Say It Ain't So, Raffy
So, what to do about Rafael Palmeiro? (Aside from the obvious answer - stick him on a rocket ship into the sun, erase all records of his existence, and pretend this never happened.)
Thing is, I've always had a soft spot for Palmeiro. Partly because of his sweet swing, partly because he's got a cool name (he does), partly because he has been a consistent excellent and feared hitter for the last decade plus, and partly because he always seemed like and underdog. I mean, take for instance the fact that until he got that 3,000th hit, there were still people saying that he didn't deserve to be in the Hall of Fame. Hey, it's not supposed to be a Hall for the flashy and famous players, it's supposed to be a Hall for the great players. And Palmeiro certainly is one. Or take his Viagra ads - I mean, that's not the type of endorsement a top-flight superstar does. But that's why I liked Palmeiro - superstar stats without the superstar bullshit.
But, oops. It was all/mostly/partly/slightly steroid-enhanced. How much? We'll never know. But this certainly changes some things. First, apparently the MLB drug enforcement procedures work better than expected. Second, the MLB drug penalties are woefully inadequate (10-day suspension? that's pathetic). Third, Palmeiro is no longer an underdog. Fourth, he's also no longer a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Fifth, he's maybe not a Hall of Famer at all.
It's that last one that's the real kicker. Thing is, I don't know the answer. On the one hand, Palmeiro played in an era when steroids were rampant. He probably didn't do anything that several other future Hall of Famers (McGwire, Bonds, Sosa) and other stars (Canseco, Caminiti, Giambi) didn't do. He just got caught. And, unlike Shoeless Joe Jackson and Pete Rose, Palmeiro hasn't been banned for life, so he should be eligible for the Hall. On the other hand, eligible for the Hall and inducted into the Hall are two different things. Since we can never know how many of those hits and home runs weren't earned, how can we judge his career against others?
1 comment:
For whatever reason, I've always been really indifferent towards him, never actually liking him or disliking him at all. I do think he's got to be in the hall of fame, though, because if you start excluding people based on rumors or one positive test, where do you draw the line? And there's also the fact that even with steriods, you still have to have ability - plenty of crap players have taken steroids, too, and they're still crap. I was just reading a new book about the whole steroid thing, and somebody in it says that steroids can make an ok player good, a good player great, and a great player really amazing, which I have to agree with.
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