A-Roid Speaks

And I really wish he wouldn't.  Following allegations that Alex Rodriguez had tested positive for steroids during his 2003 MVP season, A-Rod "came clean" in an interview with Peter Gammons.  I have long been a proponent of harsh punishment for those individuals in any sport who engage in the use of banned performance enhancing drugs.  I am so disgusted with athletes getting busted for 'roid use and then apologizing profusely on prime time.  Where was the regret when A-Rod was picking up his MVP trophy in 2003?  Let's be clear, for most of these athletes, their use of  banned substances translated into millions of dollars in performance bonuses and free agency leverage.  I guarantee that juiced players aren't sorry about that.  In A-Rod's case, he's not even sorry he got caught.  Because the agency doing the testing was the user-friendly MLB Player's Association.  None of these athletes are feeling any remorse until proof of their doping goes public.  And are they sorry they've lost the respect of their fans?  Nope.  They're sorry they've lost the $$ from their sponsors.  

It's ridiculous that someone out there has the names of another 103 players, each earning a ridiculous salary, who cheated.  Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, Andy Pettitte, Alex Rodriguez and every other one of the as-yet-unnamed 103 dopers should be permanently barred from the hall of fame and have their records deleted.  There is simply no room in professional athletics for admitted cheaters, who only come clean when their misdeeds have finally landed them before the court of public opinion.

The belated apologies and lame excuses only serve to make the admissions even more infuriating.  When I was coaching novice rowers at RIT, I told them that they would all screw up at some point in the season.  They would oversleep, miss a workout, forget to pick up a teammate before practice, etc.  I didn't care why they screwed up and neither would their boat mates.  What was important was that they decided to man up, admit their mistake, accept the punishment, and avoid repeating the same screw-up in the future.  I didn't accept excuses.  All I wanted to hear was, "Coach, I f**ked up."  I would like to recommend a similar policy for professional athletes.  At this point, no one cares why you cheated.  We know it was the money.  The only shot at redemption is coming clean before SI or ESPN forces the issue.