Heyman's Vote on Roiders

Jon Heyman, Hall of Fame (HOF) voter and columnist for SI.com, recently wrote how he would vote for the HOF for several current and former MLB'ers suspected of roiding up and cheating the game.

In his article, he stresses how difficult voting for the HOF is. Do voters simply go by the statistics of a player or by the impact that player had on the team? If one was to go by statistics alone, how does one judge the current crop of players who played during the steroid era? Heyman writes, "These calls won't only be about numbers. There are value judgments to be made about cheating, and possibly about how much the cheating helped particular players."

Heyman admits that some voters will simply eliminate all the cheaters from their ballots while others will take it on a case by case basis. He is the first writer that I have encountered to admit his own culpability in being slow to uncover the widespread use of PED's in baseball. A majority of writers need to own this. It's part of the inherent conflict of interest in being a sportswriter. You need to be "friendly" and close to the players and organizations and do not violate that trust by exposing the sport you cover or writing about it in a negative light. Heyman hypothesizes that some writers might feel tempted to block a majority of these players from the HOF since the writers were slow to cover the truth about their PED use. Voting them into the HOF would be continuing the trend of looking the other way, wink-wink, and implicitly endorsing cheating by using these substances.

Now to analyze Heyman's ballot:

• Mark McGwire: Didn't vote for him because of suspected PED use led to HOF numbers.
• Barry Bonds: Yes, he believes he was a HOF'er before he took any PED's.
• Roger Clemens: Yes, like Bonds, he was a HOF'er before he roided up.
• Sammy Sosa: No, productivity and expanded size suggest PED use.
• Rafael Palmeiro: No, failed drug test (Stanozolol) after protesting innocence before Congress.
• Gary Sheffield: No, ties to BALCO and admitting to intentionally throwing balls away hurt.
• Mike Piazza: Yes, numbers wise he's there, but increasing suspicions raise some doubts, but Heyman needs more proof.
• Ivan Rodriguez: Yes, never been caught even though he shrunk dramatically.
• A-Rod: Yes, Heyman needs more proof of add'l doping even though admitted to PED use.
• Manny Ramirez: Yes, he was great since the start and never got "big"

Interesting takes on these players by Heyman. In some instances he needs more proof (Piazza, Ivan Rodriguez and A-Rod) while others his visual proof was enough (Sammy Sosa). Yet, visual proof of a shrinking Ivan Rodriguez was not enough for him to pass on voting him in the HOF. Of the three players (Palmerio, Ramirez and A-Rod) that failed a drug test in MLB testing, he has two going to the Hall of Fame (any coincidence that both are current players, possibly his reasoning is self-motivated by generating goodwill down the road when he needs a story).

Unfortunately, the rules for election to the HOF do not specify "character" attributes. Aren't you supposed to be rewarded for doing the right thing and not cheating? Is that the proper message you want displayed in Cooperstown?

It's up to the baseball writers to decide.

Radomski Suspected Piazza Roided

Kirk Radomski does not like Mike Piazza. 

That said, according to his book, Bases Loaded, Radomski was asked by Mitchell investigators what he knew about Piazza.  Radomski has no first hand information whether Piazza used roids, HGH or other PED's.  Radomski writes that "Piazza is one guy I would have been happy to give up."

Radomski's opinion in analyzing Piazza's body visually was that he looked like someone who was roiding.  Again, he has no firsthand knoeledge, just stating his opinion.  After the fallout from Piazza's return to New York to open Citi Field and relectuance to address the media, Radomski's opinion could very well be spot on.

Good vs. Bad Guys in the Roid Court of Public Opinion

In the roid court of public opinion there are good guys and bad guys. Some guys seem to get a free pass while others can't seem to talk about anything but roids. Why the discrepancy?

The bad guys include Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Floyd Landis. The good guys include Jason Giambi, Lance Armstrong and now apparently Mike Piazza.

I have fallen victim to my own bias. Whether or not I liked a guy rather than looking at the facts clouded my judgement in the past. A prime example was Mike Piazza after the allegations raised in Jeff Pearlman's book on Roger Clemens, "The Rocket That Fell To Earth.".

Piazza is beloved in New York. He was a part of closing down Shea Stadium and opening Citi Field. More importantly, he was a part of the post 9/11 healing process. In New York's first game after the tragedy, Piazza hit a monster home run starting a Mets rally. I don't recall if the Mets won the game, but I remember the significance of that game and the HR and how it made me feel. Could one man and a home run lift the spirits of a grieving city...hell yeah. It was an unreal moment for a baseball fan in New York and one that earned Piazza tremendous goodwill in the community...even amongst Yankee fans.

Awhile back, someone raised doubts about whether Piazza played clean. Back then, I was flabbergasted. I had Piazza's back. At the time, I was telling people the overwhelming evidence is out there against Barry Bonds and Jason Giambi. This was during the height of "Game of Shadows." There was nothing at the time to raise any doubts over Piazza. Yet, there were whispers.

Now one can openly ask questions and look at the actual data. How does an unheralded prospect get drafted in the 62nd round as a favor by a family friend, Tommy Lasorda, and then go on to be the greatest hitting catcher in major league history. Could everyone have missed the boat on this talent?

When one looks at the numbers, it's even more striking. After his first 470 minor league at bats (AB) over two seasons, Piazza had 14 home runs (HR), an average of one HR per every 33.6 AB. When he moved on to Bakersfield, CA he reduced that number in half to 15.5 AB. Throughout his minor league career, he had 1,390 AB's and 66 HR's for an average of a HR every 21.1 AB.

