Daily Loaf

I am by no means a Yankee fan.  It’s no secret how I feel about Derek Jeter, and it’s safe to say that I feel pretty much the same way about the entire squadron/organization. (Hank, we get it, you’re a loudmouth and you have useless opinions… can we move on?)

Today, or yesterday, or whenever, new allegations surfaced about Alex Rodriguez and steroid use. With the allegations before (I’ll call this” ’Roiding Round I”) he said “Yeah, I did it, but just for a short time with the Rangers… my b, we should just hug this one out.” Apparently there is now “irrefutable” evidence that he used in high school and/or with the Yankees.

I’m not about to pile on A-Rod. Because, frankly, I do not care. You might call me a Yankee apologist (that is, if you didn’t know me) but, truth be told, I absolutely do not care.

If you had asked me before the previous allegations against A-Rod whether he had done steroids, I wouldn’t have said no, or yes. I would have said, “Well, I’ll tell you, I suppose I don’t find him any more suspicious than anyone else.”

This is precisely the problem with steriod-era baseball.

When the news came out about ’Roiding Round I, I remember there being a poll on ESPN about how surprised you were. I remember many Americans saying that they were not particular surprised. Last night, I saw a poll that asked (I paraphrase) how “How surprised were you that A-Rod did steroids in high school?”  70-plus percent of people said “not at all.”

The problem with ‘roid era baseball is that you don’t suspect one person any more than you would anyone else. At no point can any of us say definitively, “Ken Griffey Jr. absolutely, 100 percent, did not do steroids.” Or Albert Pujols. Or Derek Jeter.

Griffey is a perfect example. I think he’s one of the most likable players in sports history. Unfortunately, the best I can say about him is that I don’t suspect him any more than anyone else. Griffey with the Mariners was a great player. Once he went to Cincinnati, however, he fell off largely because of injuries. One of the known side effects of steroids is damage to soft tissue such as ligaments, making them more susceptible to tearing and injury…. see also, Griffey Jr.

More than anything, I’m irritated that I have to keep hearing about it. And now, I’m irritated that I have to talk about it. Rick Riley for ESPN.com wrote an article after ‘Roiding Round I, taking away the MVP awards from known ‘Roiders like Rodriguez and Barry Lamar Bonds and giving them to the deserved winners. Albert Pujols won like 15 or something silly.  I’m not saying I suspect Pujols. I’m just saying…. oh, you get the drift.

Open letter to Rick Riley and ESPN:

Please, for the love of all that is good and light in the universe, stop. We get it. People in baseball did steroids. Making each one out to be a new level of demon isn’t making me want to watch E60 anymore (that’s also not  happening so give it a rest). I’m sure that Dante has a new level of hell just for them.

Hugs and Kisses,

Ryan

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