20 for CC Sabathia - A Black Ace

When CC Sabathia lost on Monday, I was hoping he'd redeem himself this past weekend and add some more birthday mojo to a great weekend. Sitting in the karoake lounge Saturday, I was happy to see he did - finally winning his 20th game for the first time in his career.

In the past four seasons, Sabathia's become something we haven't seen in baseball since Dave Stewart in the late 80's/early 90's - a Black pitcher who's the proven ace of a staff. It's a tradition that started with Don Newcombe and continued with the likes Bob Gibson, Vida Blue, Fergie Jenkins and briefly Dwight Gooden.

With the number of Black players dwindling in baseball, the Black pitchers dropped severely. If you look at all the great pitchers from the mid-90's to 2007, there's nary a Black face in the bunch. Sabathia's changed that.

Over the past 3 years, he's won a Cy Young, nearly took Cleveland to their first WS since 1997, singlehandedly led the Milwaukee Brewers to the first playoff appearance since 1982, helped the Yankees win their first World Series since 2000 (shaking off his own postseason demons) and became the youngest pitcher to win 150 games.

Now he's finally a member of the Black Aces with the other 13 Black pitchers who have won 20 games. He may be with the Yankees but I always root for him because of what he represents.

He's a power pitcher with great control. He's a workhorse who can be counted on to go 7 innings or more - pitch counts be darned. He's also the only pitcher in my opinion who has a chance to win 300 games if he keeps it up for another decade.

(FYI. All-time winningest Black pitchers. Fergie Jenkis (284), Gibson (251), Blue (209), Doc Gooden (194), Dave Stewart (168). CC's gonna be top-5 next year at 156,)

Personal note, I worked with a cousin of his at my last job and when he started heating up in 07, we used to always talk about him and his family. In 2008, he pitched at Dodger Stadium and showed his brilliance on the mound (7 innings, 5 hits) and the plate (hitting a 440-foot shot to right field that nearly made me jump in the press box).

I wrote about that game as a potential showcase for the Dodgers acquiring him. CC was intimidating at 6-7, 290 lbs but he was also friendly to the press. It was a homecoming for him almost with 30 of his family from up North in Vallejo and down South in Louisiana.

Watching him pitch for the Yankees makes me a bit bitter because I wish the Dodgers acquired him in the winter of '08. He wanted to pitch on the West Coast, he wanted to pitch for the Dodgers, he told GM Ned Colletti he wanted to meet with them. But the team never even met with him or followed up.

Needless to say, I was disappointed. It prompted to me to write this furious response to the team (probably my best impression of LA Times columnist Bill Plaschke).

That aside, he's still my favorite pitcher and I root for him every time he takes the mound. I was privately happy when I watched him win Game 4 of the ALCS last year and I'll be rooting for him to have another great postseason this year, along with hopefully winning his second Cy Young award.

In the same way, I root for David Price - another upstanding young pitcher who throws hard with great control and has a great story.

He's a model of class (taking out a full page ad to thank Cleveland and Milwaukee), professionalism and service (constantly giving back to Oakland and other communities). Congrats but as he'll be the first to say, the job ain't done til he gets another ring.

(Apologies for the grammatical errors in those stories - the drawback of being your own proofreader and not having another pair of eyes see it)

Sooooooul Power FTW! (Loney Doin Work)

(The scene at home plate after James Loney's walkoff blast today)

Of all the Dodgers' top players - the last one I'd expect to hit a home run at Dodger Stadium is James Loney. He only hit one of his 13 there last season. He's far from a power hitter but he simply hits for average, drives in runs like crazy and plays Gold Glove caliber defense at first.

So imagine the shock and awe I had when Soul Brother #7 sent an Oliver Perez pitch in the 13th inning to the right field seats to beat the Mets. My favorite Dodger who's been the most consistent hitter for the team all season finally got a chance to earn some praise from the Dodger faithful.

On the field, he has great discipline at the plate, great timing and knows how to get on base. Joe Torre has often said he reminds him of his great Yankee centerfielder Bernie Williams.

