The PED-List

And another two bite the dust.

When Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz – who made up one of the most dangerous 1-2 punches in the game earlier this decade when they played for Boston – were mentioned Thursday as being on the list of 104 players to test positive for performance-enhancing drugs in 2003, it sent shockwaves throughout Red Sox Nation.

Fans were shocked that Ortiz, who always seemed to come up with the clutch hit when it counted, would be among those who took steroids. Sure, his numbers have dipped the past two years, but a nagging wrist injury was always the alibi.

I, for one, am not surprised by any revelations when it comes to steroids in baseball these days. It’s simply unfathomable to think anyone is clean during this dark age, and that includes Albert Puljos, who vehemently denies any link.

Why should we believe him? He’s by far the best hitter in the game, and stroking home runs out of the park and partying like it’s 1999. Still, that’s not my concern.

My biggest concern is this list. Many players and managers in baseball, most of whom are sick and tired of this trickling effect, the dropping of one and two names at a time, sounded off on Thursday, urging the powers that be in the MLB to reveal the remaining names and move on.

Former Sox shortstop Nomar Garciaparra went as far as to say that some players asked to be put down as positive because they were in favor of steroid testing in baseball. “The whole thing was, if there’s five percent (testing positive) or more, we’re going to have steroid testing. If it’s under five percent, there won’t be testing, and a lot of guys were like, ‘Yeah, we want to have testing.’”

MLB baseball refutes Nomar’s claim, saying players weren’t allowed to put their names down as positive to build support for testing, and that all players were forced to submit a urine sample.

Either way, this list is starting to grow both tired and old. For players like Ortiz, who said Thursday’s report from the New York Times “blindsided him,” it sullies his accomplishments on the field. And writers, who vote for induction into the Hall of Fame, no longer know what to think.

Ramirez, when asked by reporters about the allegations, said, "Talk to the union," and he's right. His union is letting him down. This list was supposed to be confidential. Who is leaking this information, and why isn't the union doing anything about?

These days, I enojoy baseball for what it's worth - nothing more than entertainment. I no longer put stock in records or numbers, only because they've been so skewed in the past 10 years that it's hard to differentiate between eras.

Baseball is broken, and it'll take some hard work to get it fixed. And truth be told, it might be beyond repair.

FINISHING THE JOB

I attended the Super Bowl two years ago, and left Glendale, Ariz., with perhaps the most empty feeling I’ve ever experienced. With a perfect season no more than two minutes away, the Patriots coughed it up - to a guy who shot himself no less.

Critics said it was the biggest choke job ever, and that no team will ever be in that position again — until this year. The Patriots have all the pieces to put together another run at perfection, and I’m calling it right here and now. ... 19-0! Of course, my cohort, Josh Krueger, will tell you I’m nuts. But he’s never rooted for a team so good. Even when his Packers were going to back-to-back Super Bowls, he knows they weren’t as good as these Patriots.

To be honest, it should have happened last year. The Patriots, minus all-world QB Tom Brady, went 11-5 and missed out on the playoffs. And they have that punk Brett Favre to thank. I digress. That was an abomination, and this year is a clean slate.

Brady is back. Moss is back. Welker is back. And the additions of running back Fred Taylor, speedy wide receiver Joey Galloway and tight ends Chris Baker and Alex Smith make this offense unstoppable. For teams to beat the Patriots, they’ll have to outscore them.

I won’t lie, the aging defense scares me a bit. Getting Adalius Thomas, who missed most of last year with an injury, back is a huge plus, and the off-season additions — namely Shawn Springs at cornerback — made will help out. Not to mention Ellis Hobbs, who was burnt like toast on that Super Bowl-winning play, now resides in Philadelphia.

To be honest, I’ll be surprised if the Patriots don’t go 19-0. The mantra for the season should obviously be "Finishing the Job."

He better mean it this time

Brett Favre indicated Tuesday that he intends to stay retired (this time), and will not play this season for the Minnesota Vikings.

I think I speak for every NFL fan everywhere when I say: It’s about damn time.

Unfortunately, my confidence that this is the last we’ll hear of Favre is less than total. Sure, he says he’s not up for another season, but we all know he’s said that before. And what if a high-profile quarterback on a contending team goes down early in the regular season? That won’t get his competitive juices flowing again?

The only thing that makes me even consider that he might be serious this time is that the Vikings, as much as I hate to say it, seemed like the perfect fit. They have the best running back in the game in Adrian Peterson, and one of the NFL’s top defenses, so Favre wouldn’t have been called upon to carry the team in any way.

Take the snap, hand the ball off to Peterson, throw 20 passes a game and let the defense do the rest. Unfortunately for my purple-clad mortal enemies, the Vikings clearly don’t think that any of their quarterbacks — Tavaris Jackson, Sage Rosenfels or John David Booty — can accomplish this.

So, with no Favre — or any other functional QB — the Vikings’ scary-good defense will continue to go to waste in the form of first-round playoff losses.

In the words of immortal “Simpsons” bully Nelson Muntz: HA HA!

Westmoreland not involved with trade

Whew! For those sweating out Ryan Westmoreland being traded to Toronto as stated Tuesday afternoon in a Yahoo blog, he's not part of the package.
Gordon Edes, who posted the story, took the former Portsmouth High School star out of the equation later in the day.

Big air-heads

After watching a short documentary about extreme sports athletes, I have no sympathy for the men and women who put their bodies at risk for the “adrenaline rush” that comes with getting big air, or pulling off a 720 (needless to say, my extreme sports jargon is lacking).

These men and women are risking serious injury, and even death, by pushing the bar upward year after year. Yes, I know they’re entertainers, but when does it stop? When skateboarder Jake Brown fell 45 feet onto the base of the mega-ramp during the X-Games two years ago, it was one of the most horrific scenes I’ve witnessed.

After three days in the hospital, Brown was lucky enough to walk away from the incident without serious damage. He was back on his board the following year at the X-Games.

I liken the euphoria that comes with extreme sports to a serious drug addict. Honestly, what’s the difference? Both can kill you quite easily, and I can only assume loved ones of these athletes beg them to stop for fear of permanent injury or death.

The way I see it, athletes like Brown, Tony Hawk, Dave Mirra and Brian Deegan — be it on a skateboard, a bicycle or a dirtbike — live life with zero boundaries.

And, like a drug addict, they do it quite selfishly.

Rose-colored glasses

A story in the New York Daily News suggests that Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig is considering lifting the lifetime ban of all-time hits leader Pete Rose. If Selig does allow Rose back into baseball, that most likely, would lead to Rose’s induction into the Hall of Fame.

Rose was banned 20 years ago for gambling on baseball. He has since admitted to doing so, but swore that he only bet on his team, the Cincinnati Reds, and never bet against them.

In this day and age of baseball, does that seem like an incredibly harsh penalty for such an offense? Guy gets caught using performance-enhancing drugs and gets a 50-game suspension. A manager bet on his own team 20 years ago and is banned for life.

If Rose did wager against his team — and made managerial moves to help ensure that he won those bets — then Rose would have to consider himself lucky that he got off with only a lifetime ban from the game. Ex-NBA ref Tim Donaghy went to prison for betting on games he officiated.

But if Rose is telling the truth — this time — Selig should lift the ban and open the door to Cooperstown. No one can dispute Rose’s on-field accomplishments, which can’t be said of so many top players of the last 10 years.

I don’t necessarily like the guy, but I don’t like Rickey Henderson either, and there’s no doubt that, for what they did as players, both men belong in the Hall of Fame.