Mark McGwire* admits steroid use

[Saber]

Must really want to get into the Hall.

[DravenX]

Sad, pathetic attempt for sympathy to get into the Hall of Fame?

It could be and a very good possibility.

Who from that era should be in the HoF in your opinion?

IMO, I can't think of anyone that I can think of that I know that has used roids that should be in the HoF. In a video game, when you cheat. If you are caught, you get banned. IMO this goes for baseball. You admit or get caught cheating, your done.

[GiantsFanatic]

Again I ask you, how do we know steriods help hit homeruns? If thats was true anyone can juice and hit homeruns to make millions.

[NYgiantsfan5689]

Again I ask you, how do we know steriods help hit homeruns? If thats was true anyone can juice and hit homeruns to make millions.

like I said earlier in this thread GF, he was a good player without roids. But the question isn't does he have talent or was he good. The question is is he a Hall of Famer. And the answer is undoubetly not without roids. Steroids don't help you hit home runs. They help you hit MORE home runs. That's exactly what he did
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[Trendy Bastard]

The steroids gave him more opportunities to hit home runs, rather than help him hit them.

[HollywoodLeo]

If thats was true anyone can juice and hit homeruns to make millions.

You still have to know how to hit a baseball at the major league level. But if you have that ability the steroids can give you the ability to hit it further.

[HollywoodLeo]

If any one person who's a known steroid user gets voted in Pete Rose should immediately follow.

[Foster]

If any one person who's a known steroid user gets voted in Pete Rose should immediately follow.

Agreed.
And Shoeless Joe.

[Providence A's]

You still have to know how to hit a baseball at the major league level. But if you have that ability the steroids can give you the ability to hit it further.

I'm going to play HollywoodLeo here:

It's farther, not further. FARther is physical distance and further is metaphorical or figurative.

[GiantsFanatic]

like I said earlier in this thread GF, he was a good player without roids. But the question isn't does he have talent or was he good. The question is is he a Hall of Famer. And the answer is undoubetly not without roids. Steroids don't help you hit home runs. They help you hit MORE home runs. That's exactly what he did
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Based on what though? McGwire hit 49 homeruns as a rookie, so your saying steriods helped him get over 11-21 more homeruns?

You still have to know how to hit a baseball at the major league level. But if you have that ability the steroids can give you the ability to hit it further.

Right, as if their was some sort of scientific study that shows that this is true.

Tiger Woods and Greg Maddux must be cheaters also for getting lasik eye surgeries done for a better than a 20-20 vision.

[GiantsFanatic]

If any one person who's a known steroid user gets voted in Pete Rose should immediately follow.

And Babe Ruth, Gaylord should be kicked out of the HOF.

[NYgiantsfan5689]

Great tweet by Rob Neyer, and will answer your question GF

"Mark McGwire doesn't think the steroids helped him hit home runs, just get back on the field after injuries. Guess no one told him you have to be on the field to hit home runs."

There you have it.

[redsrbetter]

First of all, congratulations to Big Mac for coming clean. Took you long enough big guy. Then again, after watching his interview, I completely understand why he didn't come clean in front of Congress. He was in fear of being prosecuted or having to have to bring all his family, friends, and teamates into a courtroom to witness to the mess he caused. He didn't want to put them through that. And I don't blame him for the decision. Still, his timing is without a doubt due to his wanting to get it behind him before he steps back on the baseball field as the Cards new hitting coach. I am sure a little bit of it has to do with the HOF as well, but I think he only hurt his cause in that matter today.

He came clean, but not fully. He admitted to using steroids, but he wouldn't tell anyone what types of roids and flat out denied his reason for using. If he would tell us what type of steroids they were, we could see whether he used the steroids that doctors would prescribe for health purposes or if he used the steroids that are designed to give you a boost in strength.