Over the last two postseasons, no Dodgers hitter was more consistent and potent than Loney. Ask the Cubs against his grand slam in 2008 NLDS or the Phillies about his two homers in last year's NLCS.

You wanna talk about consistent? Dude's hit for 13 Homers and 90 RBI's in 2008 and 2009. He's on pace to possibly do that again with the chance to get 100 RBI's. That's throwback numbers to the days when non-power hitters found ways to win by get on base and driving in runs.

But it doesn't say why he's my favorite Dodger. It's because he's underrated despite the fact he's been our best first baseman since Eric Karros.

He's in the National League's top 5 in RBI's, doubles and hits and is hitting over .300 but because we're in an era of great power hitting first baseman (Pujols, Prince Fielder, Ryan Howard, Justin Morneau, Miggy Cabrera, Kevin Youkilis, Adrian Gonzalez), he gets overshadowed. He's overshadowed on a team with stars like Andre Ethier, Matt Kemp, Manny Ramirez and Rafael Furcal.

But that's his nature. Quiet, professional, humble, goes about his business. Whenever I interviewed him in the clubhouse, he was chill and always answered questions in a laid-back manner. I respected him because he wasn't flashy and played the game the right way. A tribute to his upbringing in Houston.

That's why he's my favorite Dodger. He handles his business, jokes behind the scenes and embodies what it means to be a major leaguer. And that's why I'm so happy for him today! First career game winning shot and a bear hug from partner in crime Matt Kemp.

Jason Heyward - the latest of the New School of MLB Black Talent

Welcome to the majors Jason Heyward. You've hit a home run in your first major league at bat at 20 and now all eyes will be on you as the impact rookie of the year (at least til Stephen Strasburg comes up from the minors).

But to me, Heyward - who's already been compared to Ken Griffey Jr. and Roberto Clemente - represents the latest wave of young Black players coming into MLB and making an impact. And this is what the game needs after the numbers of Blacks fell to criminally low levels within the past 4 years.

Look around baseball now. You've got Matt Kemp and James Loney (Dodgers), Prince Fielder (Brewers), Ryan Howard (Phillies), Jimmy Rollins (Phillies), CC Sabathia (Yankees), David Price (Rays), Andrew McCutchen (Pirates), BJ (Rays) and Justin Upton (Arizona) just to name a few.

Throw in still great players like Torii Hunter, Curtis Granderson, Carl Crawford and perhaps the final season of my all-time fave Ken Griffey Jr. and you see productive Black players in the majors holding it down.

It's not a lot - and there's still an alarming dearth of Black pitchers/infielders - but it's enough put their stamp on the game and show people that the game of Jackie Robinson, Willie Mays, Frank Robinson, Larry Doby, Bob Gibson and so many others is still ours.

It will take MLB and their teams to continue marketing Heyward and the others as they challenge for All-Star spots. And let's face it, Black baseball fans are a small number because many folks just don't care anymoer - I can't even count how many "Is it football season" tweets and thoughts I've seen already.

But props to the brothers working keeping our face on the diamond in the majors and the minor leagues. Here's a bonus video from Dick's Sporting Goods - Griffey and Hunter playing sandlot in the store with Crawford, O-Dog and Ryan Braun (give Dick's credit for promoting Black players nowadays).

A Tribute to Curt Flood (One of my Heroes)

(This article appears in the LA Sentinel, 2/25/10 Issue)

CONTINUING JACKIE’S LEGACY
Curt Flood’s Supreme Court case paved way for free agency in all sports

By Evan Barnes
Sentinel Sports Editor

After Jackie Robinson and Muhammad Ali, there might be no more influential athlete in the 2^nd half of the 20th century than Curt Flood.

Michael Jordan? Arguably the greatest basketball player ever and opened doors for Black athletes as corporate pitchmen. But tell me what he did off the court that was as risky as Flood suing Major League Baseball 40 years ago?

For better or worse, Flood was the father of creating free agency in baseball and all sports. It was a giant step forward from Robinson fighting to get in the door to Flood demanding he and all players have a say inside.

