JDanger wrote:It would be interesting to see some data suggesting that roiding actually improves performance. Like an alleged span of use juxtaposed with an increase in favorable stats.

This is obviously difficult as no ballplayer would be willing to divulge the extent of their steroid use, and over what time period. Do steroids make you a better baseball player? I don't think anyone is saying that. What steroids do is promote the building muscle mass. This coupled with existing hand-eye coordination will lead to things like more home runs. Of the big three home run leaders of the last couple of years, you need only look at pictures of McGwire, Sosa, and Bonds when they came in the leagu versus when they were hitting a record setting amount of home runs. They seem to have doubled in size - this happening as their body aged.

And truly, if steroid usage did not provide some sort of benefit - we would not be having this discussion - it's not like there's this huge placebo affect with steroid usage. And the notion that steroids used in moderation might actually be good is missing the point entirely. What is so completely wrong with the notion that players play until they are no longer competitive and then retire?

Rick Ankiel

I remember that Ankiel was involved in a scandal involving HGH sometime in early September. I thought that MLB investigated and found no wrong doing on Ankiel's part. It's unfortunate that he was named in the report, he was the highlight of the Cardinal's team in 2007.

If the mitchell report were a graduate school paper, it would get a C-

STF wrote:

Foldyourarmsandsaynah wrote:

STF wrote:

Foldyourarmsandsaynah wrote:Yeah, dude lucked the fuck out signing that 10 million/1 year contract like 4 or 5 days ago. I wonder if this had come out sooner if the Brewers would have dropped that much on a guy who was an injury threat before, but has to be topping the charts now.

What. The Fuck. Were the Brewers THINKING?

Yeah, when I heard the Red Sox had offered him arbitration in order to secure some draft picks if he signed elsewhere my first thought was, "oh god, he's not gonna be able to find a spot for the money he wants and he's gonna accept and then we're gonna have to sit through a whole season with him as a setup guy."

Even before last year I always thought he had the kind of make-up for a steroids disaster. The injuries and fluxuation of his ability to rebound from them freaked me out.

I'm kinda stoked we get a draft pick for him though.

I like how some mid/small market teams can't afford anybody really good so they overpay for someone shitty.

Eh, not really. 10 million a year will get you a top quality closer. Mariano Rivera is making 12.5 or 14 million right now (don't feel like looking, but I'm sure it's on wikipedia or something). He's really the top flight of what you pay for a closer, mainly because it's the Yankees signing him. But for 10 million dollars I would expect a team to get a hell of a lot more than Eric Gagne. Shit for 10 million a year you could sign a mediocre setup guy that shows some upside AND a halfway decent closer.

JDanger wrote:

Dr. O' Nothing wrote:

Hexpane wrote:Do we really want our elected officials spending their time and our tax dollars policing pro sports?

Your point is valid, but Mitchell works for your beloved RedSox now, doesn't he? He's not an elected official any longer, to my knowledge.

Mitchell left the Senate in 1995. Olympia Snowe succeeded him in ME. As far as I know, he is still involved with the Red Sox.

From what the Mitchell report said, he stepped aside from whatever position he was with for the Red Sox while he was doing this report.

Not that that's actually the case, or what happened, but that's what the report says.

Regardless even as a Sox fan I think it's fucked that he's the one who did it. Did they really expect nobody would give a shit?

well the obvious has happened, despite the mitchell report being a shitty document full of unsubstantiated accusations, it worked perfectly, just like a good/cop bad cop shake down.

People are now fessing up based on their names being in the report, to a "1 time thing" . Perfect set up for that frogolcious Bud Selig as he can get people "admitting" to roid use, downplaying it as a "1 time thing a few years ago" and move on w/ his happy ass saggy faced money making machine know as ballpark face value tickets.

Basically these guys are pulling the "i did not inhale" defense, and it is effectively deflating the anticlimax mitchell report to the levels of Bud Selig's sex appeal.

Brian Roberts admits to trying roids once? Who really gives a shit? Probably no one but washed up congressmen looking for facetime on TV.