The Sports Thread

AchrisK said:
I heard Colin Cowherd this morning talking about this whole thing and slamming Bill Belichick and comparing him to Barry Bonds. It was pretty funny. I never really knew much about Belichick, but it sounds like he's a big jerk, from what Cowherd was saying.
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he wears cut-off sweat shirts.
You're a fucking NFL coach! act like it you stupid mother fucker!

and all talk radio isnt bad.
 
Correct me if I'm wrong, but haven't the steroids that Bonds used been illegal for some time now? I don't see why it's relevant that they weren't specifically banned by baseball in 1998 when Bonds supposedly started juicing.

And while we're on the subject of steroids, this is a good article by SI's Jon Heyman:

(Link: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/jon_heyman/09/11/tuesday.scoop/index.html)
Jon Heyman said:
The thing that's wrong about performance-enhancing drugs in sports is that they spoil the level playing field. The thing that's unfair about the way this issue is being covered by the media is that there never appears to be even a pretense of a level playing field.

I always hear that baseball is held to a higher standard by the masses than the other major sports, especially the NFL. That isn't hard to believe when you consider the coverage of recent drug-related stories in both leagues.

Baseball stars who are thought to have cheated during their careers, such as Mark McGwire, often turn into pariahs. Football stars who get caught cheating, such as Shawne Merriman, invariably get the free pass from the general public even if the league itself clamps down -- the NFL made him serve a four-game suspension last season. Merriman returned from his ban to earn a trip to the Pro Bowl and eventually make more Nike commercials.

Yet it isn't always just about the sport. Most of it's the sport, some of it's the timing.

Rick Ankiel's a story this year. The Cardinals pitcher-turned-outfielder hit two home runs and drove in seven runs to further what has been universally described as an inspirational tale the very day before his alleged connection to HGH came to light. The allegations that Ankiel received a 12-month supply of the hormone in 2004 while recovering from an injury overshadowed the news about Blue Jays third baseman Troy Glaus. (Last week, SI.com reported that Glaus received HGH and steroids, hardcore stuff.)

Glaus was a World Series MVP in 2002, and he reportedly received his shipments over the next two years. Yet Glaus, who has hit 277 career homers and made millions, is fortunate to be playing out of the pennant race and out of the way, in Toronto, and to be having a relatively mundane season. He just isn't a very hot story now. That's true for now, anyway. Eventually he'll take his hits, too. That's just the way it is with baseball.

Meanwhile, the tales of Ankiel and New England Patriots safety Rodney Harrison, who is serving a four-game suspension after admitting to the use of HGH, best exemplify the baseball/football dichotomy when it comes to how the media and the public feel about performance enhancers.

Ankiel, who has hit nine attention-grabbing home runs, was vilified in newspapers around the country. Folks wrote and spoke sadly of their disappointment. People all over the country are wondering whether "The Natural'' is as natural as we thought.

Harrison, who was voted in 2004 as "the NFL's dirtiest player'' in a Sports Illustrated poll, is getting milder treatment. Some scribes even wrote about what a great guy he is, and one praised him for once showing them the bible.

Yes, Harrison actually got a pat on the back. One headline said, "Harrison Still a Stand-up Guy.'' I guess this was because he admitted to the HGH after being caught red-handed.

Here's another headline related to Harrison's case: "Discovery of HGH won't spoil football. Nor should it.''

Of course it won't. The NFL is filled with 275-pound guys running sub-5.0 40-yard dashes, beating the tar out of each other. Does anyone who follows the sport care? Or is it all about the fantasy football points adding up and some bets coming in?

Ankiel, meanwhile, who claimed that whatever he took was prescribed by a doctor, was desperately trying to save his pitching career at the time. He was wondering if he'd ever locate the strike zone again. He had suffered the worst case of yips since Steve Blass and was recovering from Tommy John surgery. "I've been through a lot, emotionally and physically,'' Ankiel said.

This isn't to say that Ankiel was right to do what he did. There just isn't any evidence that he took a miracle drug to make him hit nine home runs for the Cardinals this season. Ankiel hit a 450-foot home run in his last game as a high school phenom, starred as hitter for youth teams and worked hard to make an almost-impossible switch from pitcher to everyday player.

Harrison claimed that he used HGH to heal his bad knees. But what he doesn't say is that practically everyone in the league has health issues. Bad knees, a bad shoulder, an aching back. Something.

"My purpose was never to gain a competitive edge,'' Harrison said. "Rather, my use was solely for the purpose of accelerating the healing process of injuries I sustained while playing football.''

If you believe Harrison's story, the competitive edge he got was apparently just a side benefit.

Harrison starred as the Pats won two Super Bowls. No one seems to mind. He's the only player in history with 30 interceptions and 25 sacks. No one's questioning those numbers today. Ankiel has no such luxury.
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