The level we have of testing in boxing is not really that deep. I mean, we have urine tests on the day of the fight and we don’t have much else…there’s things that don’t come up in drug tests. There’s ways to beat drug tests.
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Manny Pacquiao is the first guy in history, and he might be the special thing that everybody says he is, he might be, the first guy in history to go up in weight and knock out more people as he goes up in weight than he did when he was smaller. He might be that special person. Me, I think that looks a little fishy. I think that’s a little bit fishy.

So let me get this straight, it’s fine to accuse Manny Pacquiao of using steroids or performance-enhancers so long as you don’t demand he submits to strict drug testing? Good, just wanted to make sure I had that straight. This should put an end to the debates about Pacquiao and Arum’s motive. Manny complaining that having his blood drawn will sap him of his power is like one of those people who claim they can levitate so long as nobody is watching. Uh huh. The onus is on Pacquiao here and he should submit to Olympic-style testing if he has nothing to hide. End of story.

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Floyd’s father accused Pacquiao of using steroids and/or supplements in an interview a few months ago and it looks like he was right on. Mayweather’s camp wants both fighters to submit to Olympic-style WADA drug testing prior to the fight, which is more stringent than drug testing outlined by the Nevada Gaming Commission. Pacquiao only wants to submit to drug testing prior to the media kickoff tour of the fight and after the fight. It does not take a genius to figure out that the lapse between tests is plenty of time to do a cycle of drugs.

The excuses coming from Pacquiao’s side are pathetic. Trainer Freddie Roach says the request proves Mayweather is scared. Promoter Bob Arum says Floyd is just harassing Pacquiao because he knows Manny feels weakened by giving blood. There’s no doubt that Floyd recognizes the talent of Pacquiao and that he’s in danger of losing. Even with that being the case, there’s nothing wrong with requesting stringent drug testing for the fight. The retort by Arum is pathetic and offbase. It’s clear he’s just trying to spin the issue but he doesn’t have much ammunition in this argument. The undeniable bottom line is that Pacquiao would not have anything to hide if he weren’t doing anything wrong. What’s so hard about Manny agreeing to random drug tests during his training? There shouldn’t be anything wrong with it as far as I can tell. Maybe there’s a lot more to Pacquiao’s story that helps explain his late career surge.

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I was holding out some hope that David Ortiz might actually be forthright and honest when he decided to finally address his positive steroids test from 2003 but I was wrong. Judging by the way he was acting, why wouldn’t I have hoped for the best? He told us that he’s always upfront and honest with the media and that he would continue to act that way as soon as he gathered some more information about the positive test. He said he would tell the truth and that’s what I expected. Although he found out on Thursday the 31st of July that he was on the list for a positive test, it somehow took him over a week to “gather all the facts.”

If Ortiz weren’t trying to come up with the best possible defense to deflect all blame and portray himself in the best possible light then he would have just spoke the next day and given us the honest truth. Instead, he took the scummy way out and sat behind the protection of the even more dishonest player’s union. He never explained what he took, when he took it, or why. Instead, he gave us some totally bullcrap answer saying that he’s never used or bought steroids and that the positive test was caused by vitamins or supplements. Riiiiight.

Thing is, I wouldn’t be nearly as upset about Ortiz achieving what he did because of performance-enhancers (if most of the league was on them, then it was pretty much an even playing field), if he had just told the truth. It’s the lying that bugs me and not just that, the pathetic lie that irks me. What does he take us for, 8-year-olds who also believe in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy? Does he really think we’re that dumb that we’re just supposed to believe some Flintstones chewables caused the positive test? Is there a sign on my head saying “idiot?” Like Ortiz went from being a platoon guy with the Twins to being a 54-home run hitter just by “changing his approach at the plate.” Any coincidence he’s back to a mediocre player now that there’s penalties for positive tests.

As if Ortiz flat-out lying to us behind the shield of the Union wasn’t enough, especially when Ortiz told us he would be honest and not hide anything, the Union’s actions are even more disgusting. Their latest strategy is to try and make you believe that the ‘03 test list is inaccurate and that the lab that did the testing isn’t credible — all because the results aren’t convenient for them. Next thing you know they’ll be telling us that Dinosaurs never existed because they never witnessed them. Give me a break.

