We all knew it was coming, and today is the day. Today, Major League Baseball, the league that can’t seem do anything right, deals with the darkest cloud ever held over its gargantuan head. Steroids are for real, there’s proof, and the league’s best slugger of all time, Barry Bonds, has used them.
The stories coming out over the past two days are an embarrassment, a disgrace, and downright pathetic — but they’re not a shock. We all knew it was coming, so I’m not going to perseverate on it.
This is what I’m interested in: Bonds says he “didn’t know” that “The Cream” and “The Clear” were steroids. He claims his trainer told them they were a nutritional supplement and a pain reliever, respectively. It seems, though, that Bonds would have to be stupid to not suspect something was up, what with the way his body transformed. So is his story Believable?
I, for one, think it is.
Let’s review what we know about Barry Bonds:
- Born to Bobby Bonds, the first 30/30 player, and one of the greatest baseball players of his day.
- Godson of Willie Mays, arguably the greatest player to ever play the game.
- Grew up in the ballpark, around baseball players. Raised to be a ballplayer.
- Played baseball in high school, college, and the pros, and was hugely successful on every level.
- Was a star player before coming to the Giants and long before any steroid accusations.
- Bonds had 46, 40, and 42 home run seasons in 1993, ‘96, and ‘97 — long before the year 2000, when his body ballooned in size and steroid accusations started.
This is what I’m getting at: Bonds was born to be the greatest baseball player that ever lived. He has been, and more importantly, has believed he is, the best player in the world for probably ten years. There was no need for Bonds to take steroids. He was already the best. And it was nothing special, in his mind. He simply was what he was always destined to be. Nothing more, nothing less.
If it had been the case that Bonds was close to breaking the season or career home run record(s) and just need that little extra boost to get there, I could imagine him thinking ,”I’ll cheat, just this once to get the record.” But those records weren’t in Bonds’ sight in 1999 and 2000. He couldn’t have possibly been thinking like that. Instead, his thinking was, “I’m the best player in baseball — I don’t need to cheat!”
Now, baseball faces a huge hurdle. Next season, Bonds will pass Babe Ruth, the sport’s most iconic legend, to move into second place on the all-time home run list. He’ll start the season just 52 home runs shy of all-time record holder Hank Aaron. The next season and a half will be about one thing: Bonds breaking the most unbreakable record of them all. At the same time, the BALCO case will be in full swing, and Bonds will be at the center of all the controversy. Baseball stands to see it’s greatest record ever broken — by someone who used steroids. How will they handle it?
There is no doubt now that Bonds used “The Cream” and “The Clear.” There is also no doubt (in my mind, at least) that the steroids propelled Bonds to his 73 home run season in 2001. Let’s face it — Bonds has never hit 50 home runs in any other season, so there was obviously something going on in 2001. It is also fairly obvious that Bonds stopped using “The Cream” and “The Clear” during or shortly after that season.
But for now, I’m content to believe Bonds honestly didn’t know the substances were steroids. He simply didn’t need to cheat. He was already the best player in the game — exactly what he was born to be.
In the end, I don’t think Bonds is a doper — just really dopey.
001 // Jeff Croft // 12.03.2004 // 12:32 PM
I’m obviously in the minority. According to ESPN.com’s SPORTSNATION poll, some 85% of people don’t believe Bonds’ story.
Take the survey.
002 // Mike D. // 12.03.2004 // 1:25 PM
I don’t believe his story either. Are you kidding me? Two mysterious substances called “The Cream” and “The Clear”? If he really thought these were legit, why didn’t he talk about them during his great year?
Here’s a typical question from a reporter:
“Barry, have you made any changes to your workout, practice, or nutritional routines to help spur this incredible success? What’s your secret?”
Typical answer:
“I’ve just been working really hard, that’s all.”
Yeah, right.
While I do believe that the word “steroid” may never have been spoken from Barry’s trainer to Barry, it is an athlete’s responsibility to know what he is putting into his system. Barry knew this substance was taboo at the very least, and at the very most he knew it was a steroid. Athletes are very careful about what they put into their bodies and to suggest that he was completely oblivious to the controversial and illegal nature of this substance is wrong, in my opinion.
