You write a lot. I know that sounds simple of me, but it doesn't need that much explanation. I think this can be summed up in one question - you're a Yankee/Red Sox fan aren't you?
I'm a Yankees fan, yes. I enjoy the fact that the AL East is so competitive because it makes everyone step up their game. In reality, this basically assures me that there will be at least 1 Yankees playoff game every year since they have 2 other tough teams in the division, but I still don't like it. I just don't buy that this is being done to "reward" teams who win. It's being done for money and to help some smaller-market teams like KC, Toronto, DC, etc. have a better shot at making the playoffs. I like that some of those teams will have a bteer chance now because it will only make them better in the long run if there's always a chance at a playoff spot. Their fans will care more instead of giving up in June and the owners will spend a little bit more to keep their best players if they see a chance to make more money. I just don't buy that there's a reward for the best teams in this when the example everyone points to (the 2010 Rays/Yankees race) is one that would have penalized the 2 best teams in the league that year. It's a forced attempt at drama and Selig wants us to think he's assured us that last year's Game 162 drama will happen every year from now on because of the 1-game playoff.
that's fair but i defended a-rod, giambi, bonds, manny, and so on. i truly could give two fucks about who uses steroids, peds, etc. my question is why do you?
You write a lot. I know that sounds simple of me, but it doesn't need that much explanation. I think this can be summed up in one question - you're a Yankee/Red Sox fan aren't you?
I'm a Yankees fan, yes. I enjoy the fact that the AL East is so competitive because it makes everyone step up their game. In reality, this basically assures me that there will be at least 1 Yankees playoff game every year since they have 2 other tough teams in the division, but I still don't like it. I just don't buy that this is being done to "reward" teams who win. It's being done for money and to help some smaller-market teams like KC, Toronto, DC, etc. have a better shot at making the playoffs. I like that some of those teams will have a bteer chance now because it will only make them better in the long run if there's always a chance at a playoff spot. Their fans will care more instead of giving up in June and the owners will spend a little bit more to keep their best players if they see a chance to make more money. I just don't buy that there's a reward for the best teams in this when the example everyone points to (the 2010 Rays/Yankees race) is one that would have penalized the 2 best teams in the league that year. It's a forced attempt at drama and Selig wants us to think he's assured us that last year's Game 162 drama will happen every year from now on because of the 1-game playoff.
yeah but what it will do is help a team who wins their division and is at the top, the phillies would have gotten away with charlie manuel's ultimate stupidity for winning the last game last year thus ensuring at least a playoff with the cards and braves. what this would have done is not let chris carpenter pitch twice against the best team all season, and that's what will happen guaranteed now (almost).
I didn't give a shit about steroids when baseball allowed it. You would have been an idiot not to take them and I don't blame one of them. That said, now that they are testing I don't think they should be part of the game and find it amusing when people get caught.
yeah but what it will do is help a team who wins their division and is at the top, the phillies would have gotten away with charlie manuel's ultimate stupidity for winning the last game last year thus ensuring at least a playoff with the cards and braves. what this would have done is not let chris carpenter pitch twice against the best team all season, and that's what will happen guaranteed now (almost).
You're slowly making more sense to me.
And, what'd I say, a Yankees fan. Maybe you guys should have given a shit about winning the division and not accepting the wildcard if this format was in place this past season. Even Cashman openly admitted to there not being any reason to go for the division title.
This ultimately will restore some semblance of pride in winning your division more than the other 3 sports - well, except getting the bye in football.
On an unrelated note - MLB Net is easily better than the NFL Network now. And dare I say, MLB Productions has surpassed NFL Films. Highly underrated stuff they do.
I didn't give a shit about steroids when baseball allowed it. You would have been an idiot not to take them and I don't blame one of them. That said, now that they are testing I don't think they should be part of the game and find it amusing when people get caught.
i gotcha on the amusement...just because my politics with regard to steroids are indifferent would lead me to not care about the yanks or sawx that used didn't preclude me from making fun of my friends team's. that said, the pierce article is spot on - drug testing in sports is a deeply flawed system that is making a ton of people a ton of money at the expense of the dignity of athletes and it's going to take a lot to reverse the idiocy. hell howard bryant made a killing off of writing about steroids in a sports book, espn gets more shit to sift through their 24 hour news cycle, the drug testers get paid, the league's "seem" better to the public so it's good PR, and the whole thing is fucking stupid. the only logical conclusion to PED testing is to make everyone eat the same thing, work out the same amount, and so on, which is just stupid. on top of that isn't it funny that we celebrate the removal of tendons from a cadaver allowing an athlete who had 0 chance of playing in a game to play not once but twice with a bloody sock, yet we bemoan the idea that barry bonds didn't deserve his home runs because he rubbed a little cream on his body.
