Shackleford Files 009: Roid Rage

During a recent recording session Cleet and I discussed baseball and steroids. Often a topic used by sports radio hosts, to get through their day without having to do any work we weren't sure if people would want to hear our thoughts on the matter. But with Bud Selig's most recent comments, we decided to post. It's not a full podcast, but just the baseball discussion. Mr. Selig's comments started a little something like this, "I don't want to hear the commissioner turned a blind eye to this or he didn't care about it," Selig told Newsday in a Monday phone interview. "That annoys the you-know-what out of me. You bet I'm sensitive to the criticism." (ESPN) Perhaps his most egregious comment (in my mind) was this, "Starting in 1995, I tried to institute a steroid policy," Selig told Newsday. "Needless to say, it was met with strong resistance. We were fought by the union every step of the way." So, Bud you're willing to have a lockout in the name of money, but integrity falls a little lower on your list of priorities. Great precedent. You can download the podcast HERE.




Allow me to digress, for two quick questions. First, if steroids weren't such a widespread problem, would it have made Moneyball the quintessential way to assemble a baseball team? Second, baseball writers had to know what was going on, but with homerun chases and fans pouring back to the sport, it made them indispensable to their papers, so they were willing to ride the gravy train. Now, they sit in a position to play baseball gods with these player's careers and hopping on the high horse in the name of the game has become a standard practice. Should baseball look at having fans vote for the Baseball Hall of Fame? Perhaps two long-tenured season ticket holders from each team could be selected to participate in place of the writers, for the duration of the steroid-era voting. Just a thought, but if baseball wants to clean up it's image, everyone needs to be held accountable.