Tip of steroid scandal may get bigger soon, By: Gary Thorne
August 25, 2007
If the reports are true, and there is no reason to believe they are not, the tip of the steroid scandal that has rocked all sports for the past decade is about to get bigger.
A former New York Mets clubhouse attendant is under investigation for having supplied steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs to major league players. He has apparently talked not only with federal prosecutors but also with the Mitchell Commission that is investigating the use of performance-enhancing drugs for Major League Baseball.
There are a lot of worried major leaguers around, some playing and some who have retired.
When a couple of newspapers went to court last month seeking to have redacted players names disclosed that were on a search warrant related to the steroid investigation, a number of players were watching closely.
Every time Jason Giambi starts speaking on the matter, a number of MLB hearts have a pulse rate increase.
There are others in the game anxiously awaiting the soon-to-be-published story in a men’s magazine by the former mistress of Barry Bonds.
The circle is being shrunk, the noose is getting tighter and the bubbling is evident on the surface of a story and problem that will not go away.
No one will be faced with tougher questions then baseball commissioner Bud Selig.
Whether there are criminal charges from any of this does not answer the issues he must deal with if there is direct evidence of performance enhancing drug use by players yet to be named, but already suspected.
Yes, there will be a lot of "he said, she said" in all of this, and that will make the matter that much more slimy.
The Mitchell Commission is the one to watch. Former Maine U.S. senator and federal judge George Mitchell is not about to issue a report that is full of holes.
He will lock down as tight and specific a report as possible. That will only help Selig in his decision-making. That is why Selig chose Mitchell in the first place.
These issues are not going away. There are still performance-enhancing drugs being used in sports despite all the warnings.
That is clear from the continued suspensions of pro players for violation of league rules, the mess in cycling and the wrestlers who are dying from unknown causes, with many believing we are just beginning to see the long-term impact of taking such drugs.
Sad, but we as fans owe it to the games and to the young who will someday play them to see this matter through.
Sure, it would be more fun to just cheer and ignore the whole thing, but that serves no one but the violators who are not worthy to be left unscathed.
There will be more to come, and hopefully soon.
