Alex Rodriguez and Steriods and MLB

Hi Fans,

I know we all have feelings about A-Rod and the Steriod issue that has taken over the front and back pages of every newspaper and sports magazine in America. Is anyone really shocked? Any true fan of the game that has been following along should not be. This was not a shock and was "only a matter of time". Even after admitting to doing steriods from 2001-2003, I do think that he will be linked to PEDs in the 2004 season as well, his first as a Yankee. It seems quite clear that he was tipped off in 2004 of an upcoming test. If this did happen, the truth will come out eventually.

At this point, it is very hard to trust A-Rod in any way, shape, or form. His word is not longer going to be believed because of what has not occurred. Whether it was his interview with Katie Couric or his "interview" with Peter Gammons, any interview in the future will looked "staged". It is going to take him a long time, if ever, to regain the trust of the baseball world and the viewing audience.

The bottom line is where do we go from here. First off, the other 103 players MUST be named. Otherwise, it is not fair to the other 600-700 players as they are now "guilty by suspicion". My only point might be to not name the players who are now retired. Not that anyone deserves a pass, but I would only name the players playing today.

MLB, Selig, and Fehr look worse and worse every day that this passes. But we were all "involved" in one way or another as most fans all knew that players were doing steroids, of we all looked the other way. Baseball was riding the home run show by McGwire and Sosa and ignored the obvious. As each home run cleared the wall, they all looked the other way, and so did we, the fans of the game. We lost perspective of what was important with each passing home run. I can only imagine today that Roger Maris was rolling in his grave as each home run cleared the wall. We now know that Mr. Roger Maris is still the "true" single season home run king. And to me, Mr. Henry Aaron is still the all-time home run champion.

Time will tell what happens to Mr. Rodriguez and the game of baseball, but the threat of Mr. Selig to punish A-Rod or anyone else is an outrage. Mr. Selig needs to cover his own tracks and worry about his own image. This all occurred on his watch and he is responsible. These were his players and ultimately, he is responsible for everything that occurred during his watch. It was all summed up when the Mitchell report was published and Mr. Selig said he did not yet have time to read it. 2 years to complete a report and he did not have time. Enough said....

It will be interesting to see how A-Rod handles the pressure in New York and all over the country. The chant of "A-Roid" will be the least of his worries....

Brad