His flat out lie came across the screen when he looked into Bob Costas' eyes saying this; "I was never over 250 lbs, I ended every season around 230-240." The guy was a monster. He may be sitting at 250 right now. He may have started his career around that weight, but definitely didn't end it that way.

Again, I am happy he apologized to those he felt compelled to. Yet I believe he didn't come completely clean because he simply wasn't prepared to torture himself more than he had to. But at least he realized that these were his demons and that he was the only one responsible for his actions.

So, is he a HOF? My vote would be no. Unlike most, I would be more tuned to vote for him now that he came clean than before though. Yet his admission is not a justification. The game was tainted in his era and he played a major role in creating the whole mess. We said he saved baseball during the HR chase in 1998. Now, we say he may have destroyed it. These statements are for the very same moments in baseball history. The man didn't change, we as baseball fans did.

We grew tired of seeing records;that were previously so hard to obtain, being obliterated year after year. All the while, the players setting these records were absolute monsters. Their bodies didn't change after the fact, they were enormous specimens while obtaining the love of baseball fans and purists alike. Yet, something changed our attitude on it.

I believe we will not be able to get past the steroid era until guys like Ken Griffey Jr, Jim Thome, and Frank Thomas are appreciated for their expected uninvolvement. Or, if and when we see a new rise to the game and one superstar that can legitamately break the HR record. Whether you believe that record is still at 61 for the season and 755 for the career, or if it's the 73 for one season and 762 for the career. Can and will there be a player who can surpass those numbers without cheating?

[redsrbetter]

The difference between McGwire (roids) and Maddux (lasik) is that lasik is not illegal. Neither are eye glasses, or contacts.

Steroids do give people strength. If they didn't , why would people take them? Ok, for health purposes. That is also true, but as NYgiantsfan just pointed out and many of us though about last night; even cheating on a health boost is still cheating. Where would Griffey be if he used roids simply for health purposes and was able to be on the field a lot more than he was?

Steroids do not help your hand eye coordination. He was already one of the best in the world at that. Making to the MLB is proof of that. Steroids do help you go from 49 Hrs to 70. He hit monster shots his whole career. But sometimes those balls that would have been long fly ball to the warning track, they went out of the ballpark for him because of his newfound body mass.

[NYgiantsfan5689]

Redsr, 2 things I have to say about your post, which I thought was very well written.

He did say he used androstenidione to try and get back to healthy when he was hurt. I imagine he left a lot of roids he had used out because andro is a relatively weak one compared to a lot of them out there.

Also, to your last paragraph, this:

I believe we will not be able to get past the steroid era until guys like Ken Griffey Jr, Jim Thome, and Frank Thomas are appreciated for their expected uninvolvement. Or, if and when we see a new rise to the game and one superstar that can legitamtely break the HR record. Whether you belive that record is still at 61 for the season and 755 for the career, or if it's the 73 for one season and 762 for the career. Can and will there be a player who can surpass those numbers without cheating?

After the Tiger Woods incident, I am fully a believer of NO ONE is completely free of suspicion. Who knows. I know it's blashpemy now, but maybe Griffey used. Maybe Thome used. You just don't know. Now I'm not saying you should hold that against them. What I'm saying is that you can't crown them the Golden Boys of the era because you just don't know about anyone anymore. You can crown them for their achievements and celebrate their abilities until something comes out about them, that's fine. But just don't make them the posterchild. There is no posterchild anymore. Tiger Woods was that for sports. And look what happened to him. No one is completely immune. And I think people need to remember that.

Bottom line that I've learned recently: People's psyches need an exit strategy when they idolize an athlete. They need to be able to accept when something comes out about a previously untainted athlete's past. And they need to be able to let it go. I feel like it hurt Tiger that everyone had him as the Golden Boy of sports. It hurt him because it made everything worse when it came out. Instead of "well down goes another athlete, oh well." it was "WHAT?! TIGER OF ALL PEOPLE?! NOOOO!!!" That hurt him. And it hurt fans.