I didn't give a shit about steroids when baseball allowed it. You would have been an idiot not to take them and I don't blame one of them. That said, now that they are testing I don't think they should be part of the game and find it amusing when people get caught.
Exactly. I enjoy people getting caught, and more-so I find it funny when people try to act like it's a "disgrace" or something. Seriously, gimme a fuckin' break.
Yes, I'm a Yankees fan and I explained why this format helps them. In any given year the Rays, Red Sox, Angels, and Rangers are all contenders for a playoff spot. Having 2 Wild Cards almost guarantees the Yankees a playoff spot every year. I still don't like it. If this had been in place last year, nobody would have cared about the last week of the season. You don't think Boston and Tampa would have rested their players at the end? The Yankees still would've rested CC, Jeter, A-Rod, etc., but nobody would care because there wouldn't have been anyone questioning if they were tanking on purpose to keep hurt Boston or if they were just preparing for the postseason as usual. Nobody would mention the Red Sox or Braves collapsing at the end of the season because they still would have made the playoffs. The Yankees would have made the playoffs in 2008 and I wouldn't have spent that October pretending baseball didn't exist. In short, everything fun about last season would not exist.
yeah but what it will do is help a team who wins their division and is at the top, the phillies would have gotten away with charlie manuel's ultimate stupidity for winning the last game last year thus ensuring at least a playoff with the cards and braves. what this would have done is not let chris carpenter pitch twice against the best team all season, and that's what will happen guaranteed now (almost).
You're slowly making more sense to me.
And, what'd I say, a Yankees fan. Maybe you guys should have given a shit about winning the division and not accepting the wildcard if this format was in place this past season. Even Cashman openly admitted to there not being any reason to go for the division title.
This ultimately will restore some semblance of pride in winning your division more than the other 3 sports - well, except getting the bye in football.
Everything fun about last season wouldn't exist? That was the first time in forever that anything of that nature has happened on the last day of the season. If anything, that emphasized MLB to expand the playoffs. Now they're guaranteeingat least two of those games every year.
I didn't give a shit about steroids when baseball allowed it. You would have been an idiot not to take them and I don't blame one of them. That said, now that they are testing I don't think they should be part of the game and find it amusing when people get caught.
i gotcha on the amusement...just because my politics with regard to steroids are indifferent would lead me to not care about the yanks or sawx that used didn't preclude me from making fun of my friends team's. that said, the pierce article is spot on - drug testing in sports is a deeply flawed system that is making a ton of people a ton of money at the expense of the dignity of athletes and it's going to take a lot to reverse the idiocy. hell howard bryant made a killing off of writing about steroids in a sports book, espn gets more shit to sift through their 24 hour news cycle, the drug testers get paid, the league's "seem" better to the public so it's good PR, and the whole thing is fucking stupid. the only logical conclusion to PED testing is to make everyone eat the same thing, work out the same amount, and so on, which is just stupid. on top of that isn't it funny that we celebrate the removal of tendons from a cadaver allowing an athlete who had 0 chance of playing in a game to play not once but twice with a bloody sock, yet we bemoan the idea that barry bonds didn't deserve his home runs because he rubbed a little cream on his body.
There is no doubt that testing is sports is flawed. The percepetion of steroids is sports is bizarre. I would guess that 90% of Americans think baseball has a bigger steroid problem than football based on the PR over the past 10 years. I haven't had a chance to read that whole article but plan to and I don't disagree that a lot of people are making money on it and that's clearly not good.