But it cost the St. Louis Cardinals centerfielder his career, reputation, baseball life, Hall of Fame chances and precious years off his life.

It all stemmed from him being traded in 1969 to the Philadelphia Phillies and refusing to report, citing the Phillies’ poor stadium and fans who had a history of being racist toward Black players.

Flood’s resume at that point was without peer. Seven consecutive Gold Gloves in the same era as Willie Mays. A key factor in two World Series rings (1964, 1967) and a third trip in 1968. Hailed as the best centerfielder in baseball by Sports Illustrated and two seasons removed from a 4^th place finish for the National League MVP.

Now at 31 years old, he was gone from the city that he had known all his life. He felt disrespected as the team’s co-captain to find out about the trade not from the team owner or general manager, but a sportswriter and what he called a “middle echelon coffee drinker from the front office.”

It was a reminder of the times. Thanks to the Reserve Clause, Flood and every baseball player had no say in where they wanted to play. No matter how well they were paid, they were bound to a team for life unless they were traded at the owner’s whim.

Flood, who made $90,000 in the 1969 season, likened it to being a “well-paid slave” in a 1970 interview with ABC’s Howard Cossell. It was a charged statement coming on the heels of the civil rights movement but for a man of principle who idolized Jackie Robinson, it was not impulsive.

In his now-famous letter to then Commissioner Bowie Kuhn dated on Christmas Eve 1969, Flood stated his opposition to being traded like a pawn in the owner’s chess match without any input:

“After twelve years in the major leagues, I do not feel I am a piece of property to be bought and sold irrespective of my wishes. I believe that any system which produces that result violates my basic rights as a citizen and is inconsistent with the laws of the United States and of the several States.”

He stated that he would retire instead of being traded. After consulting with MLB Player’s Union Representative Marvin Miller, he changed his mind and decided to sue Major League Baseball for violating antitrust laws.

Showing his deep conviction, Flood convinced the union that he was fighting not just for himself, but for all players. He wanted to take power away from the owners and abolish the reserve clause which he saw as inhumane.

He immediately shot down any chance of money changing his motive – he was in negotiations with the Cardinals to make $100,000 in 1970, the sign of his worth as one of the best players in baseball.

“I can’t be bought off,” he told union representatives from every team. “Someone has to do it…I feel I’m qualified and capable of doing it.”

Part of it was Flood influenced by the civil rights movement. But as he told the players’ association, it only made him more sensitive to injustice that affected not just Black people but all people. This was not an issue about race but dignity in giving players more power than the men who determined their moves.

In that moment, he showed himself as not just a frustrated ballplayer, but a man well aware of his surroundings. It led to unanimous support from the association.

He fought against a system that was barely 25 years removed from barring Black players on its field. He found few friends in the press, who overwhelmingly supported Major League Baseball. But among his supporters were the Black press, ABC commentator Howard Cossell and respected sports columnists Red Smith and Jim Murray (LA Times).

Flood filed his lawsuit in January 1970 and in May, he got his trial against Major League Baseball and the reserve clause. The next three weeks, however, saw no active players appear in court to support him or testify on his behalf. Worse, he was ill-prepared as a witness, one of several blunders made by his legal team – led by former Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg.

But a high point came when his hero, Jackie Robinson, testified on his behalf. It was a moment of pride as one pioneer in the sport helped another because Robinson recognized the continuation of his goal for equality and recognizing one’s dignity.

He fought for the chance to play with everyone else. Flood, who reaped that benefit, now wanted the chance to negotiate his terms as a player. It brought tears to Flood’s eyes – the man who he played and lived to honor was now in his corner.

But that joy was short-lived. His case in the Second District court of New York went in favor of Major League Baseball. An appeal to the Second Circuit of Appeals affirmed the decision but in 1971, the Supreme Court ruled to hear the case.

By that time, Flood had sat out the 1970 season. He played briefly with the Washington Senators in 1971 but the stress of the proceedings plus missing a season in his 30’s made his tenure short and his career was finished.

