Mark McGwire admitted to taking steroids last week. This is about as shocking as waking up and finding that grass is still green.
Apparently McGwire has decided to act like, for lack of a better term, the bigger man in this whole situation. Reaction to his admission has been mixed, as expected. However, no one should let the slugger’s candid interview with Bob Costas lead them to believe his coming clean was anything more than totally self-serving. As the new hitting coach of the St. Louis Cardinals, McGwire had no choice but to speak the truth, since the media would hound him constantly if he were to do otherwise.
By now McGwire has also likely realized that his Hall of Fame chances are pretty much shot. There is no question that his previous opportunities at being elected have been rejected because of his suspected, and now confirmed, steroid use. He stands at eighth on the all-time home runs list, a position that would normally be an instant ticket to Cooperstown. With this admission, there is a certain air of desperation emanating from the once great slugger. McGwire has clearly found that the best way to go as a former PED user is to just admit it. Players like Andy Pettite and Alex Rodriguez have come clean and for the most part, weathered the storm.
The reason why this will not work for McGwire is because he had his chance in 2005. During his infamous Congressional testimony, he famously said he was not there to talk about the past and avoided his connections with performance enhancing drugs at all costs. If there was ever a time to gain goodwill with people around baseball, it was then. But his concern with being vilified was the major factor in the direction he went in. McGwire had a chance to make a grand statement about the entire steroids era in baseball. Of all people, he would know about the steroids era, since he played in it from the very beginning to the end. His popularity put him in a position to speak out and be heard on the issue and maybe explain why the problem ran so rampant.
Of course it is unfair to put the steroids era solely on the performance enhanced shoulders of McGwire. There are many guilty parties, not just players. One of the only former players to be completely candid is Jose Canseco, who is not such a model citizen. Maybe McGwire could have been the less sleazy alternative to Canseco when it came to former users shedding light on the era. But now it is too late for all of that.
In his interview with Costas, McGwire seemed genuinely regretful of his past decisions to use PEDs. That said, the question is whether his regret is because he is sorry for what some people consider to be cheating, or that his image in baseball is forever tarnished. If there is a silver lining in all of this, it’s that he did the right thing, albeit a little late. This may also be the final big steroids confession baseball may have (barring a burst of candor from a certain Giants outfielder). The game has clearly taken steps forward with its drug policy, and it does seem like the game is cleaner for the most part. The days of hulking sluggers like Ken Caminiti, Sammy Sosa, Jason Giambi and McGwire seem to be a distant past.
Unfortunately, Mark McGwire has successfully dug himself into a hole he will never be able to escape. He will never be in the Hall of Fame. His power numbers will never be considered legitimate. His historic 1998 home run race will never be remembered with the same fondness. Now and forever, he will be the guy who did not want to talk about the past until it was too late.
You can reach this staff writer at slindauer@theeagleonline.com.