I just don't agree that it should be allowed, which I believe was part of the point of the article. If that is the case, when is it acceptable for athletes to begin taking steroids and the risks involved? When they turn pro? That doesn't work because everyone younger will take them to get a bigger contract. I just don't think you can allow something like that in pro sports when it will have such a big impact on amateur sports.
there is no logic and reason when it comes to cleanliness...that's why i posted the article Pierce is the first dude in the media who actually gets the illogic of steroids hate.
there's actually a Yale and Harvard educated doctor and professor at the U. of Wisc who wrote a landmark article in 1983 called "Let 'em Take Steroids" for the NY Times....guys name is Norman Fost....I wish I could find a link to the article but can't....it made soooooo much sense. Anyway, if you're interested, google "norman fost steroids"
here's an excerpt I liked from another article (sorry about the yankees reference ):
1. Steroids result in unfair competition.
Anabolic steroids clearly do enhance performance for many athletes, but there is no coherent argument to support the view that enhancing performance is unfair. If it were, we should ban coaching and training. Competition can be unfair if there is unequal access to such enhancements, but equal access can be achieved more predictably by deregulation than by prohibition. It is hypocritical for leaders in major league baseball to trumpet their concern about fair competition in a league that allows one team (the Yankees) to have a payroll 3 times larger than most of its competitors.
A particularly egregious example of this hypocrisy was the juxtaposition in the 1988 Olympics of Ben Johnson and Janet Evans. Johnson broke the world record for the 100-meter dash and not only had his gold medal taken away but became the permanent poster child for the immorality of steroids, which, though illegal, were available to virtually anyone who wanted them. Evans, after winning her medal in swimming, bragged about the key role of her greasy swimsuit, which the Americans had kept secret from their competitors, and went on a prolonged lecture tour as "America's Sweetheart."
If I had known then what I know now...
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
if peds are proven to not have any ill side effects related to one's health long or short term ... i would be open to them being allowed ... if they aren't ... they should be banned ...
On an unrelated note - MLB Net is easily better than the NFL Network now. And dare I say, MLB Productions has surpassed NFL Films. Highly underrated stuff they do.
i agree on the networks but mlb productions, while underrated, is still not up to par with nfl films
those "football life" docs last fall are all you need to watch to know that. i'm biased of course, but the jerome brown/reggie white one brought a tear to my eye. those shows were so well done.
Everything fun about last season wouldn't exist? That was the first time in forever that anything of that nature has happened on the last day of the season. If anything, that emphasized MLB to expand the playoffs. Now they're guaranteeingat least two of those games every year.
The Phils.
Right, but what fun is there in a 1-game playoff when it's between a 94-win team and an 85-win team? It's forced, manufactured drama. There won't always be 2 teams that close in the standings playing each other in that playoff game. These extra games won't be as memorable as last year's final day, the '78 Yankees/Sox playoff, the '51 Giants/Dodgers playoff, or any other game like that but Selig wants us to think that they will be every bit as memorable, if not more. They're selling it as great for the fans, but I don't recall ever hearing any fans begging for this type of format before MLB and the union started discussing it.
If Bud Selig really wanted to make the division titles mean something more than they do now he would have asked the union to agree to revert back to 2 divisions and had 2 Wild Card teams play the 2 division winners or just had 2 divisions and go back to having just the LCS and World Series. You want drama? Picture NY, Boston, and Tampa Bay fighting for 1 playoff spot or St. Louis, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, and Atlanta fighting for the divison title. I don't doubt that Selig believes the extra playoff game is good for the game, but I think he's wrong about it and I think it would never have happened if there wasn't money to be made from it. This is the same guy who thinks having the All-Star Game decide home-field advantage in the World Series is a great idea, after all.
I could argue that you only like this because it helps the Phillies the same way you think I hate it because I'm a Yankees fan. Last year they wouldn't have face Carpenter twice and this year they are a safe bet at a playoff spot even if one of the other NL East teams has improved enough to overtake them in the standings since Howard's hurt, Oswalt's gone, and DC and Miami both made some serious improvements this winter.
if peds are proven to not have any ill side effects related to one's health long or short term ... i would be open to them being allowed ... if they aren't ... they should be banned ...
3. Steroids cause life-threatening harms.
Good ethics starts with good facts, and the claims on this point are, to understate the case, seriously overstated. Articles abound in the mass media on the life-threatening risks of anabolic steroids: cancer, heart disease, stroke, and so on. What is missing are peer-reviewed articles in scientific journals to support the claims. Quick: name an athlete who died, or was diagnosed, with steroid-related cancer, heart disease, or stroke. Cases are so hard to find that the prohibitionists have to make them up. So Lyle Alzado, the NFL all-star, is presented on the front page of the New York Times and the cover of Sports Illustrated because of an alleged steroid-related brain tumor. What is missing is a single article, or evidence, or even a quote from any authority on the topic to support any connection between steroids and Alzado's tumor.
and that was written about anabolic steroids....to my knowledge, the chemists have moved way past those....
