Water Cooler:PEDs in baseball revisited
I read two interesting, and often conflicting, articles about Major League Baseball and PEDs this morning. NPR has a commentary about fan apathy towards PEDs, focusing on Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez. MLB.com has an opinion piece taking the same situation as evidence that fans (and other players) do still care, therefore keeping those two players out of the All Star Game.
As the MLB article points out, fans and players did keep Manny and A-Rod out. However, I have my doubts it was because of PEDs. I think it had more to do with a lack of playing time (Manny) and relatively poor performance (A-Rod). After all, Manny's return has been a celebration of sorts. Of course, Josh Hamilton was voted in despite limited PT and sub-par performance, but perhaps he is such a compelling story that the fans voted for him anyway.
Personally, I have always thought most fans didn't really care about PEDs. We don't get mad at them for using PEDs, but for not keeping it secret and destroying our illusion of their natural abilities. Most fans, I think, would prefer adopting a "don't ask / don't tell" policy similar to gays in the military. But even that, I think, is eroding into pure apathy. I'm not sure why this is. Are we really tired of the story, or were we beaten down by the coverage?
Steroids and other PEDs were the hot topic for quite a while, but it has been relatively quiet recently, giving us all a chance to reflect and re-evaluate. Any new thoughts? Where do you stand regarding PEDs in baseball? What do you think the "average" fan thinks about it now?