He lived in between the United States, Spain and Copenhagen, Denmark. He was running low on money, lost his relationships, and falling into alcoholism. All he had was the hope his case would be heard and his sacrifice would be worth it.

In 1972, Flood v. Kuhn was argued before the Court, one that included Thurgood Marshall. Flood’s argument was defeated 5-3 but the debate over free agency and the clause would intensify. Three years later, Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally – both White players – officially became the game’s first free agents.

It is because of Flood’s efforts that baseball players and all athletes are able to receive huge free agent contracts. The NBA free-agent bonanza this upcoming summer would not have been possible without Flood taking his challenge to baseball public.

After the case, he repaired his life and family in Los Angeles in the mid-1980’s –marrying actress Judy Pace after dating previously. His fiery passion never died and despite never getting a job in baseball, he remained tied to the sport – supporting the players in the 1981 and 1994 strikes.

He died on January 20, 1997 at 59 years old of throat cancer. No coincidence that he passed on Martin Luther King Day, a man whose fight for equality for all men embodied what Flood did 27 years earlier.

In 1999, he was named one of Time Magazine’s 10 most influential athletes of the 20^th century alongside Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan. It’s noted that of the 10, he is the only one named for what he mainly did outside of the playing field.

His spirit lives on in an ongoing lawsuit by former UCLA basketball star Ed O’Bannon, who is suing the NCAA over their use of the images of former student athletes for commercial purposes without compensation.

As we conclude Black History Month, Curt Flood remains a forgotten figure by most. Yet his contributions are seen in every big payday for an athlete and in every free-agent signing that leads to a world championship.

It is a reminder of the cost of being a revolutionary and the price he paid for standing for his principles and attacking the hand that feeds you. Shunned while alive, appreciated just before and after your passing but forgotten by the masses today.

And few sports figures embody that word revolutionary more than Flood – a man who fought for the right to play on his terms and paved the way for others to have that chance.

(I received a phone call from Judy Pace today regarding the story. Needless to say I was pretty touched that Flood's wife would call to be pleased with this story and happy her husband got more recognition that he deserves. I'll let you all know how that goes)

Farewell to the Big Unit (A baseball Sports Report)

Randy Johnson retired from MLB today after a brilliant career. Hands down he's one of the best lefty pitchers ever and I know that in the 90's and early 00's, few pitchers were more feared on the mound.

Imagine stepping in the batter's box and facing a 6-10, ornery throwing machine who reaches 100 mph with a fastball and slider. Yeah, if I batted lefty, I'd cry or just give up and take my three pitches. But I respected the Unit because in the early days of me watching baseball, I watched Seattle a lot because of Ken Griffey so I got an appreciation for his skill, his heat and when I played Ken Griffey baseball on Game Boy, I couldn't wait to use him and throw that heater.

Here's my favorite Big Unit memories

1. 2001 World Series - 3 wins. His Game 7 performance in relief of one of the greatest World Series ever reminded me of what I read Grover Cleveland Alexander did in Game 7 of the 1926 WS (came in with bases loaded, pitched 2 innings of scoreless relief that ended with Babe Ruth caught stealing.) Epic.

2. 1995 Mariners run. He won the one-game playoff to get them in the postseason, won Game 5 of the ALCS (along with Junior's epic score from 2nd).

3. Defeathering that bird in spring training: still one of the freakiest things you'll ever see.

4. Nearly killing JT Snow in 1997 with a fastball to the head

5. Watching him live pitch for Arizona in 2006, a sight to behold.

6. The perfect game at 40

7. Getting traded to Houston in 1998 and going 10-1 to win the Cy Young and put them in the postseason.

He's arguably the greatest lefty ever and he's a first ballot HOF. As far as power and intimidation and control later in his career, he was a great one and he'll be the LAST 300-game winner we see for a while...

Speaking of the Hall of Fame, congrats to Andre "The Hawk" Dawson for getting elected. He was a player who did it the right way and did it to the tune of over 400 home runs and 300 stolen bases, eight Gold Gloves and All-Star Games, an MVP on a la

st place team. No hate for that.

