an Opening to attack
Posted in arOund the big leagues on February 26th, 2012 by The Wayward OBlog has room intellectually for explanation that doesn’t involve Ryan Braun incurring strict liability (or as baseball players say: ‘guilty until proven innocent’) for having banned substance in his system — but hasn’t heard it yet. Nor does Blog ever expect to.
So let’s leave that aside and talk about issue that has exploded all around Braun case and has been hiding in plain sight:
Braun’s Hail Mary appellate victory has brought cheating apologists out of woodwork, where they have resided over past five years or so, apparently biding time and waiting for opening to attack baseball’s drug program.
First, a caveat: I believe doping should be allowed in professional sports. — Jere Longman of the NYT yesterday
Not necessarily singling him out here, for there are many out there. But he’s very current and admirably blunt. So let’s be blunt:
These folks WANT steroids in game. They want athletes to use them and they want athletes to get paid to endorse them — since that’s what athletes would do, were steroids legal.
They want kids to buy them and try them, which is what kids would do in far greater numbers, were steroids legal.
They want to put clean players at a competitive disadvantage, forcing clean players on bubble of success either to start drugging or find a new career.
And they want coaches and trainers to become drug pushers, who tell young people that “you’re good kid, but you got to be better … and here’s how you do it.”
The Braun conflagration has emboldened them. So take Blog’s advice: If you’re talking to someone who is defending Braun, you might want to ask them whether part of reason they’re defending Braun is because they think steroids should be legal.
Also feeling bold these days are guys like Chris Narveson, the Brewers’ union representative. According to this story Narveson “was playing golf with fellow starting pitchers Yovani Gallardo, Randy Wolf and Shaun Marcum when he got the news” of Braun’s absolution.
I don’t want to comment too much. But put it this way: This isn’t the first time we’ve had issues with the people [in charge of testing] in Milwaukee. There have been other issues with timing.
It’s TESTERS who are at fault, according to Narveson. Ha. This is too rich. Narveson, NYT guy above and so many others clearly see this as a wedge to attack baseball’s testing program.
Braun, too, couldn’t leave well enough alone. He attacked the tester as well, leading to this line from Mike Lupica:
Braun made it clear on Friday in Arizona that he wants everybody and anybody to be on trial except him.
Blog is glad to read that MLB doesn’t appear to be taking this lying down.
Owners apparently are among few in baseball who haven’t forgotten finger wagging, lying, pretending not to speak English and horrible death of Ken Caminiti — among many other torpedoes that smashed into hull of good ship baseball over embarrassing expanse of Steroid Era.
MLB itself — so long regarded as greedy overlord — now occupies position of sensible parent trying to protect these greedy little piggies from themselves.
Brewers’ owner, who is in interesting position of having interests on each side of Braun-gate, defended his player Friday using very carefully chosen words. But he also expressed at least one sentiment that clearly was too hopeful:
With this now behind us, we return our focus to the ballpark
Not so fast dude. It’s not behind you. It’s all out in front of you. MLB might have to fight this war all over again. Your star player says system is “fatally flawed.”


