Anyone who is shocked by Mark McGwire’s statement admitting his steroid use is either painfully naive or belongs to that class of professionally outraged people who implore you to think of the children every time something mildly bothersome comes up. Anyone with a lick of sense knew years ago, or at least should have, that Mark McGwire took steroids. His confession is news in and of itself. The underlying facts of his steroid use is not. Or at least shouldn’t be.
So what about that confession? Like all confessions that are motivated by public relations as opposed to, say, police interrogation, this one has many of the hallmarks of phoniness we’ve come to expect. McGwire says “I wish I had never touched steroids,” and that “I
wish I had never played during the steroid era.” Sincere? Maybe. Only McGwire knows, but such wishcasting is designed, consciously or otherwise to make passive what was active. You wish away external circumstances like rainstorms on your wedding day. McGwire was in and of the steroid era. Even if he’s being less than candid about his using timeframe — 1989-90, 1993-on — there is no escaping the conclusion that McGwire, as we know him, is no victim of the steroid era. He is a creation of it, for all the good and the bad that entails.
McGwire cites his string of injuries in the early 90s as the main catalyst for his steroid use. We’ve heard this over and over from players who have been identified as steroid users. I have no doubt that this has an awful lot to do with why players used, but just once I’d like to hear someone say “man, I wanted to hit a boatload of homers and make a gabillion dollars, and I figure steroids would help me do it!” If you believe “Game of Shadows” this was a big motivator for Barry Bonds. Maybe he’ll make that part of his statement someday.
McGwire says “Baseball is really different now – it’s been cleaned up. The
Commissioner and the Players Association implemented testing and they
cracked down, and I’m glad they did.” Again, something we have no choice of taking at face value, but what I’m more interested in knowing is how he and his fellow PED users felt about things at the time. Did people feel it was wrong, or did they feel like it was harmless? Were they pressured into using, or was it simply a choice, like whether to do more cardio or more stretching on a given day?
There’s probably no fighting this black or white, good or bad dichotomy that has sprung up about steroids — and I’m sure McGwire has promised the Cardinals and Major League Baseball that he’ll hew to that line, possibly even as a condition of his employment – but the world doesn’t really work that way, and I’m curious what McGwire thought about it at the time he was injecting drugs. It’s not like steroids are habit forming like heroin. He had a choice. He wasn’t an addict. Some rationality went into it, and I’d like to know how it flowed in his mind. I think by knowing his of McGwire — and others who used — we’d have a much easier time putting the steroid era into perspective.
But enough about his statement. Like I’ve said, it was something that had to happen in light of McGwire’s return to the game and because so many people have clamored for it, but it doesn’t tell us anything particularly interesting or anything new. The only really significant question it does raise is whether the legions of writers who have called for McGwire to “come clean” will now acknowledge that he has come clean or, rather, use this occasion to excoriate him further.
We may already have an indication of how that will go. On October 28th, SI’s Jon Heyman wrote “now that he’s been hired as Cardinals hitting coach, it’s time for Mark McGwire to come clean.” Moments ago on Twitter, Heyman said “if you lie for 10 years, and everyone knows you’re lying, what’s the value of finally telling the truth?
They’re already changing the game on Big Mac. Again, no surprise. Don’t expect barbs to stop, Mark. Don’t expect your Hall of Fame totals to go up. Your sole function for most of the sporting press is to serve as a repository for criticism. It’s not going to stop just because you’ve come clean like they asked.
UPDATE: Selig’s statement. Money shot: “The so-called “steroid era” – a reference that is resented by the many
players who played in that era and never touched the substances – is
clearly a thing of the past, and Mark’s admission today is another step
in the right direction.”
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- Dumbfounded - Jan 11, 2010 at 9:53 PM
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Carol Volk
I am sick of the whole thing. Bonds was a victim of hateful persecution by the Feds. They have proven nothing.
Bonds did not kiss up, and was his own man.
Bonds was more of a man than McGuire will ever be. Could his persecution unlike the others be because he was BLACK?
We in San Francisco will always be grateful for ATT Park, the House that Bonds built.
ARE YOU KIDDING? After this entire affair, you STILL don’t think your boy has been pumped up for the last decade and change? You think he’s being hounded because he’s black? What color is McGwire you bigot? Look at Bonds in Pittsburgh, and look at him in San Francisco. Either you’re blind or stupid, I won’t make that call. But you are the poster child for making people take an IQ test before they procreate.
