Tuesday, August 6, 2013

All In All, A Great Day For The Game of Baseball

ESPN's T.J. Quinn lays out for us the final "tally" from the sordid Biogenesis Affair: fifteen suspended, three given a pass because they were already suspended for a positive test, and two named in documents but acquitted. So, what does it all mean? In our view it means that—although imperfect—MLB's efforts to clean up the game need to be applauded. For all of Bud Selig's flaws (and they are many), he will now be remembered for moving beyond the initial efforts to control PEDs and taking decisive action to protect the sport itself. That is why Monday, August 5, 2013 will always be recalled as a good day for baseball. Embarrassing, troubling, but, in the final analysis, good. Baseball is well on its way to becoming the cleanest professional sport in all the world. For the clean players who have been denied a level playing field, they can begin to see a time when talent and effort alone are rewarded. For the fans who despise and rightly 'boo' the cheaters, they can envision a day when the sport will again be the way they knew it as children. Hopefully, the players will force their union to step up and join MLB in making the penalties for PED use as severe as they are for gambling: one strike and you're out. Then, the problem will be solved forever.