Guilty by Association: Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera & PEDs

Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera are certainly two of the finest baseball players of the modern era. Especially Rivera. As far as closers go, the guy is untouchable. Greatest ever, no question. And Jeter, well, he's Jeter. He's Captain Clutch and the longtime shortstop for the much vaunted New York Yankees. Jeter and Rivera: certainly, special players.

But I think they may be closet-case Performance Enhancing Drugs (PED) users. I have no scientific proof, but let me explain.

I was listening to a Bill Simmons "BS Report" podcast recently, while at the gym (Ok, the fact that I was at the gym is irrelevant, but it's just where I always listen to podcasts. Wanna see my muscles?). The guest was Buster Olney, one of the finest sportswriters alive and currently a senior writer with ESPN. They'd been discussing the 2010 playoffs, before moving on to the baseball topic that ESPN loves to talk about: the New York Yankees (unless they're talking the Boston Red Sox).

Specifically, they were talking about Rivera's late-career success and his unique training regime and level of fitness. Fair enough. A closer in his 40s still blowing fastballs by hitters this late in his career, surely he must train hard.

In the midst of discussing in athleticism and presence around the locker room, Olney made the comment that struck me: "He really loves the game."

I know, I know. The comment wasn't about expanding head size or back zits or shrinking testicles, just, "He really loves the game." That was part of Olney's validation for why Rivera can do what he does and why he may well continue to do so for a few more years.

Heard those five words and immediately red flags started waving.

Why those five words and why red flags? The same things used to be said about Alex Rodriguez and Roger Clemens.

When A-Rod was with the Mariners and later with the Rangers (pre-scandal), with his flashy numbers and defense, he was touted as a natural. Just a freak of nature who loved the game and was simply so much better than his contemporaries. No way he was using.

And Clemens, well, he just worked so much harder than the average pitcher and had this unique intensity. In a Sports Illustrated cover story from June 2003, Tom Verducci compared Clemens' ability on a mound to legends of the game, crediting his brutal workout regime.

"He really loves the game," in my mind, is code for we think something's up, but we have no proof and want to ride this gravy train. Come on. I really loved the game of soccer. I'm sure Ryan Leaf loved football and Mark Madsen loves basketball (just coincidence that I chose three white guys who can't dance) -- but loving the game isn't enough to make one great.

So how could I not be skeptical? I'm skeptical with nearly every great baseball player (and in other sports as well) out there today: Albert Pujols, Hanley Ramirez, Joe Mauer and even the soon-to-be star Bryce Harper. Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Andy Pettitte, Nomar Garciaparra, Edgar Martinez, Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz, A-Rod, Clemens and certainly many more were using -- why would I assume the athletes of today aren't?

Testing, you say. Players are still failing tests. Who's to say that the new drugs players are using aren't going unnoticed in urine samples? (Hint: Don't raise your hand.)

I hope I'm wrong about Jeter and Rivera. I'd like to believe there is still some class and integrity left in baseball.

Sadly, these days, in my mind, if you're a great player and not built like David Eckstein, you're guilty until proven innocent.

Note: Photo ripped off from ESPN. I promise, no money is made by this blog.

Neighborhood Diamond

WORLDS APART

After spending an afternoon sorting through my photo files, I started noticing similarities in what I was shooting in New York and what I've shot here in Houston. I figure it could be an interesting occasional topic to revisit when I find images that strike me as similar, though separated by over 1,500 miles. (Unfortunately, I didn't do as much walking around and shooting while in CA – though when I find an opportunity for three images, I'll include those.)

First up, unused baseball backstops at nearby parks. With these two images, I was surprised by the number of similarities: center-weighted, horizontal framing (trees in the first, light poles in the second), presence of nature. The first is in NY, obviously during winter. This was after the second major snow storm to hit the city (I was gone for the first). This was a baseball field in Central Park that is in frequent use during the fall and spring, with adult softball leagues and youth baseball. The second image is a field right by my apartment in Houston. The field doesn't get a whole lot of use, since the temps are constantly in the mid- to high-90s, and breaking triple figures during the day. Every now and then there will be a game, mostly Hispanic players, in full uniform – meaning long pants and cotton jerseys. I don't know how they bear it.

Both remind me of my youth – baseball practice and games. I don't know how my parents put up with it, because it must have been so very boring. But, they were supportive. Fortunately, I was hit in the face with a pitch at a young age and quit the sport soon after. Soccer balls hurt less than baseballs.

Bouncing Back From the Steroid Era – Already?

If history is in fact written by the victors, it’s safe to assume baseball’s Steroid Era will endure a fair bit of revisionist history. Why? The guilty keep winning and the powers-that-be in Major League Baseball don’t seem to care to take any drastic action.

Then again, why would they? They’ve got a multi-billion dollar enterprise. Besides, they’re a business, not a platform for higher moral standards.

The next generation of baseball fans be damned.

With a new World Series champion to be crowned in a months’ time, four teams remain in contention. In listening to and reading the critics, there’s one match-up that many are hoping for: New York Yankees vs. Los Angeles Dodgers.

And why wouldn’t they? From a media standpoint, the story lines abound:

• Tradition – They’re two iconic clubs, among the oldest and most storied in the game, and also have two of the largest fan bases.

• History – The teams once shared city borders when the Dodgers were based in Brooklyn. The team relocated across the country in 1958.

• The Torre Factor – Estranged Yankees manager Joe Torre traded pinstripes for Dodger blue after not being resigned by the club he led for 12 seasons. Despite four World Series titles, six American League pennants and a playoff appearance each season, he was allowed to walk.