But I am mad that Roberto Alomar and Barry Larkin did

n't get in. Two of the greatest players of the 1990's and two of the greatest at their position didn't get in on the first ballot? That's a sham and a half.

Alomar at least got 73.7 percent of the vote so he's a shoo-in next year, along with Bert Blyleven (287 wins, 60 shutouts and a staggering curveball). Larkin barely got over 50% (51.6) so it may take him some time - inexcusable. Blame it on these guys playing a bit too long but I remember hearing them as shoo-in HOF candidates all during the late 90's.

Both of them made over 10 All-Star Games. Both of them very popular. They shouldn't have to wait to go in. But respect to the Hawk - I remember Ryne Sandberg shouting him out during his HOF speech and now he'll be there to welcome him in.

Is it just me or is it a bit sad that the biggest Dodgers news this offseason is Matt Kemp dating Rihanna and already going on trips with her to the Caribbean?

We desperately need a 4th starter. We desperately need a 2B. We need to make a play on some of the guys still out there. But this stupid McCourt divorce has the organization's hands tied and because our GM answers to the CFO, baseball moves won't be made for the sake of $$$

I knew it was gonna be a long offseason after that NLCS loss but who know it'd literally be long and dull except for the off-field stories. I sure didn't but I have a feeling 2010 could be an interesting season when spring training starts.

Newsflash - Albert Pujols is only 29

Albert Pujols won his 3^rd MVP award (unanimous) at the ripe old age of…29? Is there any question who the player of the decade is? We are watching one of the greatest hitters of all time and there’s a chance he’s just now entering his prime.

How many more MVP’s can this guy win? He’ll win at least one more, joining him with Barry Bonds as the only 4+ MVP winner. We can’t even compare him to anyone in the game right now – it’s all about seeing where he ranks with the legendary hitters.

Just peep his crazy stats. As a rookie, he finished 4^th in the MVP voting (.329, 37 bombs, 130 RBI’s, 194 hits) – overshadowed of course by Barry Bonds’ murdering the record books. That just started the madness in his nine year career.

· Top 10 MVP finisher every year. Top 5 MVP finish in all but one years

· He’s the active leader in batting average (.331), slugging percentage (.628),on-base percentage (1.055)

· He’s led the majors in several categories at least once (home runs, batting average, on-base %, slugging %, hits, total bases, doubles, extra base hits, )

· 30 HR, 100 RBI’s in every season. He’s statiscally had a better career than Joe DiMaggio in 4 less seasons.

 

In the last 30 years, only Tony Gwynn and Ichiro can rival him as the best hitter in baseball and neither possessed his power. It's ridiculous what he's done in a short period of time.

I decided to look up the greatest Cardinal of them all, Stan Musial. It baffled me as a kid how I would hear how he’s the most underrated player in baseball history but looking at his stats, they are just looney. 3 MVP’s before 30. 24 All-Star Games, 3 World Series rings, seven batting titles, made his debut on my birthday in 1941, .331 career average, 3600+ hits, 475 home runs. 

Who knew that 60 years after his debut, a player would come along who dominated the game the same way. Not flashy but with machine-like productivity. By 2019, we could celebrate Pujols as one of the greatest players of all time and he might still be productive into the 2020’s.

All Hail King Albert. I can only pray this guy doesn't drop off in a new decade like my all-time favorite player Ken Griffey Jr. did.

VSR: Mark McGwire - A Hitting Coach??? I Got A Better Idea

So Big Mac has come out of hiding since the Congressional steroid hearings to....be the St. Louis Cardinals' hitting instructor. Now explain to me how this makes sense? As far as I could recall, McGwire was NEVER a great hitter - perhaps the most one-dimensional star of the 90's. In true Tim Russert fashion, let's go to the evidence courtesy of baseball-reference.com (i LOVE this site)

Only once did McGwire hit over .300 in one year (1996) and technically he hit .305 in 89 games in 2000. He hit .299 in that "magical" 1998 year. But take one look at his career batting average - a whopping .263. Does that scream hitting instructor? He's a great slugger (.588 slugging percentage is 9th best all time) but someone who can teach hitting?

