Steroids

I have come to the realization that there are two kinds of steroid users, those that come right out and admit using them, and those that beat around the bush and might eventually admit to using.  The faster you admit to using the faster things will be patched up.  Andy Pettitte admitted to using steroids once but he clean right away and everyones pretty much forgotten that he was a steroid user.  Mark McGwire finally admitted to using steroids, after years of denial and now he's back in baseball as a hitting coach.  Ryan Braun it doesn't sound like will admit his mistake any time soon.  Ryan failed a test before and got off without a suspension because of a technically and ruined the poor test taking guys life because of it.  Ryan did get suspended this time but didn't admit to with was taking he called it cream and lozenges or something.  He has to say specifically what he did, for how long and apologize to some people.  He should do it on camera, talk to people, answer questions and look sincere.  Ryan may just come back from this suspension like nothing every happened and if he does nothing it will be brutal in all the ball parks around the league.  As you can see their are different levels of admission, those who admit taking drugs right away so that we can begin to forget and those who may never admit anything.          

A-Rod saga

I didn't care if I ever saw Alex Rodriguez in a Major League uniform again but rules are rules and he is allowed to play while he appeals.  A-Rod came back and it sparked the Yankee offense which is good for multiple reasons, some of which are the team is winning and his 25 teammates are probably the only friends he has right now.  Not even all of his teammates might agree with him but he's their teammate and there going to support him in the clubhouse.  Its pretty bad when your own teams general manager wont talk to you anymore.  None of the players he's playing against should have a real problem with him playing while he appeals, since all of the players are part of the union and the rules say first time offenders can play while they appeal.   We won't know anything concrete about him or his suspension until after the season, so right now we have to sit back relax and try to not believe all of the stories coming out all the time.  I am not sure how much evidence about PEDs and his involvement in the biogenesis clinic baseball has but I hear its a lot and we'll have to wait and see about the suspension, if I was to guess the suspension might get reduced from 211 to 150-180 games.  Whenever his appeal is heard, and it probably won't be until after the season his career will probably be over, he's 38 now and after being suspended for most of if not all of next season, i don't think he's going to be able to try a get it going aging at 39 1/2.  If I continue hear A-rod say that he is not going to talk about biogenesis anymore and that when the time is appropriate we'll have a forum to sit down and talk about it I am going to stop watching his interviews, I want to know when this time is that he's going to talk about all this.      

Ichiro's 4,000 Hit

Not to downgrade Ichiro Suzuki's 4,000th hit, it is a great accomplishment to have 4,000 hits in professional baseball, but its just that 4,000 hits as a professional baseball player.  He now has 4,000 + (after today) hits as a baseball player, not 1,278 (Japan) + 2,723 (United States) = 4,000 + hits.  Japan and the U.S are two totally different places that just happen to both play baseball.  Baseball in Japan is not the same as baseball in the U.S, i've never seen a game in Japan but I sure it's not as competitive it's certainly not the same length of season.  Ichiro did not join Ty Cobb and Pete Rose as the only guys with 4,000 + hits, he had 1,278 in another league now he's in a new league (started out being considered a rookie) and has 2,723 (after today) as a major leaguer.  You can't combine numbers from two different leagues, that would be like taking the numbers the negro leaguers and adding them to their major league numbers, Jackie Robinson did not have negro league hits + 1,518 in the majors he just had his mlb numbers.  Ichio Suzuki has 4,000 + hits as a professional but it's just something he accomplished it's not a mile stone or a record for major league baseball, he's 277 (after today) away from being the 29th member of the 3,000 hit club, thats the milestone.        

Tiger Woods pursuit

Last week at the PGA Championship, Tiger Woods failed to win a major yet again.  He has won a bunch of smaller tournaments, but quite frankly who cares only a small portion of the golf world cares about (small tournaments) the shell open and the Birion Nelson.  Majors are where its at in golf, people are measured on the amount of majors they have won and Tiger has not won one in four years.  Every time Tiger does not win a major, his pursuit of Jack Nicklaus eighteen majors takes a hit.  I think Tiger can still be the same player but he has more competition that doesn't fear him anymore.  Tiger is not intimidating any more and the other players are coming right at him.  There are a lot of up and coming players on tour and not of them are thinking well there is this intimidating player up there, not to mention Phil Mickelson might be on track to win more majors.  The once dominant Tiger Woods who everyone thought would just smash this record is now tied with Jack, both players have fourteen major wins at age 36.  Tiger only needs one more major run to catch jack but with every passing major tournament that is becoming more difficult.  I believe that when Tiger does win a major, he'll go on a little run, he may get to eighteen but beyond that I don't know.  Mr. Woods has to start with the Masters and/or the U.S Open next year or jacks record may be safe.        

MLB replay

It was finally decided that Major League Baseball (MLB) would agree to expanded replay for the 2014 season.  I always felt that since we have the technology, it should be used to get plays right.  I watch baseball games every day and there is almost always a disputed call on the base paths.  For years they've only been reviewing home run calls, and that took a couple minutes because three umpires would run off the field to look at a replay monitor.  Now baseball officials have devised a plan to review any call on the field other than balls and strikes. (they will still be a judgement call by an umpire, and an automatic ejection for arguing)  Their will now be a replay room in New York, where all the replays will be looked at, (not by an umpire on the field of play) the reports are that this (calling for replay in New York) will take less time than sending umpire's off the field to look at a replay.  Managers will now have more to do during games, they will have two challenges for the first six innings of a game and then one more from the sixth on, managers will now have to think about which calls the umpire got wrong and they might want to challenge, a little gamesmanship might be involved now.  Umpires for the most part do a good job calling a game but they do miss fair/foul calls, trapped balls and plays on the base paths, not only will this allow the two teams to get the call right but it will give the umpires something to check themselves against. (sometimes it is just an educated guess because they are blocked out of the play)