To the media, the U.S. attorney, Bud Selig and George Mitchell, I would just like to say congratulations! You have just made Barry Bonds the scapegoat for the entire steroids scandal that has rocked Major League Baseball.
I am sure by putting an aging superstar in pinstripes (nope, not those pinstripes, Hank Steinbrenner), Major League Baseball will be able to remedy a situation that has seriously spiraled out of control. I mean, of course it has to be because Bonds has sold drugs to other players (Ã la Jason Grimsley) or because he has actually tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs (way too many to count).
Oh wait … he didn’t.
I’m sorry, I guess the world has forgotten about Jason Giambi, the true poster boy for performance-enhancing drugs. My guess is that the Brothers Steinbrenner would be foaming at the mouth if it had been Giambi who was in Bonds’ shoes right now. They probably could offer Mariano Rivera a fourth year with all the money they would recoup from Giambi’s contract, but that’s a different story.
There are three major issues that I have with federal prosecutors indicting Barry Bonds on four counts of perjury and one count of obstructing justice stemming from his alleged use of performance-enhancing drugs. Bonds is now the fall guy because he is disliked by the media and general public, an aging veteran who is on his way out of the game and arguably one of the greatest players to play the game regardless of his alleged steroid usage.
By making an example out of Bonds, the Mitchell Commission will look like a success and MLB Commissioner Bud Selig will be able to rest easy at night while countless players continue to cheat the system through alternative forms of performance-enhancing drugs. Not to mention the fact that Bonds will undoubtedly receive a one- or two-year prison sentence, which will effectively end his career and end the media nightmare that has afflicted Major League Baseball.
Nothing like sweeping the dust under the rug.
Is it fair that former “stars” such as Mark McGwire and Rafael Palmeiro, who lied during a Senate Committee hearing, are able to keep to themselves and live a normal life while Bonds is accosted by the media and general public on a daily basis? Why is it that it took three years for the federal prosecutors to be able to indict Bonds on such charges? Is this simply a conspiracy to kick Bonds out of the league once and for all and take all of the negative spotlight off of Major League Baseball?
I have been a baseball fan since before the strike of 1994, but Barry Bonds has never been one of my favorite players. Yet, it does not take a fan of the ball player to understand or recognize that he is being treated unfairly and is not the person who needs to take the blame for a situation Major League Baseball failed to acknowledge for countless years.
Yes, most likely Barry Bonds did take steroids and cheat while playing Major League Baseball. Yet, any player will tell you that taking steroids is not going to turn a bench warmer into Barry Lamar Bonds.
Major League Baseball just announced revenue earnings of more than $6 billion, which can be attributed to the amazing seasons of players such as Alex Rodriguez and Matt Holliday. What if it becomes known that it isn’t A-Rod’s steadfast dedication to fitness or the thin air in Colorado that has helped them achieve greatness? How good of a spin doctor would Selig have to be to deflect attention if such a disaster were to arise with current rather than former superstars?
Major League Baseball, do not pick and chose who gets blackballed as a result of steroid usage in your sport. Do not try to fix the situation piecemeal, but rather take a hard stance on the issue and crackdown on everyone, in turn ridding the game of drugs once and for all. If Barry Bonds lied while testifying under oath before a grand jury, be my guest and fairly prosecute him for such actions.
Do not, however, proudly proclaim victory and announce to the world that a dark era in baseball has now come to a definitive end. Daniel Seco is a senior American studies major. He can be reached at dseco@umd.edu.