Then there’s that other issue that somehow seems to get swept aside when ratings and ad dollars are at stake: Performance Enhancing Drugs. Along with the host of story lines, the two teams also have two of the most recognizable known performance enhancement users on their rosters: the Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez and the Dodgers’ Manny Ramirez.

According to some, one of the validating factors of a Yankees-Dodgers series is that it will signal the beginning phase of closure to the Steroid Era.

What?

The cloud of uncertainty surrounding the past 15 years of baseball is nowhere near dissipating as names continue to be leaked from the infamous 2003 survey testing list, and yet, there are already talks of closure? Both Rodriguez and Ramirez were outed in the past six months, and both continue to collect hefty salaries and play for postseason accolades. And yet, there are talks of progress?

The only certainly to date is that an entire generation of fans of this country’s national pastime has been exposed to a tainted slate of broken records, champions and high-profile stars. And it’s a period that is irrevocably lost to court proceedings and lies.

What does a dad say to a son who dreams of one day playing in the big leagues? To whom do they point as an example of what’s right with baseball? Most every big name that has had a period of success has been assigned the scarlet letter ‘C’, for cheater.

Stringent drug testing procedures are now in place, and seem to be having an effect, reflected in those players who’ve undergone a makeover in statistical matter. But what message does that send to the fans and their lingering feelings of being deceived?

Get over it.

The message sent to the future millionaires of MLB, on the other hand, is this: “Run and hide. Change your ways. We won’t ask, we won’t tell. Just don’t do it again or we’ll suspend you for a little while and you can go off and enjoy the millions of dollars that you’ve unethically earned to the dismay of millions of viewers.”

No doubt that the MLB playoffs bring a heightened sense of drama and enjoyment to sports fans across the country, but that shouldn’t be enough to hide what’s really going on. If enough people say steroids are a thing of the past, hopefully we’ll get over it, right?

Wrong.

A common happening in the ebb and flow of professional sports teams is rise and fall, success and failure, dominance and rebuilding. Following the height of the Mark McGwire-Sammy Sosa duel of 1998 in breaking Rogis Maris’ revered home run record – which resulted in returning baseball to national sports prominence – the mighty have since fallen.

And so baseball enters a collective era of rebuilding. Rebuilding legitimacy. Rebuilding a fanbase. Rebuilding faith in its product. Baseball has long stood as sacred ground in the annals of American sports, but the luster is long gone. Now it’s on the MLB to right its wrongs and do so in a way that treats its paying customers in a way they deserve.

Written for my Personal & Professional Style class at JSchool at Columbia University.

The Dark Ages of Sport

Manny Ramirez of the Los Angeles Dodgers is just the most recent example of what's wrong with professional sports. Though TV ratings and gate receipts will say otherwise, the aura of walking into the stadium or turning on the game for a favorite sport just isn't the same.

In case you haven't been keeping up, here's a quick update on America's beloved sports leagues:

America's past-time (baseball) is being overrun by tiny testicled, huge cranium'd bodybuilders who are sending the MLB's credibility down the shitter. The NBA has a lack of competitive disparity (there's no Cinderella Story), yet an overflow of ego ('roid rage?). Too many burly NFL athletes (steroids?) are putting themselves in the spotlight ... of a police squad car, that is. The NHL ceased to exist (What? Wait!? The NHL is still around?). The MLS is the jayvee league of pro soccer (maybe they need steroids!).

And yet, most every athlete (with the exception of MLSers) lives within an almost separate realm of existence. While most Americans are facing paycuts or unemployment, athletes (alongside their greedy agents) keep digging deeper into the owner's pockets (I know, it's the owner's fault for conceeding); there's rarely a half-way decent role model in the bunch; and what "grinds my gears" more than the rest is how athletes are seemingly above the law.

Jason Giambi, Roger Clemens and Alex Rodriguez are KNOWN steroid felons, and yet, despite a slap on the hand and some name-bashing in the media, repercussions have been few. These "athletes" have made millions of dollars from lying and cheating. And yet the powers that be in the MLB, do absolutely nothing. So Manny is suspended for 50 games without pay. Great. But what about the last 5 years of his career? How about recouping some of those funds, which come from fan-paid gate receipts, fan-purchased product and taxpayers?

I know it's a stretch, but how different are Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez from Bernard Madoff? Aren't steroids baseball's version of a Ponzi scheme? Cash by the carload has been arriving in the bank accounts of these undeservedly accomplished athletes, fooling owners, investors and fans alike into spending money to keep them around, and instilling faith through PR agents that all is just and fair.

Maybe baseball needs to go the way of the former WWF and stop touting their sport as a sport. It's no longer pure. It's no longer legitimate. It's a bunch of juiced-up freaks using needles and hormones to mask the truth. Something needs to be done. Most every big name they try to tout as the best in the business, those heralded as "what's right with the sport," turn out to be a fraud (see McGuire, Mark; Bonds, Barry; Sosa, Sammy; Clemens; Rodriguez).

In my mind, the biggest downfall of this egregious development is that it makes me question whether the problem stops with baseball. Is Tiger Woods juicing? He's got quite a bit different frame than most every other player on tour. Rafeal Nadal? The kid avoids injuries and has more "oomphf" is his backhand than most have on a serve. LeBron James? They say he's just a rare, exceptional human specimen; maybe he's just downing HGH with his Vitamin Water.

These days, who's to say? I used to believe that I was witnessing one of the greatest eras of sports in history. Now, I'm just waiting to wake up from the nightmare that it has all become.