I’m not at all surprised by the Union’s actions, but I’m surprised David Ortiz had to hide behind them when he seemed to be such an outgoing guy who, in his words, never hid and always was upfront. I hope the lying eats at his conscience and that he one day decides to apologize and tell the truth. That’s assuming any of these guys actually have consciences left.

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“Toward the end of the season I took an over-the-counter supplement which at the time I did not realize included a substance banned by the NBA. I apologize to Magic fans, my teammates and this organization for not doing the research that should come with good judgment. I hope this unintentional mistake will not reflect poorly on our team and its great character. I hope every athlete can learn from my mistake that supplements, no matter how innocent they seem, should only be taken after consulting an expert in the field.”

Honestly, how many times have we heard this excuse? J.C. Romero, the Williams Wall from Minnesota, seems like every player who gets busted blames it on a supplement. When will all the players take responsibility for their mistakes? And why don’t they get products checked by their leagues before they take them? If they get approval from the league, then how could they possibly have a problem? When you have multiple game suspensions and millions on the line how could you make a mistake like that? I can’t imagine guys being that sloppy with that much at stake. You’re really expecting me to continue buying these lame excuses?

But there should be no mistake. The leaking of information under a court seal is a crime. The active pursuit of information that may not lawfully be disclosed because it is under court seal is a crime. That its informants, according to the Times, are lawyers is both shocking and sad. That the Times is pursuing and publishing what it openly declares to be information which may not be legally disclosed is equally sad. We intend to take the appropriate legal steps to see that the court orders are enforced.”

Leave it up to the Players Union, the biggest culprit in this whole scandal, to ignore the most glaring problem — its players are using illegal drugs (yes, anabolic steroids are illegal in the country) and cheating the game. They are the ones chiefly responsible for the problem, and if the players never had taken the stuff there wouldn’t be an issue of sealed information. Let’s all remember here that this is the same country where lawyers’ responsibilities are to the defendant, even if the defendant has confessed murder to them. Ignore all the spin and get down to the real problem — the players were the ones doing the illegal activity to begin with and it’s the union that shepherded the whole thing. If each leak puts more pressure on the union to accept harsher penalties for users, then I’m all for it. Two years for a first-time offense, lifetime ban after that.

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“When you tell me something I didn’t already know, I’ll be surprised. And I’ll tell you this, Major League Baseball is going to have a big, big problem on their hands when they find out they have a Hall of Famer who’s used.”

Canseco goes on to say he’s not into naming names (I guess he forgets about his books) because he wants to get the union for propagating this whole mess. OK, so now that we have the info, who’s the player? We can’t be sure until we hear from Canseco, but I’m sure many of us have a damn good idea who it is. Let’s see:

85% Rickey Henderson – The two played together in the early 90s when many of the A’s were juicing. Rickey played until he was 44 and was always in premium physcial condition and had a game based on power and speed. Canseco would have excellent knowledge of his potential usage and the timing of the remark (Henderson was inducted on Sunday) is quite telling.

5% Wade Boggs – They were on the ‘99 Devil Rays together. Boggs was on his last legs and just trying to get his 3,000th hit. End of his career, trying to scratch out a couple of hits, there’s reason to believe he could have been desparate.

5% Dennis Eckersley – Played with Canseco on the A’s from ‘87-’92 making him guilty by association. As a reliever he pitched frequently and supplements could have been helpful for day-to-day recovery.

5% Field – Everyone else in the Hall who played during Canseco’s time including the likes of Paul Molitor, George Brett, Nolan Ryan, Robin Yount, Dave Winfield, Ozzie Smith, Gary Carter, Eddie Murray, Ryne Sandberg, Tony Gwynn, or Cal Ripken Jr. Canseco never played on the same team as one of these players in the majors as far as I know but you never know what could have been the case.

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In case you can’t watch the video, Nomar says the list was a joke and that since it was supposed to be sealed by the grand jury that it would be viewed as inadmissible evidence in the courts. He said guys who wanted testing didn’t take the test on purpose so that the percentage of positive tests would go up. He was questioning the legitmacy of the list, stressed it was supposed to be anonymous, and he overall seemed to be defending himself as if he were one of the guilty parties on the list. I don’t think anyone would be surprised to find out if he were. How else do you tear a muscle completing off the bone?

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“I would certainly like to see him in,” Aaron said. “He belongs in, really. His career is one that he needs to be right here in the middle of all of this.”
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“The Pete Rose thing is different than steroids,” Aaron said. “If I had been Pete, I think I would have asked for forgiveness many, many years ago.”