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- Tom - Jan 11, 2010 at 10:20 PM
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Do you want to talk about steroids or do you want to see me hit some dingers?
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- Ruth Mitchell - Jan 11, 2010 at 10:24 PM
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McGwire like ever other MLB player who has used are selfish. He did this to better himself. Now we are suppose to believe that a steriod user for 10+ years “alledgely” on and off wishes he never used. He was selfish then and he is selfish now. His admission is to not only set the record straight, as if no sane person knew, but it is to allow him truly back into the baseball “fold”. Even with all his money McGwire like most other athlete’s value the game too much to simply walk away and retire. He wants to be apart of the MLB in other capacities. These other capacities are things McGwire highly values. This is were the selfishness comes in. He knew that the only way to fill this void was to come clean and expedite the process of everyone moving on vs everyone questioning and hinting at his guilt. The tears are fake and the emotion is misguided. McGwire wanted to best scenario and here the media is giving him that. Another sad day in MLB.
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- Richard Dansky - Jan 11, 2010 at 10:51 PM
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And I am assuming you’re H.P. Lovecraft?
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- dangerous dave - Jan 11, 2010 at 11:09 PM
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Being a SF/Bonds fan, I was at a game the year McGuire broke the record vs. the Giants (my 5 year old son sang the National Anthem that day at The Stick!), the whole mess is an unwinable situation for all of the so-called “steriod” era players, and McGuire in particular. There is no way he can come clean and look good. People/the press ask him to come clean, and he does, then they lampoon him for being a cheater, which everyone already knew. I think the press (and the haters) needs to ask themselves this question; how can McGuire ever redeem himself? Is there nothing he can do and move on with his life? Should he, and every other steroid era player, never be allow to move back into baseball, or anything else?
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- Tom - Jan 11, 2010 at 11:31 PM
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Please – the Feds have proven nothing because Bonds has the money to keep his trainer’s mouth shut and await his jail time for perjury to pass. Guilt by association? Absolutely – Greg Anderson was convicted of involvement with steroids and BALCO, and whose trainer was he? Wow, you CAN connect the dots. It’s always a race thing, isn’t it? Just like when whites are called racist names like “honky”, “whitey”, “white bread”, “gringo” and “cracker” – and yet blacks walk the streets of the world in full public view and call each other (and whomever else they please) the “N” word, because it’s okay that THEY do it. Bonds is being treated as he is because, despite being one of the best at his craft in sports, he is surly and attitude-laden toward all (and has been for a long time – http://espn.go.com/page2/s/halberstam/010719.html) and he’s a cheater who refuses to admit that he belongs in the same category as all the other cheaters like Roger Clemens (White), Jose Canseco (Hispanic), Jason Giambi (White), Alex Rodriguez (Hispanic), Yusaku Iriki (Japanese), Damian Moss (Australian), etc., etc. – Hispanic, White, Black, whatever, no matter – it’s about CHEATING, and it’s about at least ACTING like you care about someone other than yourself. Instead of looking in a biased mirror, try viewing real life – the one that everyone has to live.
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- Fran Lenny - Jan 11, 2010 at 11:49 PM
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How can anyone take that drug fueled freak Barry Bonds seriously?
The Giants fans of the Bonds era are some serious crackheads.
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- mtf - Jan 12, 2010 at 12:06 AM
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What law did he violate? How about the “Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 1990″ which added Anabolic Steroids to the list of Schedule III controlled substances, which makes the first offense simple possession of such substances without a prescription a federal crime punishable by up to one year in prison.
By accepting the the title and accolades as the single season home run king he lied to everyone. Worst, he stole from Roger Maris what Roger fairly earned. He masqueraded as a sports hero. McGuire isn’t a sports hero…he’s a sports fraud. And he “stole” a lot of money as a result.
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- JonS - Jan 12, 2010 at 12:17 AM
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It’s unbelieveable that anyone can justify any athlete, under any circumstance, from enhancing themselves with PEDs. The answer is so simple, its called truth, honor and integrity. So you’re not as good or gifted as the next man or woman. Why is that so hard to accept?
I could do PEDs under the care of a team of experts to enhance my abilities to the fullest extent possible and still not be as good in any sport as thousands or millions of others can be with only their natural gifts.
I bust my butt to stay in shape and love to compete and love to win. Every now and then when I beat someone fair and square using my own knowledge, preparation and limited skill, I really feel like I have persevered through willpower and determination and that gives me great satisfation.
