Spring Break
MLB transformation having impact on league
James Mason
Issue date: 2/1/08 Section: Sports
On Jan. 29, perhaps the best pitcher in baseball was traded from the Minnesota Twins to the New York Mets. Johan Santana was dealt to the Mets for only four mid-level prospects. This trade should also raise issues of whether or not small market teams can truly compete in baseball. Yet, the Mets stealing Santana from Minnesota will only be big news in baseball for a few days.
This postseason's headlines have and will continue to be dominated by the Mitchell Report. This document, compiled by former Sen. George Mitchell, read like a research report. It was a compilation of all the steroid accusations of the past few years, including Jose Canseco's book (not exactly the most credible source) and forced testimony from Roger Clemens' former trainer Brian McNamee and former Mets clubhouse attendant Kirk Radomski.
Besides the testimonies of McNamee and Radomski, the report offered nothing too earth shattering. The "solutions" were pretty common sense; test for steroids, tougher sanctions, closer monitoring of players and administrators, etcetera. In short, the Mitchell Report could have been just another small speed bump in the world of Major League Baseball. Instead, by choosing to include names, the report has become a crater-sized pothole.
Why did Major League Baseball choose to do something so stupid? I guess they felt compelled to do something drastic. Bud Selig and company might have felt they needed to show that they were really tough on steroids. Instead, they have opened up a can of worms not many people saw coming. In fact, the only people that seem to be benefiting from the report are the members of Congress, who have used it as a great opportunity to not focus on things that really matter - like the slumping economy.
This postseason's headlines have and will continue to be dominated by the Mitchell Report. This document, compiled by former Sen. George Mitchell, read like a research report. It was a compilation of all the steroid accusations of the past few years, including Jose Canseco's book (not exactly the most credible source) and forced testimony from Roger Clemens' former trainer Brian McNamee and former Mets clubhouse attendant Kirk Radomski.
Besides the testimonies of McNamee and Radomski, the report offered nothing too earth shattering. The "solutions" were pretty common sense; test for steroids, tougher sanctions, closer monitoring of players and administrators, etcetera. In short, the Mitchell Report could have been just another small speed bump in the world of Major League Baseball. Instead, by choosing to include names, the report has become a crater-sized pothole.
Why did Major League Baseball choose to do something so stupid? I guess they felt compelled to do something drastic. Bud Selig and company might have felt they needed to show that they were really tough on steroids. Instead, they have opened up a can of worms not many people saw coming. In fact, the only people that seem to be benefiting from the report are the members of Congress, who have used it as a great opportunity to not focus on things that really matter - like the slumping economy.
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