Hall Of Fame Hypocrisy: It’s Time to Forgive Players Implicated in PED Scandal

Cooperstown PED club?

The 2019 Hall of Fame Ballot currently features SEVEN players implicated in the PED Scandal of the late 90’s and early 2000’s.

1. Barry Bonds – The book, “Game of Shadows,” alleges extensive steroid use by Barry Bonds beginning in 1998.
2. Gary Sheffield – Also implicated in the book, “Game of Shadows”.
3. Roger Clemens – one of five players named in an affidavit by former pitcher, Jason Grimsley in 2006. Was later implicated by personal trainer Brian McNamee.
4. Andy Pettitte – named in the same affidavit as Roger Clemens. Later admitted using HGH.
5. Manny Ramirez – One of two players on this list to serve a suspension for a failed drug test. In fact, “ManRam” failed drug tests 2x and served TWO separate suspensions.
6. Miguel Tejada – The only other player on this list to fail a drug test and serve a suspension.

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You can understand why voters might not want to vote for Manny Ramirez and Miguel Tejada. They did serve suspensions

after

baseball finally decided to implement penalties for failed drug tests.

Voters should, however, reconsider the remaining players on the list. Especially considering that baseball did not impose penalties for a failed drug test until 2003.

THIS is why it is unfair to continue to punish the remaining members on the list for doing something that baseball quite simply encouraged them to do, so long as they didn’t get caught.

The fact of the matter is, Bonds, Clemens, Pettitte, and Sheffield never failed a drug test post-2003 and should, therefore, be judged solely on their contributions to the game. Just like commissioner Selig, who oversaw the game at the height of the PED scandal, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2017.

At the time of writing this, Bonds and Clemens are the closest they have ever been to being inducted into the Hall of Fame. In 2019, it’s time to forgive these players and, if their career dictates that they should, induct them into Cooperstown.