The View From Wisconsin

A point taken from Henry Aaron, when he was asked about the whole Giambi/Bonds/BALCO issue:

"...I know that you can't put something in your body to make you hit a fastball, changeup, or curveball. The only person who can do that is the good Lord. But, at that age (40), you have to ask: Did he accomplish all of this by rejuvenating his strength from day to day with those substances? I know that when you reach a certain age, you just don't bounce back as quickly as you think you can when you're playing all of those games."

"Drugs won't help you hit the ball. But can they make you recuperate consistently enough to hit the kind of home runs that these guys are hitting?"

Aaron paused, sighed, and added, "Any way you look at it, it's wrong."

(Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Terence Moore)

What I'd love to ask Mr. Aaron is this: when he was in his final years here in Milwaukee with the Brewers, if he had access to the medication and treatments - not necessarily "illegal" or "prescribed" drugs - that you have today, and you knew from other players that using this stuff would help you get back to feeling more yourself, instead of aching, limping and sore - would you do them or use them?

I don't care much for Barry Bonds, the individual. He is a very private man, and wants to keep to himself most of the time. Some people are just like that. The issue here is whether or not you believe his statements to the grand jury - which, by the way, it was illegal for that testimony to be leaked out to the public.

Those who don't like Bonds don't believe him when he says he thought they were "linseed oil cream" and "clear arthritis rub." They believe that he should know what he's putting in and on his body - and that by taking something like that from his personal trainer at face value is way too naiive for a college-educated guy like Barry.

The only two people who know the truth are Greg Anderson and Barry Bonds. And I'm not sure either one of them are going to spill the beans (pardon the pun) right now.

Yeah, the MLBPA is probably going to have to agree to some form of more stringent testing - suspensions earlier in the process, more random tests, etc. - but I really don't think it's going to be that big of a deal.

Steroids do have their place in the healing process, when used properly under a doctor's care for a specific condition. There are problems and side effects - which should be part of an education campaign in baseball, by the way - but the fact that these statements made the light of day should be a huge discouragement for those who are on "the juice" now.

The message is clear: "This stuff won't be tolerated from now on."