Also, in my opinion, there are at least 5 records in baseball that are tougher to beat than Hank Aaron’s:
But that’s just my opinion.
I can easily see A-Rod re-breaking the total HR record before he’s done.
003 // Jared // 12.03.2004 // 1:26 PM
I don’t know anything about Barry Bonds or baseball, but I wanted to point out that sometimes people don’t base their success on their skills or accomplishment, but rather on their missing skills or what they haven’t accomplished. With that in mind, it’s not really surprising that even the most successful people (in our eyes) would take incredible risks to rise higher.
004 // Jeff Croft // 12.03.2004 // 1:38 PM
Mike-
Why would he talk about them? He didn’t feel like they were helping him out any. They weren’t contributing to his sucess, in his mind. To him, they were simply a nutritional supplement (which he probably takes many of) and a pain reliever (which he probably takes many of). To him, they were nothing of note. Just a few more drugs to add to his cocktail he surley already had going. He obviously knew he was taking the, but he didn’t know they were performance-enhancing illegal drugs.
I totally agree, though, that it’s an athletes responsibility to know what he’s putting into his system. That’s why I said he’s dopey (i.e. stupid). What kind of idiot would load their bodies up with god-knows-what in the name of health and training? Seems stupid to you an me, but there are examples of athletes doing it all the time. Think ephedrine, for example…Kory Stringer, remember?
You’re probably right that there are records that are “tougher to beat.” I probably shouldn’t have called the HR record “unbreakable.” But, it’s still the most important baseball record, simply because it’s about home runs. No one really cares what pitcher won the most games or who has the most consecutive games — people just wanna hear about home runs (for better or for worse).
005 // Jeff Croft // 12.03.2004 // 1:42 PM
Jared-
That’s certainly true in general, but I’m not sure it applies to Barry Bonds.
This is a guy who doesn’t seem to like the limelight. He doesn’t relish the fame that comes with being an athlete. He’s not like most pro athletes. I attribute that to his upbringing. If you ask people who are close to Bonds, they’ll tell you that he doesn’t feel as if he’s done anything unexpected — he’s simply done what he was born to do. He’s not insecure or lacking in confidence, either — he knows he’s the best. I don’t see any reason why someone who was already on top of the baseball world would cheat in order to get better.
Bonds also loves the game of baseball. He values its history and integrity. For that reason alone, I don’t think he would knowingly cheat.
006 // Brian Ford // 12.03.2004 // 1:58 PM
Well, I’m not sure if people ‘still’ care about the most consecutive games thing, but -and this coming from someone who is bored silly by baseball- I certainly remember the big to-do when that record was being set.
On the other hand, I remember my dad being particularly annoyed at the consecutive game thing, as he hadn’t ever missed a day of work in his life. (And to my knowledge, still hasn’t.) This, through a very serious bout of food poisoning, and countless other illnesses. One suspects that my mom was wondering where he was when she was giving birth to Jason and I.
I think the big issue with the homerun thing is that it truly seems like a physical accomplishment, one that not many ordinary people could ever aspire to. (I never made much success past “coaches-pitch.”)
I realize that consecutive games is a difficult record to beat in -baseball-, but essentially.. he showed up… a lot of times in a row…. wupty frickin do.
007 // Chad Baker // 12.03.2004 // 2:01 PM
I agree. While Bonds may have been aided slighlty by steroids during his record run of 73 HRs, I seriously doubt that his dominance has been so great because of the substance. Look at Mark McGuire, Jose Canseco and Ken Caminiti. They were obviously into using illegal / controversial substances and eventually had to quit the game because their bodies couldn’t keep up. Bonds is simply the best player the game has ever seen because his work ethic and upbringing were focused on him being a great baseball player.
If Bonds is eventually found to have knowingly used steroids, then MLB should look in the mirror for who to blame. They had ample time to address the issue of drugs and illegal substances and to make drug tests required for all players. These guys were subjected to the tests in college, they shouldn’t be given a break now because they have grown up to be successful millionaires.
008 // Jeff Croft // 12.03.2004 // 2:02 PM
There are a lot of people (myself included) that really discount that consecutive games record as “manufactured” and generally silly.
