Now in 2013, we have arguably the most prestigious ballot of baseball greats we have ever seen compiled on one ballot, and the most startling thing of all is that maybe no one will make it. Names like Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa, Mike Piazza, and Craig Biggio are all making their inaugural appearances on the ballot, and by strictly looking at their numbers, one can surmise that every one of these men is beyond worthy of induction. The only problem is the looming notion of steroid use.
To the BBWAA, I have one bit of advice: Get over it, and put these guys in the Hall.
Currently, the BBWAA is composed mostly of self-righteous old gentlemen who still see baseball as "America's pastime" and those associated with steroids have tarnished their legacy and are ultimately unworthy of induction. Are you joking? PED's, HGH, and steroids are such a prevalent part of sports these days that it's nearly impossible to decipher who exactly was a user, and who wasn't. For example, Jeff Bagwell was never once associated with steroid use. Never once did he get caught, questioned by authorities, or do anything even mildly suspicious. Yet he was a guy with a pretty big stature (6'0'', 195), and pretty impressive power numbers. So the automatic assumption is to say he was on PED's because of the era he played in, and to keep those gates closed to him. Shame on you, BBWAA.
So if Jeff Bagwell, a man with totally worthy Hall numbers who held himself with class and respect, can't make the Hall, then who can? Barry Bonds, perhaps the poster boy for the steroid era, is the all-time home run leader and holds the record for most home runs in a season. He also holds the single season records for OBP, slugging percentage, walks, and intentional walks. Bonds was so feared that pitchers literally went out of their way to avoid throwing to him. And when they did, most times they paid dearly for it. He is contentiously the most dynamic hitter in baseball history, and anyone who watched his career can tell you that. Yet all of that will culminate in denial from the Baseball Hall of Fame. Why? Because in 2003 he admitted to unknowingly taking PED's, and has forever been linked to them because of the rise in his power numbers as he got older. Sure, there's a very good chance he did knowingly take them at some point in his career. But honestly, who cares? I don't and if you're a real baseball fan, neither should you.There is a reason the 1990's and early 2000's are referred to as "The Steroid Era". That is because just about everyone took them in one form or another. Whether it be to get healthier quicker, to stay on the field longer, to elongate their career, most baseball players of this era are probably guilty of using something which would be illegal in today's game. Baseball needs to learn how to embrace this, and move past it. No one thought Alex Rodriguez was on steroids until Selena Roberts literally stalked him and uncovered his past. Now unfortunately we have guys who are probably (hopefully) clean, but who also played in the era like Derek Jeter, Chipper Jones, and Ken Griffey Jr. Who's to say that they didn't do any form of PED's? It breaks my heart to think that one of those three did, but honestly who knows? You can't determine who did and who didn't because it's literally impossible. To omit players with mild connections or suspicion is downright embarrassing. It was a part of the history of baseball, and these players did things that were within the rules during their playing days. Why are they now being punished when it's time to laud them?
If you want to make the argument for their pre-PED careers then so be it. Players like Barry Bonds before 2003, and Roger Clemens before, let's say, 1996 are both Hall of Famers. Guaranteed. They were both phenomenal players with outstanding skill sets who tried to make their careers last a little longer. Both won MVPs before their suspicious years, and both could have retired before PEDs came into the picture and they'd have been probable first ballot Hall of Famers. And now because of their alleged use of these drugs, and the time which they played, they won't make it and neither will their deserving peers. The aforementioned Bagwell, along with Mike Piazza and Craig Biggio were never once associated with performance enhancers, but they'll likely be denied for the same association as Bagwell. Kind of like being in the wrong place, at the wrong time. All of this is said without even going into the argument of how little steroids do to really enhance your skills. If you tell me taking steroids improves your odds at hitting a ball, or your hand-eye coordination, then you've got to re-evaluate the real effects of these drugs. Sure, they may make a few fly balls go over the fence that could've otherwise fallen short, but how much are they really going to boost your numbers? Hitting a baseball is arguably the hardest thing to do in all of sports. Steroids won't magically make you better at that.
Oh, and save me the song and dance about the character test. A man doesn't have poor character because he tried to make his career last a little longer by doing something everyone around him was doing. Look at Ty Cobb. By all accounts he was an enigmatic, megalomaniacal, grumpy racist. But the guy could play baseball, and he was a first ballot Hall of Famer because of that. He wasn't denied because he was jackass.
If you're not going to let these men into the Hall of Fame who deserve to be there more than, probably, 50% of the guys who are already there, then there's a real problem with how this system works. If you want to deny Bonds and Clemens who have immediate connections to PED's, then that's your prerogative. But to deny these other guys who are being rejected solely because they played in the same era, then you deserve to have your voting rights as a baseball writer stripped.
Do me a favor, BBWAA writers, get off your moral high horse and give these Hall of Famers their plaques already.
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