Mark McGwire

Earlier this week, former baseball player Mark McGwire told fans what they didn't want to hear but needed to know: He used steroids.

McGwire finally came out with the truth. He admitted to the Associated Press that he used anabolic steroids and during the 1998 season in which he broke Roger Maris' record of 61 home runs in a 162-game season. The record has since been broken again by Barry Bonds' 73 home runs in 2001.

McGwire is now the hitting instructor for the Cardinals. Spring Training is less than six weeks away. McGwire should either step down from the position or be removed by the team.
It won't happen. McGwire has been shrewd in this. He has said all the right things. How hard the ordeal has been for his family. He's so sorry. He'll face up to it now. What about when Spring Training starts?

My prediction: McGwire will face the media on his first day on the job and tell the press, "It's over. I addressed the siutation earlier and that's all I'm going to say about it. You guys should focus on the team we have for the 2010 season. I'm not going to be a distraction."

Yes you are.


Mark McGwire cheated. There was no way Major League Baseball was going to let the epic Home Run Chase be tainted with rumors of players injecting themselves with performance-enhancing drugs. The 1998 season was just four seasons after a labor dispute cancelled the World Series; something two world wars and an earthquake couldn't do.

Say what you want about Bud Selig. The man is shrewd. He knew something like this would be just the thing Major League Baseball needed to get the fans back and it worked. Years later ballparks are enjoying record attendences. Now is the time to take the high road and tell the public something must be done.

Something must be done. Mark McGwire must be suspended for at least one year. The Commissioner's Office must look into this matter and see if McGwire should be allowed to work in Major League Baseball. If Selig does not do this, he will continue to fail to convince the fans that Major League Baseball is doing all it can to protect the integrity of the game. And somewhere at a baseball card show, Pete Rose is calling his lawyer with a new sense of hope.