If I had known then what I know now...
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
this year they are a safe bet at a playoff spot even if one of the other NL East teams has improved enough to overtake them in the standings since Howard's hurt, Oswalt's gone, and DC and Miami both made some serious improvements this winter.
I think Atlanta's their biggest threat :shifty:
If I had known then what I know now...
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
the extra playoff game(s) are purely for more tv revenue
you're saying it's about money?? no way
If I had known then what I know now...
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
I could argue that you only like this because it helps the Phillies the same way you think I hate it because I'm a Yankees fan. Last year they wouldn't have face Carpenter twice and this year they are a safe bet at a playoff spot even if one of the other NL East teams has improved enough to overtake them in the standings since Howard's hurt, Oswalt's gone, and DC and Miami both made some serious improvements this winter.
Of course I like it because it would've hurt the Cards. That's what I'm saying. What distinct advantage did a 102 major league-best-in-wins team have over a team that squeeked into the playoffs? Nothing more than one more home playoff game. If you want to say the LDS should be 7 games, I'm all for it, but what advantage did they have in that series? Barely any other than one more home game. Actually, the wild card teams are winning the LDS series more often than the divisional winners(54% of the time),. So, again, what distinct advantage does winning your division, or having the best record in your league mean? None. Agreed the All-Star game being the deciding factor of who gets home field in the WS is preposterous, but I have a feeling that will change with the format - or it might not.
On a semi-related note - the second most overrated thing in baseball is calling Selig out for being a moron and destroying the game. Second only to people who think its a disgrace to the game when someone takes steroids. In both cases, gimme a break. That old dude hasn't perpetually done horrible things to the league. I could count probably on one hand what everyone's gripe is with this old fossil. Which I also find ironic, when people call him an old senile bastard, yet he's been more progressive in growing the sport than any other commissioner before him.
On a semi-related note - the second most overrated thing in baseball is calling Selig out for being a moron and destroying the game. Second only to people who think its a disgrace to the game when someone takes steroids. In both cases, gimme a break. That old dude hasn't perpetually done horrible things to the league. I could count probably on one hand what everyone's gripe is with this old fossil. Which I also find ironic, when people call him an old senile bastard, yet he's been more progressive in growing the sport than any other commissioner before him.
3. Steroids cause life-threatening harms.
Good ethics starts with good facts, and the claims on this point are, to understate the case, seriously overstated. Articles abound in the mass media on the life-threatening risks of anabolic steroids: cancer, heart disease, stroke, and so on. What is missing are peer-reviewed articles in scientific journals to support the claims. Quick: name an athlete who died, or was diagnosed, with steroid-related cancer, heart disease, or stroke. Cases are so hard to find that the prohibitionists have to make them up. So Lyle Alzado, the NFL all-star, is presented on the front page of the New York Times and the cover of Sports Illustrated because of an alleged steroid-related brain tumor. What is missing is a single article, or evidence, or even a quote from any authority on the topic to support any connection between steroids and Alzado's tumor.
and that was written about anabolic steroids....to my knowledge, the chemists have moved way past those....
what about flo-jo? "professional" wrestlers? many football players?
what about flo-jo? "professional" wrestlers? many football players?
wrestlers maybe. Flo Jo probably did some 'roids but they didn't cause her death (at least not officially). I don't believe any football players' deaths have been linked to steroids. The violence of the game has definitely lead to deaths.
If I had known then what I know now...
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
If Bud Selig really wanted to make the division titles mean something more than they do now he would have asked the union to agree to revert back to 2 divisions and had 2 Wild Card teams play the 2 division winners or just had 2 divisions and go back to having just the LCS and World Series. You want drama? Picture NY, Boston, and Tampa Bay fighting for 1 playoff spot or St. Louis, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, and Atlanta fighting for the divison title. I don't doubt that Selig believes the extra playoff game is good for the game, but I think he's wrong about it and I think it would never have happened if there wasn't money to be made from it. This is the same guy who thinks having the All-Star Game decide home-field advantage in the World Series is a great idea, after all.
wrestlers maybe. Flo Jo probably did some 'roids but they didn't cause her death (at least not officially). I don't believe any football players' deaths have been linked to steroids. The violence of the game has definitely lead to deaths.
yeah ... i dunno ... why are they illegal then if not because of it's side effects?
wrestlers maybe. Flo Jo probably did some 'roids but they didn't cause her death (at least not officially). I don't believe any football players' deaths have been linked to steroids. The violence of the game has definitely lead to deaths.
yeah ... i dunno ... why are they illegal then if not because of it's side effects?
