My biggest objection to McGwire in the hall is his suspiciously unusual career pattern. It is important to remember that McGwire’s credentials through the age of 32 are remarkably unexceptional. After a brilliant rookie season, which I believe was genuine, he failed to assert himself as a dominant player until 1995/96. After about five seasons as the best hitter in baseball his career went into rapid decline and ended abruptly at the age of 37. Is it a coincidence that McGwire peaked in his mid-thirties and took steroids? I think not. I challenge anybody to find a player in baseball history whose hall of fame credentials rest on his sudden development as a hitter in his mid-thirties. I would vote for Bonds because he demonstrated that he was an elite player without steroids. I don’t think the same case could be made for McGwire. While I don’t believe steroids exclude a player from consideration, I believe that we are allowed to take liberties in denying entrance to players whose greatness depend on performance enhancing drugs.

But in the end, it falters for the same fundamental reason that most of the pro-Clemens/Bonds/McGwire/Sosa arguments are flawed:

It is a cop-out to refuse to judge the relative impact of steroids and simply pretend that a ) they never occurred, and refuse to penalize anyone for their use or b) they were so prevalent as to make no player from this era Hall-worthy or, even worse, make it impossible draw any line.

Here’s what we know— McGwire’s power numbers went berserk midway in his career, after two injury-riddled seasons (planter fascitis) where he played hardly at all. It is obvious that something was rotten in Denmark— when he refused to answer direct questions about use of PEDs in the congressional hearings, and when Jose Canseco, an admitted steroid user who was suspected AS EARLY AS 1987-88, when the Bash Brothers first took wing, fingered Mcgwire as a user, well, one would have to be horribly naive or deliberately ignorant not to realize that he used.

And based on what we know about BALCO and the Bay Area in general, it is probably safe to assume that West Coast players— partic. Bay Area players— were very probably earlier, more extensive, and perhaps more sophisticated users than others in the sport.

And then finally there is the “he saved baseball” argument— aren’t Selig and Co. the hypocrites and why punish Mac? Well they are and were flaming hypocrites— Beane and Alderson included— they must have had a pretty damn good idea— well before 1998— what was going on. But to then not punish McGwire— or Clemens— or whomever we’re pretty darn sure about— is pretty much the same thing as telling Eichmann or the Nuremberg defendants they could get off, because in effect, they/he were “just following orders”.

The success was built on a lie— I don;t care what it did to attendance, TV contracts, or salaries— it fundamentally corrupted and damaged the sport— for perhaps a generation or longer to come. Someone talked about making some sort of asterisk in Cooperstown about the Steroid era, even as we admit all the law.. I mean record-breakers— to which I replay “How do we know that the era is even over?” HGH could be as rampant today as steroids were 10 years ago, for all we know.

Bottom line is that I g back to Potter Stewart— and in the case of Mcgwire, I know what I see/saw— a good player became a demigod, largely because of illegal substances, even if they weren’t yet banned in the sport itself. That basic truth means he shouldn’t be in Cooperstown, regardless of how many drunks, racists, and other miscreants are already there.

Writers are using McGwire as an example as the first steroid player elegible and considered. I say a player should be able to get in based on the performance on the field, in the past pitchers have cheated using foreign substances(I realize not as serious as PED’s), many other players have used as well during the “steriod era”. Doesn’t make it right, just saying. As much as I despise Bonds, he doesn’t belong on the HOF either? Really? Then if/when he goes in, how do you still hold it against McGwire, Sosa, Palmiero, etc? Clemens likey used as well, he will get in at some point. I think writers are making their point as they believe are the ones who can save or control the “purity” of the game in regards to its history. But as time goes on the ones who have numbers deserving, which Mac has, will get in. Might be awhile though.

I bring up the point that the NFL had steriod issues back in the 70’s and there are plenty of players in the HOF that probably used, but since its football it wasn’t as big of a deal. History will judge the players that admitted or were proven to use, or even assumed….the HOF shouldn’t be part of that as we will probably never have absolute PROOF of it. JMHO.