Manny Ramirez, called by many the greatest right-handed hitter of his generation (along with Albert Pujols), is the latest potential casualty to become a Hall of Famer. Hit with a recent 50-game suspension for violating the MLB drug policy, Manny joins the likes of McGwire, Bonds, Sosa, Clemens, Palmeiro, and A-Rod who will be keenly scrutinized for possible entry in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
McGwire’s fate seems to be determined, as he has already failed to gain sufficient votes. We’ll soon find out about a few others, as their five-year retirement from baseball approaches. The wait on Manny and A-Rod could be to their advantage, as they are years from retirement. Time can deter memory. However, whether any of these cheaters get into the Hall of Fame, they have already ruined the fabric of the game. And who’s to know whether others who have been inducted weren’t also guilty of steroid use? I have my suspicions.
What made baseball so different from other major sports was its stats. Numbers have always been part of the game. As kids, we all knew 714, 61, and 2,130. Today, those numbers have been shattered. However, can you instantly tell me what the new numbers representing those records are today? Personally, those old numbers, along with 755, are the one’s I’ll forever remember.
Unfortunately, baseball stats have gone the way of basketball and football statistics. No one knows … and no one cares.
Manuel Aristides Ramírez Onelcida works in the perfect town whose own endemic hypocrisy will ignore any and all in service of itself. Manny is not alone among those athletic savants who for their whole lives have never heard the word “no.” He is in his high school’s athletic hall of fame, but can anyone imagine how on earth he legitimately graduated? Can you actually conceive of him passing a test? In English? I have trouble with that scenario. A .600 batting average and a couple of city championships give teachers and administrators very thick cataracts. Manny is not alone in this kind hypocritical treatment. The NBA and the NFL are likewise full of similarly indulged little boys. I have a redemptive idea for Manny, A-Rod, Sammy and Roger. I would suggest the Baseball Hall of Fame consider them for election on one condtiion: Two combat tours in Iraq or Afghanistan should do the trick.
Comment by Bostonian — May 11, 2009 @ 10:51 am
1-strike and you’re out of the Hall of Fame!
Comment by MrMet — May 14, 2009 @ 2:20 pm
The Curse of the Babe……..Sox Series Titles Tainted
Comment by Re-Pete — May 15, 2009 @ 11:09 pm