Thoughts on baseball and steroids?

What do you guys think about the new revelations about Bonds, Giambi, etc...?

I personally think it's totally overblown. Whether or not Bonds used steroids didn't affect his ability to see the ball as it approached him. I don't think it particularly affected his play either, but that's just my opinion.

I wish they would just leave the man alone, he is going to be considered one of the greatest sluggers to play the game, and "if" he used enhancing drugs, then so be it....allow all athletes to use them, and then no individual player has an edge, it is their bodies...as nike says"Just Do It".

This is a pretty interesting read: http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/news/story?id=1937513

Maybe, I'm biased since I'm a Dodgers fan...

True, steroids might not help his visual acuity. But, it did transform him from a person who would hit singles and around 25 hrs into the raging hulk who hit 73 hr. Assuming he would have had the same number of hits, there's a big difference between hiting a single and hitting a homerun. That totally transformed his game, and almost dobuled his slugging percentage. And, its responsible for his astronomical on base percentage. People wouldn't have walked him if he was only going to get a single.

And, that's a bad idea to open it up and let every athlete use it. This will put incredible pressure on all those athletes to use it, to keep up with everybody else. And, we all know how dangerous steroids are. Plus, it'll also influence kids in high school to also start shooting up.

Well, there's also the livelier ball, remember that in the late 90s, everyone was hitting 50+ home runs, didn't Brady Anderson hit 50 homers, and Bernie Williams also? Bonds only hit 40 something homers this year, and I imagine with the testing he isn't using substances and he certainly isn't getting the from BALCO. This year may have been his best ever...

Yeah, there are a myriad of reasons for the HR explosion in the late 90s but steroids was definitely a factor. But, it was strange how people like Brady Anderson who weren't really power hitters suddenly became one.

With regards to testing, the stuff from BALCO was designed to be undetected. The only reason we are to test for it was because some track coach turned some in to a drug testing facility. Without that sample, they wouldn't have been able to test for it.

Yeah, but my point is that he was tested post balco in 2003 and 2004 and passed each time. Granted he could have used newer undetectable steroids but I imagine with the scrutiny that he is under now it's unlikely he is, but still he is perfoming at an extremely high level.

Baseball has one of the weakest testing drug policies. They only test you once a year, and we don't know how extensive their tests were- if they were also testing for human growth hormone, etc...

I don't know if you are told the date of the testing, but you could cycle out.

You certainly could, but my main point was that since he's under intense scrutiny and since it's now illegal, and since he was questioned by a grand jury, you'd think he'd be a bit more moderate in his use of steroids, assuming that he did use them in the first place.

You certainly could, but my main point was that since he's under intense scrutiny and since it's now illegal, and since he was questioned by a grand jury, you'd think he'd be a bit more moderate in his use of steroids, assuming that he did use them in the first place.

Click to expand...

In 03, Bonds was still using and paying for the services of Anderson, the person who allegedly hooked him up.

And, now the SF Chronicle claims it has obtained secretly recorded conversations in which Anderson revealed Bonds used an undetectable performance-enhancing durg in 03.

I'm trobuled by all these leaks. Are people still going to tell the truth to the grand jury if they know their statements will get leaked?

Too bad Shawn Green couldn't have bulked up as well. He's been MIA the last few years.

yeah, I was wondering about the leaks as well. I was going to mention that Green hit 40+ HRs in the late 90s after not hitting too many earlier in his career and he obviously doesn't use steroids.

That can be explained by the BALL using steroids.

Wouldn't it be more the bat using steroids? Those mamma-jammas got some serious game nowadays, when they're not shooting up cork.

well you have to prove that he used them, and they can't, to date.

Actually, Green home run numbers were steadily climbing for several years until he peaked. Even then, he wasn't that great of a player. He was never able to get the clutch hit. I think a lot of his numbers had to do with the protection he had with Delgado and then Sheffield.

I don't think you can really take away Bond's home run numbers and records even if you prove he did use steroids. Camminit and Conseco both admitted publicly to utilizing steroids, and nobody took back their MVP awards. I think the best punishment would be to include a statement where you say that Bonds took steroids in Bond's HOF plaque? This is probably what's going to happen with Rose if he gets admitted into the HOF.