Why Clemens and Bonds Are Victims of The Era

As a beginning note to this article, I'd just like to say I could write for days about this topic.  This is just a brief overview of why I can't blame those named in the Mitchell Report more than the Commissioner of Baseball, Bud Selig.

It was a sad day watching Roger Clemens sit before a Congressional committee and denying allegation after allegation and defending attack after attack on his name being reported in Senator Mitchell's report of steroids in baseball.

What might have been even sadder is watching a man in San Francisco named Barry Bonds achieve baseball immortality in breaking the single greatest record in all of sports under scrutiny of his alleged steroid use.  (Let's keep in mind I cannot stand Barry Bonds as a person, but let's be honest... It's a little sad.)  What should have been the happiest moment in any man's life cannot be enjoyed to the fullest extent because of the fact that a homerun ball that should rest on a pillow in Cooperstown, instead rests in a publicity hungry kid's hands with a giant asterisk imprinted on it.

Perhaps the icing on the cake here is that neither Clemens nor Bonds should make a Major League squad this year because they could be cell mates by June.

The question that I arise, however, is not "why did they do it?" if they're guilty, but rather "who is responsible for why they did it?"  While if you truly look into it, the answer could be us, I'm choosing to blame the Commissioner of Major League Baseball himself, Mr. Allan Huber "Bud" Selig.

From the moment Selig began as the Commissioner of Baseball in 1992 (unofficial until 1994) he faced obstacles.  Former Commissioner of Major League Baseball, Fay Vincent (who was ran out of the position by baseball ownership in 1992), holds Selig responsible for a baseball collusion incident in 1992 in which Vincent was quoted as saying, "The Union basically doesn’t trust the Ownership because collusion was a $280 million theft by Bud Selig and Jerry Reinsdorf of that money from the players. I mean, they rigged the signing of free agents. They got caught. They paid $280 million to the players. And I think that’s polluted labor relations in baseball ever since it happened. I think it’s the reason [Donald] Fehr has no trust in Selig."

Perhaps it was this distrust that led to the 1994 Major League Baseball strike.  While the strike could turn into a five page book report, ultimately it was about salary, benefits, salary arbitration, and free agency issues between the Players Union and baseball ownership.

Whether it was an owner's proposal, efforts by Selig, or a demand by President Bill Clinton, the two sides could not reach an agreement.  The strike would last from August 12, 1994 until April 2, 1995 (a day before the season was supposed to start).  It was nothing short of a disaster for baseball.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?