Dec 13 (Reuters) - Some key points made in former Sen. George Mitchell's report on the use of performance-enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball, released on Thursday.
* There was widespread use of illegal steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs by Major League Baseball players for more than a decade, in violation of federal law and baseball policy.
* Some of the game's biggest stars -- home run king Barry Bonds and top pitcher Roger Clemens, among them -- used drugs.
* Players from all 30 teams were found to use drugs at some time in their careers.
* Baseball's response to drug use by its players was "slow to develop and initially ineffective."
* Report recommends a year-round, unannounced drug testing program that should be administered by an independent authority.
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=reu-steroidskeypoints_factbox&prov=reuters&type=lgns
It's been clear to those of us who watch that this has been going on for a long time. In the past couple of decades players have grown and records have fallen at an unnatural pace. But now the truth is out.
Baseball has overcome scandals and strikes before, and I believe that baseball can overcome this, but a lot of work will need to be done to restore integrity.
added: The list of names in the report is here: http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ys-mitchellnames121307&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
1 comment:
I like to point out that that jerk, Roger Clemens, didn't join the Yankees until after their great year in 1998. So I am thinking only Chuck Knoblach was a blot on their escutcheon that year. I don't believe Andy Pettite was using steroids back then, he was just a kid of like 26 and skinny. Of course I could be wrong and I haven't read the Mitchell report which may have dates that prove otherwise.
I always hated Roger Clemens. And even with steroids he could never come through in the clutch when he needed to. I am not convinced it helped him all that much. It just kept him going longer in his career. He probably would've had to retire sooner otherwise. Of course, that is still unfair, I agree. I'm not defending anyone using steroids.
I actually think Knobbie may have done worse when he started using them. In the beginning he used to hit a lot of "small ball" - nice little singles that got him on base. Then all of a sudden he started swinging for the fences and striking out a lot. Was that when he began using steroids? I need to see the timeline...
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