Boxbusters

With the recent announcement from A-Rod admitting using a “banned substance,” it seems the cheater chatter has picked up pace again. Should A-Rod be allowed in to the Hall now? What about McGwire? According to the recent vote totals for McGwire, both players are going to have a tough time getting in, at least for awhile.

This is what bothers me most about all this Steroid talk.

Why are these guys being immediately discounted for the HOF?

For CHEATING right?

So why is Gaylord Perry in then? He is a self admitted CHEATER and that did not stop him from getting in to the Hall. Perry was known for using a spitball and a grease ball and even wrote the following in his own book: “I became an outlaw in the strictest sense of the word – a man who lives outside the law, in this case the law of baseball.” Perry is not alone in his admissions. Roger Hornsby, whom many consider the greatest second baseman of all-time, once wrote ” You’ve got to cheat to win.”

Both of these men admitted to cheating the game in a PUBLISHED BOOK and or article yet they are still in the HOF. So why all the hate for the steroid era?

I mean seriously, cheating has been and will always be a part of games. I don’t care if your talking about baseball, football, racing or any other sport, athletes are always looking for that edge and as history has shown us, they will continue to do so.

I applaud the work MLB has done to “clean up” the game and do not in any way shape or form condone cheating. I do however feel it is unjust to punish a group of athletes for taking a substance THAT WAS NOT BANNED at the time by keeping them out of the HOF, when the precedent has already been broken. There are cheaters in the Hall now so why can’t we seem to make room for these?

~ Ross OT