Steroids

Another one bites the dust.

With this week's disappointing, yet predictable news that Sammy Sosa failed a drug test in 2003, the running list of great home run hitters linked to PED's continues to grow.  

While many people had already subconsciously assumed this to be true, the news put another dark cloud over America's past time once again.  

Then, the discussions began, does Sammy Sosa still belong in the Hall of Fame?

Sammy Sosa tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. If you're surprised, you haven't been paying attention.

On the other hand, people were shocked and appalled six weeks ago when Manny Ramirez was outed. Three months before that, Alex Rodriguez got tagged, too.

And each of those times, you heard the fans start saying that phrase again.

Steroid users are not hard to locate. There is no need for MapQuest because the yellow brick road will always lead you to the numbers. 

WebMD descriptions of a steroid user: ginormous head, a back that looks like a pubescent face, bicep veins that resemble zippers, breaking bats over one's leg after every at-bat solely to release rage, and of course, what every man knows about—improvement in strength.

You thought I meant shrinkage of testicles, didn't you? Grow up and get your head out of the gutter (Tiny balls...hilarious). 

The New York Times is reporting that lawyers with knowledge of MLB's 2003 drug tests say Sammy Sosa tested positive for PEDs that year.

In other news, the earth is round.

So it's not that shocking. But it does make me wonder why only A-Rod and Sammy have had their test results publicised.

What about the rest of the 104 players on that list? 

In each case, the timing was curious.

Selina Roberts was writing a book about A-Rod. Meanwhile, Sammy was on the verge of formally announcing his retirement, saying he was a lock for the HOF.

A few months ago, I wrote an article naming 10 players I believe could be in the remaining 103 names affiliated with the A-Rod steroids controversy.

Much to the chagrin of Red Sox fans, one of the names listed was Red Sox DH David Ortiz.

The article was written Feb. 10, and since then Ortiz has done nothing but confirm any suspicions that his better years are in the past.

Albert Pujols has been the model of consistency in Major League Baseball for the last decade. Regarded as one of the best hitters of his generation, Pujols is an amazing offensive talent—a great slugger who also hits for contact and rarely strikes out.

Combine that with good defense as a first baseman and you have one awesome baseball player.

He is a solid postseason player too, leading the St. Louis Cardinals to the World Series twice (2004, 2006) and winning once (2006).

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You would think that Manny Ramirez was caught fighting pit bulls alongside Martha Stewart.

ESPN's Bill Simmons says that he is "confronting my worst nightmare." Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports believes that it is time to talk about "lifetime bans." Boston Globe writer Tony Massarotti says "everyone is guilty until proven innocent."

The sports radio and comment boards have been cesspools of racism. It's always easy to hate, especially someone who plays a game for a living and makes millions of dollars.

Over the past few years, we've learned a few things about how to handle steroid allegations in baseball.

For the sake of this argument, I'll go with my gut and assume all mentioned steroid allegations are true.

What Not To Do

Deny. Don't do it.

Baseball fans are smart and our intuition can go a long way. As a professional baseball player, your entire career has been documented by statistics and photographs.

The Pittsburgh Pirates' Barry Bonds appears pre-pubescent in comparison to the San Francisco Giants' Barry Bonds.

Looking back on my days as a recruiter that specialized in placing candidates in the accounting field I will always remember one candidate’s quote that “the numbers tell a story” and regardless of what you are being told the “numbers do not lie”. 

With that said,