretty similar to when Canseco published his book.

 

The last thing MLB wants is Congress making a fool out of Selig and Fehr again.

[goonys evil twin]

Does anyone think MLB is conducting this "inevstigation" moreso to prevent Congress getting involved again as far as questioning the effectiveness of the steroid policy rather than Bonds' setroid use?

 

All this hype over the new book is pretty similar to when Canseco published his book.

 

The last thing MLB wants is Congress making a fool out of Selig and Fehr again.

 

I think MLB has a few motivations. One is to keep congress an arm's length away. One is to try and humiliate the union. One is to show the public they are serious about steroids. And despite all this cynicism, I do think that part of it is to make positive headway with the steroids problem.

[UK1679666180]

What can MLB do to investigate Bonds is my question? They can't force anyone to talk and don't have the authority to get evidence.

 

The only evidence they have is what testing they have done thru urine, which he has passed and leaked grand jury testimony in the book.

 

Him passing the tests of '05 is Barry's get of jail free card.

 

They can say we believe he took steroids, but if their only proof is from that book, what are they going to do?

[goonys evil twin]

What can MLB do to investigate Bonds is my question? They can't force anyone to talk and don't have the authority to get evidence.

 

They might not be able to force people to talk, but they could convince some people to talk, and might find some people who can't wait to talk. And with a senator on the job, I wouldn't be surprised if they found some way to inspire a few people to talk.

 

Besides, it's not all about Bonds. Sure he's a major player in the story, but there's a whole lot more to look into if they ever get stuck on the Bonds angle.

[UK1679666180]

What can MLB do to investigate Bonds is my question? They can't force anyone to talk and don't have the authority to get evidence.

 

They might not be able to force people to talk, but they could convince some people to talk, and might find some people who can't wait to talk. And with a senator on the job, I wouldn't be surprised if they found some way to inspire a few people to talk.

 

Besides, it's not all about Bonds. Sure he's a major player in the story, but there's a whole lot more to look into if they ever get stuck on the Bonds angle.

 

But, then what? They can't suspend him, he's already passed their test. They won't say rumors have him taking HGH last year, they might want that for tougher testing, but Congress will jump on them 1st and the union will do nothing.

 

Nothing can come from this that hasn't been mentioned in the book.

 

This will be a comedy hour, once the results are released from the investigation.

[goonys evil twin]

But, then what? They can't suspend him, he's already passed their test. They won't say rumors have him taking HGH last year, they might want that for tougher testing, but Congress will jump on them 1st and the union will do nothing.

 

Nothing can come from this that hasn't been mentioned in the book.

 

This will be a comedy hour, once the results are released from the investigation.

 

Again, it's not all about Bonds. But who knows, maybe they can humiliate him into retirement. I think they have a chance to make some good out of this investigation. They could get even more testing on the new stuff, they could open the door for the ability to upgrade testing whenever they need to. They could hurt the union in other ways, which would help them in their next round of CBA talks. I'm not saying I have great faith in these guys, but they are not in a hopeless position to accomplish nothing.

[UK1679666180]

It's not all about Bonds but he is the focal point and much of the investigation will be centered around him. MLB would not be conducting this investigation if Bonds did not have the grand jury testimony as well as the likely possibility that he used steroids and isn't close to breaking Ruth's 714.

 

I can't see anything good coming from this except a weak attempt for some good PR.