BATTLE MOUNTAIN - The latest hammer to fall in the Biogenesis PED scandal came last week with the suspension of 13 Major League Baseball players, including a 211-game suspension for New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez.
Three of the players Nelson Cruz (Texas Rangers), Jhonny Peralta (Detroit Tigers) and Everth Cabrera (San Diego Padres) were named to the All-Star Game in July. Cruz and Peralta are currently on teams that are leading their respective divisions and have excellent chances of reaching the playoffs.
The suspensions are for 50 games, so Cruz and Peralta can rejoin their teams for the playoffs - if they are welcomed back. At the July 31 trading deadline, Boston, Detroit and the Chicago White Sox completed a three-team deal that saw the Red Sox acquire pitcher Jake Peavy.
As part of the trade, the Red Sox sent shortstop Jose Iglesais to Detroit. Iglesias will be the replacement for Peralta, because the Tigers knew what was coming. Iglesias is not known for his offense, but rather his defense. However, come September if Iglesias is struggling, do the Tigers bring Peralta back for the playoffs?
I am thinking there will be some conversations in the locker room about that one. Peralta let his team down by accepting the suspension. If I am in that locker room, I tell Peralta, thanks but no thanks. You just can't walk in and say hi guys I am back.
Apparently, the Rangers were shocked when Cruz accepted his suspension. Unlike the Tigers, the Rangers made no such move to replace the outfielder. Now Texas must go into its farm system to find a replacement. What is ironic is that Manny Ramirez, who was suspended 100 games a couple years ago on a drug violation, could be called up from AAA.
The only player fighting his suspension is Rodriguez. It might be the fact that he is still owed over $100 million and he doesn't want to lose out on that. Over the past few weeks, the Yankees and Rodriguez have made fools of themselves over the entire ordeal. It's not too often when you have the general manager of a team telling a player he needs to shut the (expletive) up.
With Rodriguez appealing his suspension, he will likely play out the rest of the season because his hearing will not be heard by an arbitrator until November or December. So it may be possible that the 211 games extends into the 2015 season, or it is cut way short if he wins his appeal?
So it comes to this - do we care? There has been sentiment to clean up the game and it has to start with the players. How about negotiate at the end of the year and say 100 games for the first drug offense and lifetime ban for the second. Put clauses in the contract saying if a player is caught, his contract can be voided at any time and the team is free of the contact.
Baseball did not bat an eye when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were crushing the ball out of the stadium at record pace in 1998 and 1999. Fans filled stadiums to capacity to see the two sluggers hit a ball 500 feet. Heck, Sosa broke the old home run record four times.
Barry Bonds was probably a first ballot hall of famer in his time in Pittsburgh before moving on to the San Francisco Giants. The all-time home run king turned into a monster during his alleged steroid days.
He surpassed Hank Aaron for the all-time home run title with some controversy. If you ask some fans and baseball historians, Hank Aaron is the all-time home run king and Roger Maris is the single-season home run champion.
I am sure that Commissioner Bud Selig would like it to go back that way, but you can't simply erase numbers like they never existed. Those players involved will probably never get inducted into the Hall of Fame. The sports writers that vote are vindictive. For heck sake, Nolan Ryan and Tom Seaver were not on the ballot of some writers.
The one person that looks good in all this, and it is a scary thought, is Jose Canseco, a teammate with McGwire with the Oakland A's. Canseco basically told the world what was going on in baseball.
We tend to care more about baseball and its stats rather than football or other sports. Is there a big uproar if a football star is caught cheating with steroids or human growth hormones? Doubtful, because we look at those players like gladiators on the field. Fans are attracted to the violence and could care less what players are on.
Sports will never be clean of performance enhancement drugs no matter how hard they try. Are we to the point to let players do whatever they want to their bodies with no consequences?
If you want to see what steroids can do to you look at the late Lyle Alzado, who played for the Los Angeles Raiders, Denver Broncos and Cleveland Browns. Alzado died in 1992, which he claimed was the result of his steroid use.
He was 43 and by the time he passed away his body was destroyed by the drugs he took. If you don't believe me look at photos on the Internet from his career to his death. If that doesn't scare you nothing will.
Winnemucca Publishing sports editor Tony Erquiaga can be contacted via e-mail: t.erquiaga@winnemuccapublishing.net.
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