What level of steroid use disqualifies someone? a week? moth? year? 2 years?

Yes. There were persistent rumors that he was gay, presumably because he was unmarried and too well dressed. OTOH, I’m apparently utterly lacking in gaydar, so it’s always possible that he gave off some vibe that I never noticed.

That said, I agree with sdelmonte that Piazza’s career is interesting enough to make a good book without any shocking personal revelations about steroids, sexuality, or anything else. He had a very eventful career, even for a HOF caliber player.

It has to stop. Why not ask Chass prove that steroid help?

As a lawyer I understand the futility and risk Piazza takes by litigating a defamation claim. It is really not worth it as you basically open yourself up to all kinds of unnecessary scrutiny. But as a baseball fan, and big fan of Piazza’s in particular, I really wish he would take on this blowhard a$$hole in court. Or maybe just punch him in the mouth.

And allow me to insert the statement attributed to Chass in the Moshe Mandel article that was previously linked by Craig:

Murray Chass, New York Times: “If they are going to question the home-run record because of the pills, they better go back and investigate some of baseball’s records that were produced with the aid of amphetamines. In past years, some of the game’s best players were said to have played their careers on amphetamines. So no bluenose asterisk, please, for a McGwire home run record.”

Someone should just cut his internet connection already. He is far, far worse than a Chipwich, BC.

Shouldn’t be that hard to ask one, right? How many beat writers in any clubhouse have been asked about this?

Other causes of “bacne” include heredity, extreme sweating and wearing a backpack for prolonged periods (could that cover wearing smothering catcher’s gear during a hot summer heat wave?).

From the information given, I don’t know, you don’t know and Chass doesn’t really know. If Chass did really have some damning proof he probably would’ve provided it. Maybe Chass should have also checked out MP’s physique a bit closer. Shrinking “berries” and increased breast size are also possible side effects for males that take steroids.

And I also expect a chapter about how Piazza and his teammates struggled to cope with 9/11 and about that game winning homer the first night back.

And I’m not a Doctor either.

The HOF voting (like the All-Star voting) is much more a popularity contest than a scientific study. The facts are important, but as we all know, perception tends to trump reality. We can go on and on about why this is wrong or how it would be better if…, but in the end this is the world we live in. You can either accept it and learn to live with it or reject it and widdle away in obscurity.

These guys are foolishly taking advice from their attorneys instead of their publicists. They’re answering questions as if they’re sitting in a courtroom under oath. They all seem like they haven’t practiced and haven’t been coached. They keep their answers short and avoid challenging their accusers. Many of them give half-assed denials. I know if I were innocent and I felt my legacy was on the line, I’d be doing interviews left and right challenging coaches, players, strength coaches et all to say I cheated. I would challenge reporters to go out and find an accuser. I’d parade my strength coach from the late 90s in front of everyone and have him corroborate my story. I’d be speaking to kids all over the country about the dangers of steroid use. I’d join the populist movement instead of rejecting it. Is it fair? Maybe, maybe not. The point is, these guys could be doing SOOOO MUCH MORE and instead they’re “ignoring, denying and/or avoiding” the conversation. This might work in a court of law, but alas we’re in the court of public opinion. To a casual onlooker, they look guilty. That’s all that matters.

Of course, being that OJ was found innocent of murder, we should assume he didn’t kill his wife. Right?

So, have there ever been any rumors regarding Piazza about something other than PED’s that would make for a big selling book?

Anyway, he wouldn’t discuss anything about his case or specific athletes, but we did discuss steroid and HGH effects on performance generally. Basically back acne in adult males can be an indicator of steroid use, but it would typically be accompanied by another indicator, like increased hat size, dramatic change in musculature and muscle-mass gain, etc..But sometimes because of the workout the change in physique might be primarily a loss of fat and a general leaning out of the physique. The key benefit of PED’s that I took away from that discussion was an athlete’s ability to train harder and recover quicker, thus train more often. Imagine how you’d look if you were already DNA gifted, relatively young, and you could work out twice as fast, twice as hard, and twice as often. Relating this to Piazza, back acne alone is not conclusive. In addition, you’d need some solid examples of before and after physique that would fall outside the norms for a professional athlete’s workout results.

The acne sounds like more hormone-related or perhaps a sweat gland issue, not necessarily would that indicate ‘roids.

For the record, my medical degree hasn’t arrived in the mail yet. Since Chass is bringing this up again, we’re to presume his degree just arrived this week. Must be on a different delivery schedule.

That said, you don’t necessarily have to “prove a negative.” A plaintiff, saying under oath that he never did steroids is evidence, even if it’s self-serving. Then, if the plaintiff were able to establish that the man making the accusation had no evidence for the claim himself, and if he didn’t even take any steps to check to see that his accusation was true, and if he could prove malice, that would be enough to establish the claim.

But in most instances, it’s just bad strategy for a public figure to go after someone on a claim like this, because then his whole reputation is wide open for the defendant to discover.

I have no idea if Piazza did steroids, but Chass is at least willing to make an accusation.

Any lawyer want to jump in here, but does Piazza have any recourse here? I know public figures have a harder time suing people for stuff like this, but is there any way Piazza can stop this? Piazza essentially has to prove a negative (that he never took steroids), but he’s screwed any way you look at this. Deny it, Chass writes of course he’d deny it (c.f. Palmeiro). Ignore it, and people will keep assuming he did (c.f. McGwire before he finally admitted it, but still didnt’ justify all the stories without proof that were written previously). Can Piazza fight back?

PS. In keeping with the theme… Chass is a chipwich

Don’t ever change, ever!