The Zo Zone

I agree that releasing the names was unfair. For every one mentioned there are probably 10 who used and weren't found out. Someone should have thought that through but I suppose they figured without names, it would lose impact (assuming it has any). I look at the whole thing as a facade to make it look like MLB is truly concerned. But, that said, they'll probably have to change policy at some level now that they started down this path. I think independent testing will be instituted at some point.

My problem with the drug use is what it does to the statistics and records side of things. Baseball, more than any other sport, is about numbers. Legends are built on those numbers. It's not fair to the history of the game to not at least have an asterisk next to some of these new numbers.

We live in a society that loves to pounce on, and judge others for wrongdoing. Unless it happens to our own. Any '93 Phillies fans gone to take down their pennants? I doubt it. The most amusing part of all this hypocrisy, is the people who are judging everyone, forgot that their generation started all these behaviors 40yrs ago.. Selective memories ? Maybe not steroids, but 60's,70's were a rebellious lot.. Maybe, on one of those wild college nights the Phils have, we can take that '93 pennant down..How dare they ! I guess people don't have mirrors anymore..

Zo:

How are we defining "performance enhancing"??

If I am a SS who has to play 162 and I need 5 or 6 Red Bulls to get me through games 130-162, is that performance enhancing???

If I go to an herbal guru because my hammies won't let me pitch anymore and I get a tea made of bat wings and frog toes that let me continue, is that performance enhancing??

If I can hit 40+ HR's a year but none land in the next county and I decide to bulk up so that I can hit them into the body of water next to the ballpark and get more people to watch and more money to spend, is that performance enhancing??

If I can't breathe/play during the months of April and May because of polin alergies.... well you get the idea.

Do the BBWAA get the final word on what performance enhancing really means???

Other athletic bodies have standards ... The IOC, the NFL, etc. MLB is past the point of saying "anything goes." By commissioning the report, they now have to adopt some standard. That will define whether the Red Bulls count or not. Stupid or not, they've set the wheels in motion.

My point was that, independent of that, I just don't like the effect on the numbers. I don't know that's there's any remedy for that. I just don't like it.

Maybe it doesn't matter in the end. One thing we see with the Mitchell names is that there's a lot of mediocrity in there. And a lot of names missing. In the end, perhaps it all evens out. The Bonds and McGwire "records" just annoy me at some level. Hell, Bonds' head annoys me.

I agree we're all hypocrites at some level. If we won the World Series most of us would just be hoping none of our names show up on the list.

Is doctoring a baseball (vasaline, belt buckle, spit, sandpaper, shin guard) performance enhancing for a pitcher? How about corking a bat or having someone in the scorboard (old days for you kiddies) stealing signs? How about cutting the infield grass to different heights, watering basepaths down or contouring foul lines for your speedy bunters? Raising the mound a bit for a power pitcher? All enhance a player's performance (by that I mean stats) in some way.

Basball not only turns it's eyes to some of the above, they are the gist of some of the great baseball lore of (at least) my youth. The Mick, the Babe, used to come to the park ripped, did that enhance their game or detract from it?

This latest drama will be good if they will get the all powerful players union to join the real world and allow more testing and force the owners and GM's's to pull thie heads out of their nether regions and face up to the problem. But, the cries for banishment, suspensions, deleting records, etc. is just plain silly and flies in the face of baseball history.

Todd's right, I for one will be there for the games and cheer them on, even knowing that some players have pushed the envelope.

Naming names is NOT wrong. When people who perform in a public forum do the wrong thing, they should be held accountable in a public forum. The fact that not every player who used drugs was named in the report does not discount in any way the guilt of those whose names were disclosed. Eventually, those cheaters' names will come out too. Don't worry all of you ACLU wimpls, these guys will receive their due process. In the meantime, I don't hear or see any of these named players adamantly denying any what was reported about them. Anyone who defends the alleged "integrity" of multimillionaire, spoiled, pamerpered cheaters are probably losers themselves. Bud Selig knew what was happening---when 160 LB players who averaged three home runs per year suddenly are 220 LB of muscle and hit 45 home runs at age 36 or 37, you don't need to be a nuerosurgeon to realize that something is egregiously wrong. High grass or low grass, higher or low fences, etc., are poor rationalizations for excusing cheating----plain and simple. The dimensions of major league fences and grass have varied since the 1870s. That has nothing to do with what's been happening during the past wtenty years. Yes, medical science has proved beyond a doubt that performance-enhancing drugs do in fact enhance the users muscularity, dexterity, bat-speed, overall endurance, etc. Doubting this fact is akin to doubting that smoking is detrimental to your health. We live in an age where nobody wants to take responsibility for their wrong actions, and hordes of lamebrains concoct extravagant rationalizations to defend these lowlife assholes. Hopefully, everyone who took illegal or outlawed substances will be exposed, in the meantime, it is totally proper to publicize those about whom we already know----these plyaers are playing in a public forum and receive praise for their exploits in public and they make millions of dollars (much of which comes from the fans)....if they commit acts that tarnish the game, they should be exposed and puinished in a public forum. If Jimmie Foxx took steroids he would have hit 100 home runs per year. As it is he accumulated 500 by age 32. Nature did not intend for human beings to go from 98 LB weaklings to Steve Reeves in the course of one summer at age 35. Nor do the mores, traditionas and rules of fair-play. Whoever doesn't realize why the steroid report is indeed an important first step in cleaning out the game, then he/she obviously has a misplaced sense of values and/or is a wimp or an ambulance-chasing lawyer(or perhaps I should say "ballplayer-chasing" lawyer.)

Well said Chris. But I have just one question, Who should they be chasing??

Right now, if they chase the roiders, we will get old news. Until they, MLB, NBA, NFL, MLBPA,go after HGH, we will be reading old news.

Most of the current players who were "caught", probably stopped steroids once the testing began and the substances were banned, so that they could say today, " I never failed a steroid test". And they would be telling the truth because they started taking HGH when steroid testing began.

My biggest problem with this report is that it might be a $20,000,000 cover up, fool's gold, unless it leads to HGH tests. We got 80 guys, 60 retirees and 20 who cop out to I never failed a steroid test...and Bud Selig.

Fox Sports is saying Geoff Jenkins will go either to the Phils or Padres. I'm not sure if a platoon of Jenkins and Werth would be a significant drop off from Rowand (forgetting about all those intangibles people like with Rowand).

I know -- the Phillies should spend more and go out and get Willy Mays.

Clemens just got hooked up with the wrong trainer? Zo, I usually agree with you, but pulling down his pants and asking the guy to stick him with a needle in the rear was not just getting hooked up with the wrong trainer. It was not happenstance. The guy is a bum.

Tony G. is right on the money. The players stopped taking the detectable roids when they starting testing, and have moved on to stuff they dont even test for. Its a JOKE!!!!! And guys have been using way longer than this report goes back, we're talking mid to late 80's and early 90's...just ask the one guy who's been telling some truth the longest...Jose Canseco. The whole steroid thing is such BS because soooooooo many people knew it was going on, but never said anything because baseball was booming and bringing in maaad loot for everyone. It just sucks because the records will be messed up forever! Oh yeah, where was John Kruk on that list LOL

How 'bout a list of MLB executives who turned a blind eye when home run derby brought the fans back from all the work stoppages?