What Now?

Now that the Mitchell Report has blown the lid off major league baseball, what are we, the fans, to think? What about the sports writers who ultimately have to decide which player gets voted into the Hall of Fame? This has been baseball's dirty little secret for years. There have been players who flatly denied any involvement to those who smile while saying they didn't knowingly take any banned substance.

Mitchell says he thinks there should not be any punishment, Selig is not so quick to forgive. He says what ever happens should be on a case by case basis. What about the records? What about the bottom line of the teams? After all baseball means big money. Big players want big contracts. Home runs and strike outs fill ball parks. We tend to laugh at the loose purse strings of the New York Yankees every time some player signs a new contract. To get good players, an owner needs to be willing to shell out lots of money. Top players attract crowds.

The smaller fans are the ones who have been the most disappointed. How can a ten year old kid look up to a hero player now if that player may have taken the banned drugs to gain power, or strength? These kids hear the talks about "work ethic" and want to be like the players. I saw a clip of some young boys looking at the list. One commented on Roger Clemens by saying"...so much for work ethic."

What about the players who have not used these drugs. How does this make them feel? There are, for example, very good defensive players who do not have home run power. They work hard to improve their skills. Yet these players don't get the large paychecks the "stars" do.

Baseball, and sports in general, will have to think long and hard about the business of sports. And they will have to consider the health of the players. The WWE has already had tragedies because of steriods. There have been baseball players who died possibly because of drugs. Players and teams want to win, but at what cost?