The MLB: The Era of Cheating and Its Double Standard

He was one of the most heralded home run hitters of our generation and likely in history.  He was a main player in one of the most entertaining and headline writing competitions in all of professional sports, alongside Sammy Sosa. He put his name in the record books, both with production on the field and dollars in his bank account. And after that? That was when we learned what steroids were. 

One by one, players started to test positive for HGH and other performance enhancing drugs, eventually prompting a congressional hearing. The sport of baseball was becoming so corrupt that it began losing fans, money, and came close to losing a promising future.

Mark McGwire was asked multiple times in front of that congressional panel, on national television, whether or not he ever used performance enhancing drugs. But, he wasn't there to discuss the past, remember? 

Years went on, with McGwire continuing to deny ever having used performance enhancing drugs. As the seasons went by, more and more people began to test positive and come clean. There were the little people, not very well known, but then we had players like Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, Alex Rodriguez, and many others become connected to the steroid saga. 

We no longer knew which records were clean and which came to be because of human growth hormone. The record books were tainted, fans hurt, and millions of fraudulent dollars made.

Then, St. Louis Cardinals manager, Tony LaRussa, decided to bring back an old friend to help him coach—to help him win a world series. That friend was Mark McGwire. And eventually, after all the years of denying it, McGwire was ready to come clean and admit that he cheated. Now, he gets to come back to the game of baseball and the game that he loves.

Great story isn't it? It's what our parents tell us as we're growing up. If you do something wrong, so be it. Just be honest and admit it and things will be better. It has worked for Andy Pettitte, Alex Rodriguez, and now Mark McGwire. They cheated the game of baseball, but they came clean and now all is forgiven.

The same, however, isn't the same for one player. A player who's places in the record books didn't come about from a needle. Pete Rose has a rookie of the year award, MVP award, and 16 All-Star game appearances to his name. 4,256 hits in his career and not one of them came about because of cheating. They came about because of hard work and dedication to the game that, just like McGwire, he loved.

Eventually, reports surfaced that Pete Rose made bets on that game he loved and he, like almost all steroid users, denied it. When he was ready, like almost all steroid users, he admitted it. This was almost six years ago. He has been begging for reinstatement since his confession and has gotten nothing out of the commissioner's office. 

Should he be voted into the Hall of Fame? Absolutely not. He defrauded the game just like every other steroid taker over the past so many years. But should he be allowed to return to the game that has consumed the majority of his life? The game he loves? Well, if Mark McGwire can apologize for a month for what he did and be accepted, why isn't six years long enough for Charlie Hustle?