Ban Them For Life

I have often pondered the question of weather or not Pete Rose should get in to the Hall Of Fame. Usually my response ends with “If Rose gets in then Shoeless Joe Jackson should also get in”. Yet now I finally realize why neither of them must ever get in.

The Baseball Hall Of Fame in Cooperstown, New York is where Babe Ruth is immortalized forever. Think about that for a minute. George Herman “Babe” Ruth. It is wholesome. It is All-American. It is pure. The Hall Of Fame is the Vatican and Babe Ruth is Jesus. He did not ever play there. He did not invent the game but he was its savior. Was he perfect? No. Let he who is without flaw cast the first stone. But this is not about Ruth or Jesus Christ for that matter.

No, this is about integrity. This is about why steroids IS a big deal. I know that people are sick of it and tired of hearing about it. People are blind and also numb to the whole steroid issue. And that is fine. I am too.

But let me present it to you this way: How many people have been banned for life by throwing a Worlds Series, Super Bowl, or even a Stanley Cup since “Shoeless” Joe Jackson was banned for life?

How many people have been banned from baseball for betting on games since Pete Rose was banned for life?

The answer to both is NONE! Yet I assure  you both Shoeless Joe and Pete Rose would gladly trade in their spots in the Hall Of Fame to come out “Not Guilty” You can not have your cake and eat it too. Simply put: If you wanna play you gotta pay. That is the precedent set forth all those years ago by Kennisaw Mountain Landis. It is the very reason why we even have a Commissioner in the first place; to preserve the integrity of the sport.

If Jose Canseco had been questioned and subsequently banned from baseball back in 1986 we would never have had a “steroid era” If Allan Huber Selig had done the right thing and demanded strict drug policy in 1994 without exception we would never have had to suffer through the pain of this era. Shame on you Mr. Selig. SHAME ON YOU!

If we continue to turn a blind eye and not care about this issue it is never going to go away and is only going to get worse. Allowing anyone from this era entrance to the Hall Of Fame after having been found “dirty” would be reprehensbile.

If you want to clean up the sport BAN THEM FOR LIFE! And let them know it now rather than leave it up to some bleeding heart sportswriter twenty years from now.

Ban Them For Life

I have often pondered the question of weather or not Pete Rose should get in to the Hall Of Fame. Usually my response ends with “If Rose gets in then Shoeless Joe Jackson should also get in”. Yet now I finally realize why neither of them must ever get in.

The Baseball Hall Of Fame in Cooperstown, New York is where Babe Ruth is immortalized forever. Think about that for a minute. George Herman “Babe” Ruth. It is wholesome. It is All-American. It is pure. The Hall Of Fame is the Vatican and Babe Ruth is Jesus. He did not ever play there. He did not invent the game but he was its savior. Was he perfect? No. Let he who is without flaw cast the first stone. But this is not about Ruth or Jesus Christ for that matter.

No, this is about integrity. This is about why steroids IS a big deal. I know that people are sick of it and tired of hearing about it. People are blind and also numb to the whole steroid issue. And that is fine. I am too.

But let me present it to you this way: How many people have been banned for life by throwing a Worlds Series, Super Bowl, or even a Stanley Cup since “Shoeless” Joe Jackson was banned for life?

How many people have been banned from baseball for betting on games since Pete Rose was banned for life?

The answer to both is NONE!

If Jose Canseco had been questioned and subsequently banned from baseball back in 1986 we would never have had a “steroid era” If Allan Huber Selig had done the right thing and demanded strict drug policy in 1994 without exception we would never have had to suffer through the pain of this era. If M Shame on you Mr. Selig. SHAME ON YOU!

If we continue to turn a blind eye and not care about this issue it is never going to go away and is only going to get worse.

If you want to clean up the sport BAN THEM FOR LIFE!