Put it in perspective. Albert Pujols has a batting average nearly 70 points higher. What possibly could Big Mac teach him about hitting except to improve his power? And plate discipline? Dude averaged 130 strikeouts a season (over 100 times for 10 seasons). C'mon son.

I saw McGwire as a slugger when he played. A great power stroke but not exactly a great hitter. There's a difference between sending a ball to the bleachers and hitting a bunch of pop flies than knowing how to hit a ball and where to place it. Forget the steroid suspicion, the guy was one-dimensional before 1998 and even moreso afterwards. He got the job pure and simple because Tony La Russa is the manager and he's looking out for his former player.

Now if you want a guy who'd make a fine hitting instructor, I have a candidate. He batted over .300 11 times in his career with a .302 batting average during the 1990's (In all but one year, he batted better than .291). His career batting average is .298.

He also struck out fewer than 100 times every year in his career except his rookie year. All during his career, he was praised for his great batting eye. And now I present my best candidate to be a team hitting instructor.

Surprised? All of those numbers I mentioned belong to this guy. And for the ugly steroid argument, I threw in his 1990's totals when he along with Ken Griffey Jr. were the best players of the decade. Say what you want about him being a cheater, the guy could flat out hit and is better qualified to be a hitting instructor than McGwire.

VSR: Welcome Back, Pedro

I'd be remiss if I didn't shoutout Pedro Martinez for doing what he's doing right now. Two years, we thought he was injured, done and only a press conference away from the 5-year waiting period to Cooperstown. Last year, the Mets cast him off like he was finished.

It was the first time Pedro had been unwanted since the Dodgers traded him for the immortal Delino Deshields in 1993. The pitcher who Tommy Lasorda and them thought was too frail to be a pitcher was becoming frail and injury prone, no longer the dominant pitcher he was from 1997-2004.

Then he pitched in the World Baseball Classic....6 innings, 6 strikeouts, 0 runs. Could it be that the old arm had something left in him? Nobody took a chance and the Mets let him go but the Phillies thought maybe he could be a No. 4-5 guy.

His first start was shaky but he still picked up the W in 5 innings. The next three were even more shaky - one win in 3 appearances and just maybe, Pedro just didnt have it. 2 innings in his last August start. Nah, man. This guy will be a flash but not a consistent star.

All of a sudden, September struck and something happened. The pitch counts increased. The strikeouts increased, the innings eaten up. The W's being earned instead of given by the offense. And then came the motivation, Sunday against the Mets, the team that cast him off.

Read the box score. 8 IP, 0 runs, 6 Hits, 7 strikeouts - 130 PITCHES! He almost stayed in too long but worked his way out of the jam with some great defense behind him. It was vintage Pedro and now he's 5-0 with a 2.87 ERA.

Suddenly, the Phillies got a LOT scarier and Pedro just reminded everyone why he's been the best pitcher we've seen of his cloth since Bob Gibson. Intimidation, power, precision and just the chance to dominate on any given night. That's why I respected him so much in his prime when he should've won the 1999 MVP. He takes the ball and despite being 5-11 and 170 lbs dripping wet, he pitches with his heart.

Welcome Back, Pedro. I fear what will happen if you pitch the Dodgers and just use that trade as motivation.

VSR: On A-Rod and Baseball

The great clean hope for baseball is dirty. A-Rod admitted that he took performance-enhancing drugs from 2001-2003 with the Texas Rangers. Funny how the Rangers gave us two of the biggest stories of the decade – they gave us George Bush (their former owner in the 90’s) and now they give us BALCO south, the chemistry lab of Jose Canseco, Rafael Palmeiro and now Rodriguez.

