Rafael Palmeiro tests positive for steroids.
Huge news here. Rafael has had quite a productive year. Recently he became only the 4th person in baseball history to have both 3000 hits and 500 home runs. Additionally, last spring he testified in front of Congress that he has not taken steroids. So far the majority of players who have tested positive have either been no-name minor leaguers, or no-name major leaguers. This is by-far the biggest name to test positive. He is a potential Hall-of-Famer, but this will certainly taint his image and all success he has seen in the sport. You have to question the guy's intelligence in the fact that 1) he denied under oath of taking steroids and 2) that he would have the gall to actually go out and use them after the fact.
Naturally he has appealed his 10 game suspension. OK, maybe we shouldn't jump to conclusions. Perhaps he is innocent and that the positive test is merely because of some OTC or prescription "cold" medicine that he is taking. There have been more then a few instances in the past in various sports where athletes have tested positive for a banned substance that is in a common medication. No matter what the case, when you reach a certain level of competition where testing is common, it is both the responsibility of the coach and athlete to be aware of the banned substances and which of those are in the medicine they are taking. Yes, on the international level, the list of banned substances is extensive. It can be hard to keep track of everything, but that is not an excuse. In the end, it is each player's responsibility.
We'll see what happens with Raffy, but it will certainly shift opinions about him. Even though the guy has HOF numbers, there has been discussion if the guy is truly a HOF caliber player. This test will put a skeptical eye on all his numbers. I will not be surprised if he eventually does not make the HOF, or isn't elected for a truly long time.
For those that read this, I'd love to hear your comments.
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If numbers are all that qualifies one to be a HOFer then he seems a shoe-in. But I heard a good point on the radio. In this day and age everyone's numbers are higher than ever before, and you didn't use to get better as you got older. But look at all the guys who improved with age- like Clemens- that's almost not natural.(my feelings for Devil Clemens aside!) Which leads me to think that everything "number" will be looked at with great suspiscion. In this context, Raffy might not be HOF quality, even with his huge numbers, especially if this huge number trend in baseball in general continues.
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