Baseball Players Think We Are Stupid

David Ortiz held a press conference at Yankee Stadium on Saturday.

He proceeded to feign ignorance and wonder that his positive test was probably because of some supplements and vitamins he took carelessly.

We have seen angry denials from Rafael Palmeiro, pointing his finger and angrily denying use only to be outed as a steroid user.

We have seen blank ignorance from Mark McGwire vowing to not talk about "the past".

We have seen Sammy Sosa forget the English language when questioned by authorities.

Barry Bonds? Manny Ramirez? Roger Clemens?

The list goes on and on, and these are only the ones we know about.

David Ortiz was one of the players who lined up to take pop shots at Alex Rodriguez when he admitted his steroid use, even though his excuse was laughable, at least he came forward and admitted he understood what the substance was he was putting into his body.

Then Big Papi was outed along with his fearsome Red Sox teammate Manny Ramirez as one of the players on the 2003 substance list. You think Papi wishes he kept his rather large mouth shut now?

Micheal Wiener, the latest long winded spin doctor that runs the MLB Players union got in front of the microphone and spoke to baseball fans and the media like we were seven-year old children explaining about how the number of positives could have been less that what was reported because more violators may have been tested twice.

Just how stupid does this guy think we are?

As I listened to Wiener spout this inane dribble at the press conference and lauded Ortiz for speaking I wondered how can this guy think that this is going to placate the baseball fans who just want their game to be clean?

I gotta be honest, It made me very angry the more times he basically stated that the drug problem in baseball is less that it is, stating that the 108 number was probably around 96, or as little as 83.

I have a statement Mr. Wiener—No one cares about anything you have to say, unless you are going to be honest and forthright.

Stop trying to tell the baseball fans and sports fans in general that drugs are not a big deal in sports.

Stop downplaying the role drugs have played in baseball not only over the last 20 years, but the last 50 years when the drugs of choice were pain killers and amphetamines instead of HGH and steroids.

Shut up or tell the truth because unless your going to present the list of 2003 to the public, ending the controversy and putting the speculation to rest, no one really cares.

We as fans are sick of lawyers preparing statements for players who they wont let answer any real questions.

We are sick of holier than thou players bashing other players only to be outed as users themselves.

We are sick of spin control and endless legal babble coming from union officials who know nothing of the pressure these guys feel to succeed.

We are sick of over bloated players and records that mean nothing in terms of who has the most skill and more about who had the best drugs.

I for one am sick of fans who stand and cheer their steroid violators and vociferously boo and taunt opposing players who are outed.

This is not just a baseball issue, it is a human issue. Look at the NFL today and how many 300+ pound lineman there are in the league. Now go and see 30 years ago and see how many there were then.

Now lets check the health of these guys when they hit 35 and find that they have 70 year old knees and 80 year old backs and tell me you don't care.

Do you think Ken Caminiti would have done things differently if given a choice to go back in time?

These guys are killing themselves for their sport. That makes them no different from professional wrestlers who for years died young or crippled themselves trying to compete.

The steroid issue is not just cheating in terms of cheating at a game. Its cheating these guys out of their own lives and quality of life.

People may say its their own fault, they are adults and they knew what they were doing.

That is a silly argument for this reason:

How many players do you think are out there that haven't made millions of dollars but have destroyed their bodies with drugs in the effort to get to where guys like David Ortiz, Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez and Jason Giambi are at?

Who is cheering for these guys? Who will take care of their families if they cant provide for them?

That my friends is the real crime of it all.

FCT