but why stop there, let’s asterisk everything, rather how about easier to follow footnotes.

ARod, Bonds and everyone else who did steriods gets a footnote denoting them as cheaters.

Babe Ruth’s records and everyone who player before 1947 should get a footnote stating that their records were against only a single race. Satchel Paige would have single handedly deflated offensive numbers, not to mention Cool Papa Bell tracking down would be doubles in CF and Josh Gibson would give a lot of batting records from pre-1947 players a run for their money.

All pitchers before 69 should have a footnote stating that they were playing with a raised pitchers mound which increases veloicity and movement, that’s pratically cheating.

All pithcers before 1920 should have a footnote since they were allowed to throw mudballs and spitballs and the like.

I can go like this for another hour but I think I made my point. Baseball isn’t static, the steriods era was just another era in baseball’s history. Fans don’t compare Drew Brees stats to Johnny Unitas because they understand that the game was completly different than it is now. Baseball is the same, comparing Bonds to Ruth straightup is stupid and most people realize this.

If the argument is that we need future generations to know that they “cheated,” then I submit that Ty Cobb doesn’t have any mention about his life besides baseball in the hall and everyone knows he was a racist, asshole. [Honus Wagner basically punching him in the face (Tagged Cobb hard in the face when he was attempting to steal) is one of the best stories in baseball history.]

…the blame falls on baseball’s front offices as much, if not more then the players.

The front office didn’t hold a gun up to the player’s head and say: “Take these steroids or else.” The player willfully took them of their own volition.

…what player is going to not roid when it means the difference between having a job and or being replaced by someone who is roiding.

So you’re saying the ends justify the means.

…there’s just no way to expect baseball, or any sport, to stay ahead of PEDs, as soon as they develop a test for one, a new one they can’t test for will come out.

Couldn’t agree w/you more.

Roger Clemens may have given himself a reprieve had he come out and stated that he took some type of enhancement drug (if in fact he did). A-Rod is going to be asked if he did. If he denies it, he’s done. He might have a chance to be granted a pardon by the fans / media if he admits that he indeed take steroids.

Does anyone here watch basketball? I would consider myself a casual NBA fan, and after watching LeBron dominate the Knicks the thought occurred to me: if this guy were a baseball player, the MSM and the blogs would be posting side by side pictures comparing 2009 LeBron to rookie season LeBron. Think about it, the dude is 6’9, 270ish and is quick as a cat and as strong as a bull. He’s basically an athletic freak of nature.

Or as the Sports Guy has recently pointed out: imagine if Randy Johnson had a Kurt Warneresque resurgence for the Diamondbacks last year… he would have been under intense scrutiny. There would definitely be whispers of HGH or steroid use.

And as Mets Tailgate said, it’s just not fair that baseball receives such disparate treatment.

So thanks for bringing this up. I’m no expert on steroids, so I just roll with what I have read from sources I believe to be credible.

My only counter to this would be that just because his eyesight improved, it doesn’t necessarily mean his approach at the plate would improve.

Of course it is, otherwise, why take them? However, my point is that when it comes to baseball, just being big and strong isn’t turning you into an All Star. FP Santangelo was a utility guy before and after he took steroids. Bonds was already a Hall of Famer and , IMO, the best all around player of his generation before he took steroids. Maybe Big Mac doesn’t hit as many homeruns, but when you look at his swing and how compact it was, I would imagine he would still have had impressive power regardless.

And with all that said, it needs to be stressed how incredibly impressive that guys like Bonds, Big Mac, and ARod are lucky if they get 2 good pitches to hit all game long, and they still crush those pitches. That’s pretty incredible.

Greenies, anti-inflammatory needles, 5 hour energy drink, red bull, coffee, tylenol… all of these help get players on the field for 162 games, allowing them to pad their stats.

I just think baseball has these insane “gatekeepers” who try to ensure everything remains 100% the same so they can write their puff pieces comparing Josh Hamilton to Mickey Mantle. In reality, this is impossible. As a baseball fan, I have to admit that there is a side of me who almost thinks they should allow players to take PEDs if it helps keep them fresh and on the field for 162 games. Seriously, how much more enjoyable is a game when ARod is at his best than having to watch him after he just played 10 straight games and he’s sucking wind?

And finally, even without PEDs like roids and HGH, the players these days will still be much stronger and probably put up better numbers than their brethren of yesteryear because they have access to better nutrition and more sophisticated training methods (i.e., plyometrics) than those who came before them did. Do you think Keith Hernandez cared about eating all organic foods? Or worked on explosion drills? Of course he didn’t, the man smoked cigarettes in the dugout and would drink beers in the clubhouse before games.

I first saw it on our SBN Rangers site Lone Star Ball (borrowed their emphasis) but linked back to Neyer’s original post.

you can probably just look at even basic stats and see outrageous outliers. A prime example being Brad Anderson’s 1996 season

But instead of using counting numbers as the way to compare eras and players (which is not really an accurate way of comparing), there are ways to normalize stats so that it takes into account the era that a player played in.

When you think about it, the steroid era may end up speeding up the process of more mature methods of comparison between generations