Because he's spent a majority of his life watching Barry Bonds playing for his home team. Giants fans have been brainwashed.
This doesn't mean I am some avid supporter of the anti-steroids/get up on my high horse viewpoint, but it really is funny to see how all Giants fans feel about the matter.
I don't believe any football players' deaths have been linked to steroids.
lyle alzado
there's no evidence that steroids caused the brain tumor. besides, he started using anabolics in 1969....not exactly the same stuff as is out there now.
If I had known then what I know now...
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
Comments
I'm a Yankees fan, yes. I enjoy the fact that the AL East is so competitive because it makes everyone step up their game. In reality, this basically assures me that there will be at least 1 Yankees playoff game every year since they have 2 other tough teams in the division, but I still don't like it. I just don't buy that this is being done to "reward" teams who win. It's being done for money and to help some smaller-market teams like KC, Toronto, DC, etc. have a better shot at making the playoffs. I like that some of those teams will have a bteer chance now because it will only make them better in the long run if there's always a chance at a playoff spot. Their fans will care more instead of giving up in June and the owners will spend a little bit more to keep their best players if they see a chance to make more money. I just don't buy that there's a reward for the best teams in this when the example everyone points to (the 2010 Rays/Yankees race) is one that would have penalized the 2 best teams in the league that year. It's a forced attempt at drama and Selig wants us to think he's assured us that last year's Game 162 drama will happen every year from now on because of the 1-game playoff.
You're slowly making more sense to me.
And, what'd I say, a Yankees fan. Maybe you guys should have given a shit about winning the division and not accepting the wildcard if this format was in place this past season. Even Cashman openly admitted to there not being any reason to go for the division title.
This ultimately will restore some semblance of pride in winning your division more than the other 3 sports - well, except getting the bye in football.
Exactly. I enjoy people getting caught, and more-so I find it funny when people try to act like it's a "disgrace" or something. Seriously, gimme a fuckin' break.
Who do you root for?
The Phils.
There is no doubt that testing is sports is flawed. The percepetion of steroids is sports is bizarre. I would guess that 90% of Americans think baseball has a bigger steroid problem than football based on the PR over the past 10 years. I haven't had a chance to read that whole article but plan to and I don't disagree that a lot of people are making money on it and that's clearly not good.
I just don't agree that it should be allowed, which I believe was part of the point of the article. If that is the case, when is it acceptable for athletes to begin taking steroids and the risks involved? When they turn pro? That doesn't work because everyone younger will take them to get a bigger contract. I just don't think you can allow something like that in pro sports when it will have such a big impact on amateur sports.
there's actually a Yale and Harvard educated doctor and professor at the U. of Wisc who wrote a landmark article in 1983 called "Let 'em Take Steroids" for the NY Times....guys name is Norman Fost....I wish I could find a link to the article but can't....it made soooooo much sense. Anyway, if you're interested, google "norman fost steroids"
here's an excerpt I liked from another article (sorry about the yankees reference
1. Steroids result in unfair competition.
Anabolic steroids clearly do enhance performance for many athletes, but there is no coherent argument to support the view that enhancing performance is unfair. If it were, we should ban coaching and training. Competition can be unfair if there is unequal access to such enhancements, but equal access can be achieved more predictably by deregulation than by prohibition. It is hypocritical for leaders in major league baseball to trumpet their concern about fair competition in a league that allows one team (the Yankees) to have a payroll 3 times larger than most of its competitors.
A particularly egregious example of this hypocrisy was the juxtaposition in the 1988 Olympics of Ben Johnson and Janet Evans. Johnson broke the world record for the 100-meter dash and not only had his gold medal taken away but became the permanent poster child for the immorality of steroids, which, though illegal, were available to virtually anyone who wanted them. Evans, after winning her medal in swimming, bragged about the key role of her greasy swimsuit, which the Americans had kept secret from their competitors, and went on a prolonged lecture tour as "America's Sweetheart."
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
i agree on the networks but mlb productions, while underrated, is still not up to par with nfl films
those "football life" docs last fall are all you need to watch to know that. i'm biased of course, but the jerome brown/reggie white one brought a tear to my eye. those shows were so well done.