*Speaking of Presidents, whoever that reporter was that asked President Obama about A-Rod should have him Press-Corps badge revoked. Here comes the Commander-in-Chief talking about the economy and his stimulus plan and some reporter dares ask him about something frivolous like this??? SMH at the cult of his personality infiltrating the White House Press Corps, I wish Helen Thomas would put that dude in his place.*

Starting with A-Rod, he manned up and apologized for what he called stupid behavior. He blamed it on the pressure to live up to his contract and the climate of the day. Only problems I have are that he said the timetable was “pretty accurate”, didn’t know where he got them from or what he took, and took Sports Illustrated’s Selena Roberts to task for her reporting methods. Other than that, I give him props for coming out with the truth.

Here’s my problem with this whole thing. Folks wanna get mad and say A-Rod is a fraud, blah blah blah. Don’t forget that dude came into the league on fire. That 1996 MVP should have gone to him for killing it in his first full season (.358, 36 HRS, 123 RBI’s, 215 hits). From 1996-2000, he was consistently one of the best young players in the game (going 40-40 in 1998, top-3 in MVP vote in 2000, going 40+ HR, 110+ RBI’s from 1998-2000). My only problem, A-Rod, why do it?

His Texas numbers just look astronomical and you can’t ignore the irony is that his worst year there (2003 – 47 HR’s, 118 RBIs, .298 BA) won him the MVP. His numbers got incredibly great (although Torii Hunter reminded folks in the LA Times today that Arlington is a band-box and hitting bombs there is easy) but it wasn’t like dude was a scrub with the Yankees.

2 MVP’s (including his greatest season in 2007 – 54 HR’s, 156 RBI’s, .314 BA, lowest strikeout total in 8 years – where he carried the Yanks to the postseason), still hitting 35+ HR’s and 100+ RBI’s, average hovering around .300. If dude was clean like he said he was, that’s still quality numbers people would kill for.

My major beef in all this is how that confidential test report was unveiled. Whoever leaked it needs to be arrested for breaking that trust. And WHY aren’t the other 103 names being revealed? It appears that in all this, somebody had a vendetta against A-Rod and squealed on him to dash everyone’s hopes. All of the names need to be released because otherwise this looks like a case of “Calling Out Names” (no Kurupt).

The player’s union deserves blame for not destroying those records. How are you supposed to rep the player’s best interests if you can’t keep sealed records SEALED! They should catch hate for not allowing drug testing in the past and they darn sure better catch hell for this. It’s gross negligence and with this witch hunt to find the cheaters going on, who knows who else is going to see their career come undone.

Maybe it’s because I’m a young cat who grew up on basketball in 1994-95 when baseball was losing fans, but the whole steroids era doesn’t bother me that greatly. It frustrates me how many great accomplishments are tainted but how long were the fans misled by not just the players, but baseball itself. This culture of juicing was allowed to parade so people could either gain an edge or compete with cheaters. I had a roommate in college who told me that guys on his baseball team took stuff because they had to compete with other teams and other pitchers.

More than anything, the whole idea of purity in sports has taken another hit. Baseball is our national pastime because it’s the sport that many grew up with, the sport that was made a myth by radio and a few TV images and the sport that tells a lot about our racial history in this country. It was the sport that famously barred Blacks and Latinos from playing til’ Jackie came along to remind folks of Moses Walker’s journey, then limited how many could be on a team, then got mad when Black athletes dared show their style (believe it or not, Willie Mays caught hell early on for – gasp – diving after balls, playing with ease). It’s a sport of tradition so the gatekeepers are pissed when the rule of order is threatened.

Course, these are the same gatekeepers that refused to vote Mays, Stan Musial, Tony Gwynn, Cal Ripken Jr. and Rickey Henderson in the HOF unanimously and kept Jim Rice and Goose Gossage out for years. *rolls eyes and SMH at the same time*

So pretty much, A-Rod’s revelations have tarnished his career although I would still call him a Hall of Famer and watch what he does. But Monday’s admission of guilt isn’t the only that should be made (PLAYERS UNION, MLB….i’m looking at you and throwing you LA Times’ columnist Bill Dwyre’s Modest Proposal from today’s paper).