The Pink Flamingo :: There Is No Way to Sugar Coat The Mitchell Report

This is the darkest day in baseball since the Black Sox Scandal in 1919. As I write this I am in tears. I love baseball. If something strict, serious, and devastating isn’t done, fairly quickly, FOR THE GOOD OF THE GAME we’re going to lose baseball. As I’ve said before, baseball is a reflection of where we are as a nation. Right now it doesn’t look good. But, if Bud Selig can only channel the ghost of Kennisaw Mountain Landis long enough to do what is right, maybe we can save the game.

Every player implicated for steroids must be banned for life and have his records deleted. I don’t care who they are be it Mark McGuire, Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, or even Roger Clemens. The irony is back during the Black Sox Scandal, Shoeless Joe Jackson was the greatest hitter and player in the game, and arguably of all time. There was NO EVIDENCE that Shoeless Joe ever gambled on baseball or cheated, but he took money from the gamblers along with his team-mates and so he paid the ultimate price. Fast Forward nearly 80 years. Roger Clemens is arguably one of the greatest pitchers of all times. Even if it is guilt by association, unless he can prove his absolute innocence, he must pay the same price as Shoeless Joe. Everyone on this list who cannot prove their innocence must pay that price. It is hard and cruel, but it is the only way for the game to survive.

FOR THE GOOD OF THE GAME
Today I feel the way I did when I was diagnosed with Melanoma. I knew it was coming. When I received the diagnoses I was devastated, heart-sick. Then, I sat about having the cancer excised and cut out at the source, going wide enough to get all traces of the malignant disease. This is what must be done in baseball. It is painful, but it is the only way to save the game.

SAY IT AIN’T SO

“…Seven-time Cy Young Award winner, eighth on the all-time list with 354 victories, an MVP and All-Star himself and once a lock for the Hall of Fame, Clemens now has another distinction: the biggest name linked by former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell to illegal use of steroids and other performance enhancing drugs In all, Thursday's 409-page report identified 85 names to differing degrees, but, while he vehemently denied it through his lawyer, Clemens was the symbol.

Barry Bonds, already under indictment on charges of lying to a federal grand jury about steroids, Miguel Tejada and Andy Pettitte also showed up in the game's most infamous lineup since the Black Sox scandal."If there are problems, I wanted them revealed," commissioner Bud Selig said. "His report is a call to action, and I will act." Doping was widespread by stars as well as scrubs, the report said, putting a question mark if not an asterisk next to baseball records and threatening the integrity of the game itself. "Those who have illegally used these substances range from players whose major league careers were brief to potential members of the Baseball of Hall of Fame," Mitchell wrote. "They include both pitchers and position players, and their backgrounds are as diverse as those of all major league players."

No one was hit harder than Clemens, singled out in nearly nine pages, 82 references by name. Much of the information on him came from former New York Yankees major league strength and conditioning coach Brian McNamee. At 45, Clemens has not said whether he hopes to pitch next season….”

THE FUTURE AT STAKE
I don’t care what happens to the people on this list after they are excised from baseball like the cancer they are. I am interested in the players of tomorrow. I am worried about the kids who want to emulate their heroes so they can be Major Leaguers. The health of the next generation of Major League Baseball Players is in their hands. The problem – today’s average MLB player doesn’t give a rip about anything but money. So, hit them where it hurts – the money.

THE INFAMOUS LIST
(Bonds may have received advanced notice of drug testing)

Here's a list of most of the names Major League Baseball players (AP) - listed in the Mitchell Report.

The following players were connected to steroids, either use or possession, in the report:
Lenny Dykstra
David Segui
Larry Bigbie
Brian Roberts
Jack Cust
Tim Laker
Josias Manzanillo
Todd Hundley
Mark Carreon
Hal Morris
Matt Franco
Rondell White
Andy Pettitte
Roger Clemens – Hired an Attorney to fight the allegations
Chuck Knoblauch
Jason Grimsley
Gregg Zaun
David Justice
F.P. Santangelo
Glenallen Hill
Mo Vaughn
Denny Neagle
Ron Villone
Ryan Franklin
Chris Donnels
Todd Williams
Phil Hiatt
Todd Pratt
Kevin Young
Mike Lansing
Cody McKay
Kent Mercker
Adam Piatt
Miguel Tejada
Jason Christiansen
Mike Stanton
Stephen Randolph
Jerry Hairston
Paul Lo Duca
Adam Riggs
Bart Miadich
Fernando Vina
Kevin Brown
Eric Gagne
Mike Bell
Matt Herges
Gary Bennett
Jim Parque
Brendan Donnelly
Chad Allen
Jeff Williams
Exavier "Nook" Logan
Howie Clark
Paxton Crawford
Ken Caminiti
Rafael Palmeiro
Luis Perez
Derrick Turnbow
Ricky Bones
Ricky Stone
The following players were cited under "Alleged Internet Purchases of Performance Enhancing Substances By Players in Major League Baseball."
Rick Ankiel
David Bell
Paul Byrd
Jose Canseco
Jay Gibbons
Troy Glaus
Jason Grimsley
Jose Guillen
Darren Holmes
Gary Matthews Jr.
John Rocker
Scott Schoeneweis
Ismael Valdez
Matt Williams
Steve Woodard
The following players were linked through BALCO:
Benito Santiago
Gary Sheffield
Randy Velarde
Jason Giambi
Jeremy Giambi
Bobby Estalella
Barry Bonds
Marvin Benard

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