Cal Ripken was a great baseball player. There is no doubt about that. However, he stopped being great about two years before his streak ended. He was old, tired, and no longer a quality enough player to be starting in the Major Leagues. And yet, he was. Why? That damn streak. He actuallyheld the Orioles back. His team could have been better by getting a younger replacement for him, but instead, they kept him in there so he could get a stupid record.
I’m not really trying to dicount Ripken hiself. He was a great player for a long time. But, like you said — anyone can show up.
009 // Jeff Croft // 12.03.2004 // 2:05 PM
Chad-
Well said. There is no question that Bonds is a great player without the steroids, too. He was great both before he starting talking them and after he stopped, and much of his greatness is not in his home run hitting. He’s got a ridiculously high batting average, is a very good fielder, is pretty darn fast, etc.
010 // Mike D. // 12.03.2004 // 4:53 PM
Oh man, dissin’ Cal over his record. That is rough!
Not only did that record take longer to achieve that 99% of records in any sport, but it stands for so much more than pure athletic ability. It stands for the old-school way of being an athlete: Live healthy and play through pain. These days players will sit out games because of 99-degree fevers, headaches, chipped fingernails, muscle pain, and even mental fatigue. The culture today says that athletes are allowed several days off per year for these sorts of things and I don’t think there is anything wrong with that, but for Cal Ripken to go over 2600 games without missing even one of them is something that should be fully respected for what it is. It is the ultimate show of work ethic in the history of professional sports and it simply won’t happen again because the standard nowaways for durability is so much lower.
It’s also not exactly the same thing as someone’s father never missing a day of work in his life. It’s the same concept for sure, but when you think of all the opportunities an athlete has to injure himself in a a game, in practice, or just in everyday life, the odds against never being injured in one’s baseball career are astronomical.
011 // Dustin // 12.03.2004 // 8:04 PM
I’d be interested in knowing what’s so “enhancing” about these drugs. You can either knock the ball out of the park or you can’t. Baseball isn’t exactly a strenuous sport. The only part where I can see a drug helping out an athlete would be track and field where you need to be running your @ss off like you were on steroids (hence…steroids).
Homerun hitting only involves standing at a plate, then whacking a tiny ball. It’s more about technique than power.
012 // Mike D. // 12.04.2004 // 1:28 PM
Dustin: You’re right that steroids don’t help nearly as much in baseball as they do sports like football and track but they still do help in baseball. Take for instance, Mark McGwire. When he hit 70 home runs, his record-breaking home run was a line-drive that never got more than 100 feet off the ground and it cleared the wall by about a foot. Without that andro, that ball wouldn’t have gone out of the park. How many other of his HRs that season wouldn’t have cleared the wall if he were 10, 20, 30 percent less powerful? Quite a few.
Then, there’s Barry Bonds. The year he hit 73 home runs, one of his homers came at Dodger Stadium when he swung with one hand and broke his bat. That kind of power doesn’t come naturally. Barry also hit a lot of “pop fly” home runs that year which, minus a little bit of power, would not have been home runs.
So, once you get to the point of being able to “miss” a ball and still hit it out of the park, all sorts of other things happen to your prowess at the plate. Pitchers pitch around you. You get a ton of walks. You have the fear factor going for you. It’s a chain reaction all caused by the fact that you are strong enough to get about 60% of the ball and still hit it out.
The shame in all of this though is that Barry Bonds was a very good player before the roids. He was Hall of Fame good, which is plenty if you ask me. He just wasn’t Babe Ruth/Hank Aaron/Willie Mays good when it comes to the pure numerical feats. I suppose that is what he wanted all along.
013 // Brian Ford // 12.04.2004 // 3:39 PM
First off, depending on what someone does, it’s very very possible that “someone’s dad missing a day of work” could be just as unlikely and impressive as Cal’s streak. Granted, my dad doesn’t have the likelihood of serious injury, but I assure you that working class people deal with as much in a lifetime as any sports star.
Even police officers (and there -are- some good ones) put their lives on the line and rarely recieve the sort of recognition you see going towards Cal Ripkin, who I will say again: Showed up.
