Mark McGwire a Cardinals Pinch Hitter? Good!

Recently, St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa said in an interview that if his Cardinals were still in playoff contention August 31, he would put Mark McGwire on the active roster for a day to make him playoff-eligible.

I think that's a good thing.

The Hall of Fame says that if McGwire un-retires even for one plate appearance, he'll have to wait another 5 years to appear on a ballot. A lot of things can change about baseball politics in 5 years.

Did McGwire do the evil roids? Did he not? Who really cares? Steroids can't give you ability that you don't already have, and he put up stats you can't ignore: His 1996 performance with Oakland where he put up a .312/.467/.730 line with a 196 OPS+.

McGwire was always a prolific home run hitter, hitting 49 homers his first full season. He averaged (adjusted for 162 games) 50 homers a year through his career. His 1998 season where he put up video game numbers (70 homers, 162 walks, 1.222 OPS, 216 OPS+) is one of the greatest offensive seasons in the last hundred years.

Steroid controversy or not, nobody can argue the fact that McGwire consistently put up extreme power numbers throughout his career. That more than 24% of BBWAA writers will not vote for him is an embarrassment to the sport, and an embarrassment to the BBWAA.

Maybe in 5 years opinions will change. His reputation is ruined, but his ability is unquestionable. Just ask the players he's going to coach.