I admire natural skill and it is a thing of beauty to watch. PEDs make it an ugly thing. All professional athletes need to be natural. New leagues could be formed where anything goes and let the person make the choice where he or she will compete. What would you rather see?
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- Roger Fortner - Jan 12, 2010 at 1:06 AM
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I will begin by saying that I am happy Big Mac came clean. In my opinion he can do no more than apologize. I, like the rest of the country in 1998, was mesmorized by the home-run race. It brought baseball back. Whether or not anyone forgives Mark McGwire is their business. In a country where big stars and political leaders make bigger mistakes than this, I feel it is important to let this go and move forward. I think Mark McGwire knows he will not make the Hall of Fame in the near future. Believe it or not I hope that was not his reasoning for comming out. What really bothers me is humanity’s need to be sanctimonious. My mother once said you shouldn’t judge someone until you have walked a mile in their shoes.
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- ztap - Jan 12, 2010 at 1:21 AM
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I don’t want to talk about McGwire’s admission of taking steroids. His admission was in the recent past, and I’m not here to talk about the recent past.
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- dprat - Jan 12, 2010 at 1:37 AM
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You’re assuming facts not in evidence. For example, do we know that McGwire’s steroids were not prescribed? Certainly possible they were.
Also, re: Maris. He played in an era when amphetamines were openly available in every clubhouse in baseball. And according to many players of that day, they were used occasionally to frequently by a huge percentage of the players. If all players in the 90s are suspect for PED use, why not everyone from about 1945 onward? I’m not suggesting this should be the case, just that these issues are nowhere near as black-and-white as some wish to believe.
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- WAJWAJ - Jan 12, 2010 at 1:46 AM
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Should not be allowed back into the game. Baseball decided how they wanted to treat Pete Rose long ago. McGwire deserves no better. “72″ should be officially changed to “0″.
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- TF - Jan 12, 2010 at 4:33 AM
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For those who say race is not an issue in this whole “steroid” storm, give me a break, just compare the overwhelming hateful comments directed at Bond, and the relative mild reaction, or “give him a break” remarks for McGwire
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- Moses Green - Jan 12, 2010 at 6:30 AM
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For once I’m going to set aside my abstract and polarizing rants to consider the essence of both man and baseball with regards to the ethical dilemma of cheating. Any fan of baseball who is reasonably well-versed in its history and the characters who have played it for our amusement understands that cheating is part of the game. The old aphorism “If you aren’t cheating you aren’t trying hard enough” rings true. From ball scuffing to equipment doctoring to ARod giving away his own pitcher’s signs to opposing infielders for reciprocal access to pitch tipping late in blowouts (sorry – temporarily reverted) baseball fans smile, nudge nudge and wink wink it all away.
The real question that is of import when discussing the Steroid Cheat is not whether he is a better individual or a more or less worthy candidate for the HOF than a player who didn’t use PED’s. No, the matter turns on a different sort of personality characteristic. It’s somewhere along the spectrum of self destructive behavior in between self-loathing and the capacity for dismissing future consequences to body and reputation.
In the pre-testing environment, where it was against the rules but not checked on (MLB hadn’t yet listened to the Great Communicator, who urged us to Trust, but Verify) a great many players opted for artificial enhancements. I fail to see any difference between this and the rest of the cheating that happens on a daily basis in baseball. Furthermore, I see no difference between a baseball player using PED’s and an aspiring actress getting a breast augmentation.
In short, the discussion has been miscast from the beginning.
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- keoki Akina - Jan 12, 2010 at 7:22 AM
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Over and over its the same story. Too bad its coming from non athletes that never made out out of a K-6 PE class. know why the 90s was the steroid era? Having gone to a high school that has put out many top pro athletes, and being in the health club business for over 16 years.. i can give another view. the 70′s and 80′s we had the bodybuilder boom. i remember being a freshman and being sent to a Dr. by a coach to get my shot of test. and my 14 anadrol. few days later noticing my bench and other lifts go up by 30lbs. And seeing my food intake go up.
now for my issues with the statements i have heard over the last few years…
1) There is not one ‘roid out there that can do diddly for you hand-eye coordination not a one. These hitters like Mcgwire, Bonds and even that sorry excuse for a human Consaco, had a gift to see a ball at 80 miles an hour and put wood to it. take 99 percent of the steroid users in a gym and they cant hit a ball in a cage at the little league speed.
2) Increase in games for the fans, all star games longer pre-season,, take wear and tare on a body. the type of wear and tear most in the regular working class they would call in sick over.