I’ve maintained that the steroids cheaters belong in Cooperstown because they’re a big part of the history of the game, but that they don’t belong in the Hall of Fame because they lack good character and integrity. Pete Rose, who bet on games as a manager, belongs in the same proposed wing as the cheaters. But with the support of Hank Aaron, Joe Morgan, and Frank Robinson, it appears as if Bud Selig is considering lifting the lifetime ban on Pete Rose making him eligible for the Hall by the veteran’s committee. According to the New York Daily News, “Selig’s conditions for any reinstatement would be stiff. Rose likely would need to make another public apology and he would be prohibited from managing.”

I see two solutions to the issue: either Cooperstown needs to get rid of their character and integrity clause from the voting criteria and just judge players based on performance, or the cheaters need a separate, not equal, home. By the way, what’s more perfect for lazy talk show hosts during the slow days of summer than rehashing the Pete Rose in the Hall of Fame argument? Here’s the perfect impetus!

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The president of the World Anti-Doping Agency urged Major League Baseball to adopt its code, which includes a two-year suspension for an athlete’s first positive test.

MLB and the players association have toughened their drug rules three times since their initial agreement in August 2002, and MLB executive vice president for labor relations Rob Manfred quickly dismissed criticism by WADA president John Fahey, calling him “sadly misinformed.”
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“It is absurd to suggest that ‘recently published books’ — which allege steroid use that occurred years ago — have any relevance to our current program,” Manfred said. “As demonstrated by recent events, when a player tests positive, the penalty is public and severe.”

Sadly misinformed? Oh yeah, why don’t you talk to the Manny Ramirez or Alex Rodriguez fans who were crushed to find out “their guy” was on steroids and then tell me who’s sadly misinformed. It’s the public, the people, the fans — we’re the ones getting crapped on. I understand that the cheaters will always be a step ahead of the testers because developing tests is a reaction, but just for the peace of mind of fans, why can’t they adopt a harsher penalty policy? I don’t have a problem with the testing, it’s just the deterrent. 50 games isn’t enough — you need to threaten a player’s livelihood. You think Manny’s worried about his mid-season vacation? Heck no. But you take two years out of his career and I guarantee you he’s thinking twice before he tries to get knocked up with triplets again.

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Yes it’s true that the owners signed the cheats to monstrous contracts and made money when fans turned up to watch home runs hit in record numbers, but that was only after 1994 when Fehr instructed his players to walk out of the 1994 season and skip one of the iconic events in American sports history — the World Series. That was after Fehr bent the owners over and stuck it to them with a labor deal so one-sided the owners had no leverage. While Selig is a total tool and a guy who should be in line for “retirement,” he had no ability to penetrate the strong union walls hoisted by Fehr. Egotistical businessmen will say Fehr did what was best for his constituents and served his union well. That’s not true — Fehr made them tons of money in the short term but cost them their reputations and credibility in the long run. He impeded the normalcy of the game and created the steroids scandal by blocking drug testing for several years when it was clear things were getting absurd. The money the players made was lost in one swift decline on Wall Street; their lasting legacies have been ruined by one word: steroids. And who’s to blame for it all? Donald Fehr.

Feel any sympathy for Raul Ibanez who says a blogger is to blame for diminishing his hot start to 2009 by saying it’s drug induced? Feel bad for Albert Pujols who cried to Sports Illustrated that he’s in the proverbial Catch-22 — the better he does the more suspicious people become, the worse it is for him? Of course not! You can’t feel bad for any of them because they were members of a union that opposed drug testing. Why? Because Donald Fehr wanted his players on the juice so that their salaries would grow along with their statistics so that when he finally stepped down, he’d receive a glowing tribute from the Associate Press that says the players received record salaries under his watch.

Donald Fehr was so misguided and misled during his run as the head of the Union. Instead of viewing his sole purpose as trying to get the players as much money as possible, he should have made concessions for the best interest of the game. Nobody, not even the players, are bigger than the game itself. Unfortunately it’s now 2009 and about 10 years too late for him to finally be giving some ground. Thank goodness the worst figure in baseball is finally gone. I only wish more people knew who it was so that their blame would be properly placed and so that they could prevent history from repeating itself in the future.

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