Ali Adair

Jose Canseco is ruining baseball.

Last week in an effort to promote his new book, “Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant ‘Roids, Smash Hits & How Baseball Got Big”, Canseco went on “60 Minutes” and openly admitted to using steroids. He went on to not only tell how he injected them into his own body, but also how he injected other teammates as well. In the early 80’s while playing with the Oakland A’s, Canseco walked around the weight room openly bragging about his use of a “helper” and how he didn’t need to work out as hard as other players because he had “help in a different way”.

Canseco is showing a blatant disrespect for the game of baseball and for people that were along with him during his years in the major leagues. By coming out and telling about what he did while in the majors, he is pointing unnecessary fingers and stirring up unneeded controversy. Canseco is doing what is best for him and not what is best for the game that gave him a lifestyle, a career and a name. Instead, he is throwing all of that back in the faces of people who love baseball and love the game with his disgusting cockiness, finger pointing and being “too good” to care what happens to others involved. He is not coming clean now to get it off his chest or confess and repent for his sins. He is coming clean strictly for profit. This controversy will sell his book, which is all he wants. Canseco doesn’t care if it ruins his credibility or Mark McGwire’s or Barry Bond’s and all the amazing things they have accomplished. Now there may be a lingering shadow of doubt over all of their records. Did they use steroids and could they have accomplished everything on their own if they hadn’t?

These guys are huge and baseball has been turning a blind eye to the possible use of steroid for years. Tony La Russa, Canseco’s manager while he was with the A’s, admitted to hearing Canseco brag about the use of his “helper” but did nothing because there was no real steroid policy in the major leagues. Controversy has been quietly stirring in the league for years about the use of steroids, but why would anyone bring this into the light and ruin all the good things that were happening in baseball because of it? Players were bigger, stronger and hitting home runs out of the stadiums. The game was more interesting and clubs were making a larger profit. That’s what really mattered, not the health of their players but the money in the bank.

The first year any type of steroid policy was put in place by the major leagues was 2002. This policy consisted of only survey testing the first year and no suspensions until a second positive test. Baseball felt this was enough, but with all the media attention now swarming, Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig has decided to implement a new policy. Selig hopes to have it in place by spring training. This policy will suspend first-time offenders for 10 days and randomly test players year round. Selig says it’s “a good, tough policy.”

As for Canseco, I hope when Hall of Fame voting comes around people will remember all the great things he did as a baseball player and not remember him for all the bridges he has burned since retiring from the game.

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