In pro baseball a player would be crucified if he were to do that with all the injuries they get in a season. the travel doesnt help either. any of you jumping on the holier than thou bus ever hear of greenys?? back in the old days? All is used to make it thru another game. to be continued..part 2.. and anyone with knowledge of ‘roids knows that no one shoots, or ingests right before a game. roids need more time then that to work or else all of Bonds, Mcgwire’s home runs would have all come in the 9th inning of their games. Costas i love your shows and your commentating but i would thing you would research more on that one.
Babe ruth it has been said over and over played a game or two drunk and or hung over. with a substance that has killed more people than most other things, should we yank his records and HOF? The common person and i mean both men and women that i have been asked about this, a steroid for a baseball player is nothing more than a recovery drug. same as it was used in horse racing. horse owners could run their horse in more races because the healed faster. yes it made them a bit faster, but in baseball that means triples and in the park home runs would be huge in the league. and throw outs at first from left field would be common.
Come on and see the facts,,, ( and i dont condone them), booze in the early days, Greenies, coke, its all a reflection of the times. and believe me us that have used roids, could point out every player in any sport that is on the juice by spending 1 day with them. The higher ups in the league at the time of the 80′s and 90′s knew what was going on, how could they not? so come on,,, lets just first make new arresting these Doctors and dealers. hell san diego gyms alone could make headlines.
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- keoki Akina - Jan 12, 2010 at 7:25 AM
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ps. now that these parents have their kids playing year-round baseball.. wait and see steroid use even become a bigger problem.
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- Moses Green - Jan 12, 2010 at 7:28 AM
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Amen, brother
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- keoki Akina - Jan 12, 2010 at 7:29 AM
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ps. now that these parents have their kids playing year-round baseball.. wait and see steroid use even become a bigger problem.
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- Jonny5 - Jan 12, 2010 at 8:36 AM
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If he gets into the HOF it will be a kick to the nut sack of every other HOF player who never used. Also imagine if all the “borderline HOF” inductees said, “what the hell give me the roids”.? Take Byleven for example….. Would he have improved just enough to be a shoo in? I think so…………. PED’s are banned from baseball, so should the users. Just like Rose for betting…. Except Rose should be a shoo in, no doubt about it. What Rose did, never gave him an edge to pump up his play, the best part of his career wasn’t due to an easy cheat. Poor Petey…………….
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- Fredbob - Jan 12, 2010 at 8:51 AM
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At no point did I say baseball could only recover through cheating and lying, but the fact remains that the home run race brought baseball back to the forefront of American sports. Do you deny that? It gave a shot in the arm to a sport that needed it. Would it have come from somewhere else given time? Yes, it would probably would have, but we’ll never know when or what it would have been. Ignoring the significance of the home run race because something else would have done the same thing is like denying the significance of Pearl Harbor because another event would have gotten us involved in WWII (No, I’m not relating baseball to Pearl Harbor, just using Pearl as an example).
Look, I already stated, I don’t agree with what he did, and I don’t like it. Yes, he cheated (in the spirit of the game even if he didn’t technically break rules) and he lied. Does that make him a horrible person? Have any of you ever cheated or lied? Does that make you a horrible person? Good people do stupid and bad things, that doesn’t make them the devil.
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- Moses Green - Jan 12, 2010 at 8:57 AM
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Bwahahahaha!
“It gave a shot in the arm to a sport that needed it.”
Crying from laughing.
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- Wade - Jan 12, 2010 at 10:41 AM
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Nevr mind that sh*t! Maddux is working for the Cubs! And oh yeah…Here comes Mongo!
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- StClaire - Jan 12, 2010 at 11:42 AM
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Mark McGwire is a LIAR, a CHEATER, a DRUG user who earned nothing on his own, he cheated to get there, he is a big cry baby and we hope Congress will go after the cheating lying perjurer.
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- delta - Jan 12, 2010 at 1:22 PM
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Also, re: Maris. He played in an era when amphetamines were openly available in every clubhouse in baseball. And according to many players of that day, they were used occasionally to frequently by a huge percentage of the players. If all players in the 90s are suspect for PED use, why not everyone from about 1945 onward? I’m not suggesting this should be the case, just that these issues are nowhere near as black-and-white as some wish to believe.
This may be one of the weakest arguments of all time.
No “speed” adds 15 mph to your bat speed, or 75 feet to your flyballs, or adds white twitch muscule fibers to your nervous system, or allows you to work out for days at a time and see results each day. Or, like Bonds, adds 37 pounds of muscle