Second, the main point of the reference was that there is FAR too much “national hero” BS put on sporting achievments, and far too little emphasis put on the sacrifices ordinary people make every day that are just as challenging, and often for far less reward. (And, as this week in baseball proves… with far less added controversy.)
Don’t get me wrong, I admire Cal Ripkin, and I honor him for being an upstanding human being and athlete, I just don’t find what he did to be particularly awe inspiring. And somehow, I bet -he- doesn’t either. He loves playing baseball, so he made sure he could do it every day that he was able.
My dad doesn’t even love his job. He fell into it at a fairly young age in order to feed my brother and I. And, for that reason, and reasons that survived our moving out of the house, he never misses a day. I fail to see the difference.
014 // Dustin // 12.05.2004 // 2:26 AM
Mike I think you’re right. Especially when you mentioned the homerun that barley cleared the wall by a foot and only stayed like 30 yards above the ground. That I see potentially being aided by steroid use.
Sheesh, some of these guys…they’re already millionaires…just go out there and play some ball. What’s the league minimum, a hundred grand?
015 // Jeff Croft // 12.05.2004 // 2:58 PM
I’m not actually sure what the league minimum is right now, but it’s considerably more than $100,000. I’d bet it’s closer to $300,000.
016 // Mike D. // 12.05.2004 // 5:32 PM
Jeff: Yep, the MLB minimum salary is exactly $300,000. Nice!
Brian: I think what your dad did is great, and within his own company he should receive as much recognition as Ripken does within the MLB. It’s really rare for people to go entire careers without taking vacation or sick days. That said, however, I wouldn’t take away from what Ripken did by saying everyday people do the same thing. Your dad should feel like the Cal Ripken of his industry/company, and that’s a great thing.
The world makes heroes out of people in the spotlight because they are just that: in the spotlight. To expect everyday people to be honored on the same scale just isn’t possible because they are exposed to such a smaller group of people.
017 // Brian Ford // 12.05.2004 // 10:21 PM
Mike: I pretty much agree with you, I just have a longstanding grudge against the sort of awe we tend to place upon sports, often at the expense of a lot of other things. (Speaking as a person who went to a school with no promising athletic team, that still spent more on the Coaches and Sports programs than on any other facet of the school.) I would also argue that the type of reverence with which we hold professional sports tends to make a lot of the people we admire do stupid things, in order to meet our expectations.
There is a lot of pressure put on atheletes at every level; by parents, by their school, by coaches.. and it tends to push them into making stupid choices. I suppose the drawback to national exposure is that if Cal Ripkin had been found to have some noticeable flaw, it would have been the Scarlett Letter that he carried for the rest of his life. We build ‘em up and tear ‘em down with an equal amount of pleasure, it seems.
Someday, perhaps, we’ll come to respect the small sacrifices the rest of us make on a daily basis, and perhaps worry a bit less about how our team is doing. Maybe then basketball, baseball, and football can get back to being fun, and perhaps a little more innocent.
018 // Dustin // 12.07.2004 // 12:11 AM
I was a mini-hero back in my day. In high school I ranked 13th in the country (USA) for the 800 meter run (aka. “the half mile” for you americans).
From what I remember, some of the teammate’s parents laid more pressure on their kids compared to the kind of pressure any major league player received from their fans.
In the end though, it was not how we performed at the races or how many medals we won, we were still the geeks who ran cross-country and would never be popular in high school.
Popularity was for the football players ;)
019 // Jeff Croft // 12.07.2004 // 1:23 PM
Does the fact that other athletes are now also testifying that they were deceived into believing that “the cream” and “the clear” were not steroids change anyone’s opinion?
020 // Mike D. // 12.10.2004 // 5:36 PM
Nope, doesn’t make any difference to me. There are more athletes who have come out and said they knew what they were getting from BALCO was steroids (e.g. Jason Giambi), so I have a hard time believing that BALCO had a policy of telling Jason Giambi and not Barry Bonds. Either Barry Bonds knew, or he saw to it that he didn’t know… either one is an indicator that Bonds was aware of possible foul play.