Once he made the leap to the majors and faced better pitching, he averaged a HR every 14.7 AB from 1992 - 2002. When MLB instituted the first form of steroid testing with survey testing in 2003, Piazza's average HR per AB plummeted for the remainder of his career to a HR every 22.4 AB. Coincidence, old age, injuries and / or wear and tear from catching all these years...you be the judge.

Piazza Avoids Media After Citi Field Opening

Last night the New York Mets broke in Citi Field with a first pitch from Tom Seaver to Mike Piazza. It was Piazza and Seaver who left arm and arm to close Shea last fall. After the ceremonial first pitch, Seaver went up to the press box addressing the media while Piazza headed for the exits.

Piazza was escorted by security from the field to the stadium tunnel and avoided most queries from the media with the exception of two stadium related questions.

Piazza’s reluctance to engage with the media could be explained by the allegations of steroid use in Jeff Pearlman's Roger Clemens book, “The Rocket That Fell to Earth.” Pearlman writes that Piazza confided to unidentified reporters during his career that he had used PED's. Piazza has declined several requests for comment since the book's publication.

According to the the Mets’ vice president for media relations, Jay Horwitz, there is a simple explanation. “He wasn’t looking for any attention. He said, ‘I’m a private person now, I have a family, I’m raising my kids, my wife’s having a baby and I want to stay in the background.’ ”

If Piazza wasn't looking for any attention, he shouldn't have been a part of the opening of a new ballpark. The incredible thing with Piazza is no one seems to care (except for the media and a small minority of people) whether he cheated. Being a "private person now" and "wanting to stay in the background" sounds very similar to someone who "wasn't here to talk about the past." What do we think about that guy these days...

Will Piazza Address Allegations at Citi Field?

With the New York Mets opening Citi Field tomorrow, Mike Piazza is scheduled to be part of the opening celebration in a first pitch ceremony with Tom Seaver. This will be a nice complement to how Shea Stadium closed its doors last fall with Piazza and Seaver walking out of the stadium arms around each other. However, tomorrow should add a little more drama to the festivities with the latest controversy surrounding Piazza and PED’s.

Per The New York Times, Piazza has not commented on the allegations nor held a press conference discussing tomorrow’s activities like Seaver. Besides the normal fanfare and hoopla surrounding a home opener in a new stadium, this one could have additional fireworks.

But I wouldn’t expect any earth shattering details. If history is any indication for how these types of stories play out, it will be par the course: deny, deny, deny. It’s only until there is a smoking gun or documented evidence that someone eventually needs to come clean…belatedly. 

Mike Piazza: Allegedly Roided Up

When it rains, it pours. Recently, there have been articles raising doubts about whether Mike Piazza used PED’s during his playing days. In Jeff Pearlman’s book on Roger Clemens’, The Rocket That Fell to Earth, two players said Piazza was on the juice. Reggie Jefferson and an anonymous player told Pearlman that they believed Piazza was roiding back in the day.

Jefferson said, "He's a guy who did it, and everybody knows it. It's amazing how all these names, like Roger Clemens, are brought up, yet Mike Piazza goes untouched."

Over the past two months two longtime baseball writers raised doubts about Piazza. Murray Chass, formerly with The New York Times, writes on his blog that he wanted to write an article describing his back-ne, but that two or three editors of the NYT would have nothing to do with the piece stating Piazza was never accused of roiding up. Joel Sherman of The New York Post interviewed Piazza in late Feburary regarding this issue, but failed to inquire about the back-ne. When Sherman asked whether Piazza was a clean player, Piazza responds with an “absolutely.” When asked whether his name is on the list of 104 players who tested positive in 2004 that ensnared A-Rod earlier this year, he said, “No, not that I know.”

No one gets the benefit of the doubt these days including “good guys” like Albert Pujols. Sports fans have been lied to repeatedly and burned one too many times to believe that everyone is "clean" when they claim that they are. Unfortunately for Piazza, his denial about the 2004 sample testing is not as forceful as his plea that he was "absolutely" a clean player.  "Not that I know" I'm on that list doesn’t leave me with a warm, fuzzy feeling that he has nothing to hide.  If he was clean throughout his career, he would be absolute in knowing he was not on that list - he couldn't possibly be on it because he wasn't doing anything illegal.  Also remarkable is that he was drafted in the 62nd round as a favor by Tommy Lasorda for his godson and then this player drafted 1,390th overall in 1988 went on to lead the majors in home runs by a catcher…pushes the envelope on believability.

MLB Sports Talk: Where's Barry?

This past weekend a nationally syndicated radio program came on the airwaves talking about MLB. Instead of talking about the beauty of the season: the surprising Cardinals, Rays, the tanking Yankees, or an obese Andruw Jones just to name a few topics, the host decided to lead with: where is Barry Bonds?

Along with laying out Barry's statistics and the possibility of collusion among the owners for not wanting to sign the biggest clubhouse pariah, the host also mentioned the fact that Mike Piazza was looking for work.

Barry Bonds, noted in the Mitchell Report and the subject of the book "Game of Shadows" is facing a perjury trial in California pertaining to his use of PED's. By lumping Piazza with Bonds, the host, whether intentional or not, was subtly linking Piazza to PED's. Piazza was not in the Mitchell Report and has not been linked to PED's. However, Piazza held a press conference in NY to announce not that he is a juicer, but that he's heterosexual.

Piazza was pivotal to the extent sports can heal the pain inflicted in the NY region after September 11th. In the first Met home game after the attacks, Piazza hit a home run that was reminiscent of a time when a home run meant something in a game.

Instead of focusing on the product on the field, this radio host is focusing on an unemployed player who shot himself full of products. Let's stop painting everyone with a broad brush before Julio Franco's retirement starts to get questioned.