Big Papi Speaks

I have always thought of Big Papi as one who speaks softly but carries a big stick. Today though he put down his stick and decided to speak loudly and clearly about the steroid issue in baseball. ESPN news reports that David Ortiz thinks that players who test positive for steroids should be suspended from the game for one year. Truth be told, I agree with him.

I also agree with what he says about his friend Alex Rodriguez. Now that A-Rod has come clean about his use of banned substances in 2003, "he's been playing clean and he still produced and he's still been the best player in the game. So if I'm a fan and I had to judge the guy, I would put that in the past and move forward." It's a good stance to take. He has been clean since and plenty of time to prove that this was a small mistake during a Hall of Fame career. Let's hope so because the gameisn't out of the woods yet.

Baseball has an image problem, and spring training, especially in New York will be like a three ring circus. The media is ready to pounce like a caged lion. But we all have to move on. I want baseball to be clean like everyone else. Hold the players accountable with testing and make the consequences for breaking the rules stiff. Papi is right. Major League Baseball has to draw a line in the stand and take this seriously. They have a generation of fans, myself included, whose menagerie of heros from Gooden and Strawberry, to Canseco and McGwire, to Bonds and Tejada have left us in a lurch for statistics and records that mean something. Tarnished, that's what they were. And while we can all forgive, we can never get rid of that bitter taste that has been left in our mouths.

But, spring is here and maybe there is a chance to taste something sweet again. The sound of baseballs leaping off bats will hopefully put to rest all our frustration. The media will swarm and A-Rod and others will be front and center for weeks to come. But, on opening day that should all die down. What happens on the field is of first importance. If we all listen to Big Papi, it could be the sweetest new beginning we could ever hope for.

Sources:

ESPN.com news services

Howard Ulman, "Ortiz wants season-long ban for steroid users", sports.yahoo.com