Right, but what fun is there in a 1-game playoff when it's between a 94-win team and an 85-win team? It's forced, manufactured drama. There won't always be 2 teams that close in the standings playing each other in that playoff game. These extra games won't be as memorable as last year's final day, the '78 Yankees/Sox playoff, the '51 Giants/Dodgers playoff, or any other game like that but Selig wants us to think that they will be every bit as memorable, if not more. They're selling it as great for the fans, but I don't recall ever hearing any fans begging for this type of format before MLB and the union started discussing it.
If Bud Selig really wanted to make the division titles mean something more than they do now he would have asked the union to agree to revert back to 2 divisions and had 2 Wild Card teams play the 2 division winners or just had 2 divisions and go back to having just the LCS and World Series. You want drama? Picture NY, Boston, and Tampa Bay fighting for 1 playoff spot or St. Louis, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, and Atlanta fighting for the divison title. I don't doubt that Selig believes the extra playoff game is good for the game, but I think he's wrong about it and I think it would never have happened if there wasn't money to be made from it. This is the same guy who thinks having the All-Star Game decide home-field advantage in the World Series is a great idea, after all.
I could argue that you only like this because it helps the Phillies the same way you think I hate it because I'm a Yankees fan. Last year they wouldn't have face Carpenter twice and this year they are a safe bet at a playoff spot even if one of the other NL East teams has improved enough to overtake them in the standings since Howard's hurt, Oswalt's gone, and DC and Miami both made some serious improvements this winter.
3. Steroids cause life-threatening harms.
Good ethics starts with good facts, and the claims on this point are, to understate the case, seriously overstated. Articles abound in the mass media on the life-threatening risks of anabolic steroids: cancer, heart disease, stroke, and so on. What is missing are peer-reviewed articles in scientific journals to support the claims. Quick: name an athlete who died, or was diagnosed, with steroid-related cancer, heart disease, or stroke. Cases are so hard to find that the prohibitionists have to make them up. So Lyle Alzado, the NFL all-star, is presented on the front page of the New York Times and the cover of Sports Illustrated because of an alleged steroid-related brain tumor. What is missing is a single article, or evidence, or even a quote from any authority on the topic to support any connection between steroids and Alzado's tumor.
and that was written about anabolic steroids....to my knowledge, the chemists have moved way past those....
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
I think Atlanta's their biggest threat :shifty:
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
you're saying it's about money?? no way
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
i know...call me crazy
Of course I like it because it would've hurt the Cards. That's what I'm saying. What distinct advantage did a 102 major league-best-in-wins team have over a team that squeeked into the playoffs? Nothing more than one more home playoff game. If you want to say the LDS should be 7 games, I'm all for it, but what advantage did they have in that series? Barely any other than one more home game. Actually, the wild card teams are winning the LDS series more often than the divisional winners(54% of the time),. So, again, what distinct advantage does winning your division, or having the best record in your league mean? None. Agreed the All-Star game being the deciding factor of who gets home field in the WS is preposterous, but I have a feeling that will change with the format - or it might not.
On a semi-related note - the second most overrated thing in baseball is calling Selig out for being a moron and destroying the game. Second only to people who think its a disgrace to the game when someone takes steroids. In both cases, gimme a break. That old dude hasn't perpetually done horrible things to the league. I could count probably on one hand what everyone's gripe is with this old fossil. Which I also find ironic, when people call him an old senile bastard, yet he's been more progressive in growing the sport than any other commissioner before him.
Boom
And I'm pretty sure bears shit in the woods. Even if it is, who cares? I'm a fiend for the sport and it makes it that more intriguing to watch.
what about flo-jo? "professional" wrestlers? many football players?
wrestlers maybe. Flo Jo probably did some 'roids but they didn't cause her death (at least not officially). I don't believe any football players' deaths have been linked to steroids. The violence of the game has definitely lead to deaths.
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
well said.
yeah ... i dunno ... why are they illegal then if not because of it's side effects?
lyle alzado
Because he's spent a majority of his life watching Barry Bonds playing for his home team. Giants fans have been brainwashed.
This doesn't mean I am some avid supporter of the anti-steroids/get up on my high horse viewpoint, but it really is funny to see how all Giants fans feel about the matter.
there's no evidence that steroids caused the brain tumor. besides, he started using anabolics in 1969....not exactly the same stuff as is out there now.
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14