Knocks on Selig are off-base
Posted: Saturday, January 19, 2008 12:21 PM
I admit to being confused over some of the reaction to Bud Selig's new deal, which keeps him the commissioner of major league baseball until 2012. The owners’ unanimous contract extension, which takes Selig to age 79, speaks volumes of their feelings and respect towards the man who has run the sport since replacing Fay Vincent on an interim basis in 1992.
In my view the media regards Selig much like President Bush -- as an inarticulate spokesman for his cause unwilling to accept responsibility. Talk-show callers regard Selig...well, skip that for their view is truly irrelevant. I am perplexed that a reputable columnist in the Oakland Tribune could refer to Selig as the “Steroids Commissioner.”
Just for clarity I hope the columnist lets us know if that places Selig alongside Roger Goodell as Shawne Merriman and Rodney Harrison are glorified on Sunday. Or alongside Paul Tagliabue after Bill Romanowski’s confessions about his car trunk doubling as the country’s biggest mobile steroids store showed just how stringent drug testing can be (Romanowski passed all his tests). Or alongside David Stern, who had an official hooked on gambling.
When Goodell stands up and says his drug testing policy is wildly effective, the same media accepts his word without question. When Stern stands up and says he has investigated the NBA's officials and the gambling was limited to one bad apple, the media accepts his word without question. When Stern and Goodell say “trust me,” they are trusted.
Selig gets no such respect. Has he earned it? The owners, whose pockets are lined with wealth created on Selig’s watch, say yes. Many critics in the written and electronic media -- who are morally offended by the steroid era -- say no. Ordering the Mitchell Report, which Selig knew could bring no good news, and having it released publicly should buy him some credibility on the accountability issue. Did Stern issue any information on l’affaire Donaghy?
Yes, Congress has forced baseball to be transparent and that has value. But remember that it is Selig and Don Fehr, who have to sit before Congress and listen to the often self-serving and occasionally nauseating blather from people who know nothing of the subject, but who love the bright lights. It is Selig who takes the hits.
Some words from the Oakland Tribune jumped off the page: "During Selig’s 15-plus years on the job…MLB has...accepting, if not embracing, rampant use of performance-enhancing steroids.” Now this is one man’s opinion, albeit remarkably uninformed and irresponsible. I say that because I worked for the Giants and closely with Barry Bonds -- a player at the heart of BALCO during the early years in question -- and I know of no one who accepted or embraced steroids among management, ownership and staff. There were, however, suspicions and an unwillingness to “turn over the rock.”
I believe baseball was victimized by its own culture -- one not unlike the military in which loyalty trumps all. There is no room in baseball for a whistle-blower. What the sport desperately needed was a Deep Throat. Oh, by the way, who made Deep Throat? Two reporters Woodward and Bernstein. So when I read a columnist trashing Selig, calling him the “Steroids Commissioner,” I want to ask if that writer ever tried to investigate the use of performance-enhancing drugs in baseball. I was in the game as a broadcaster and did nothing. Did this writer snoop, ask questions, or try to follow in the lead of a Woodward or Bernstein? Or is it just too comfortable to sit back and blast away after the fact?
So baseball owners see attendance skyrocketing and revenues soaring. They see the greatest sports investment of our time, MLB.com, turn $30 million in seed money into $5 billion. They know the business of the game has never been better and that is what the commissioner is supposed to safeguard.
Some still cling to the antiquated notion of Judge Landis. And again I ask, find me one comparable figure in any sport? Stern, Goodell and the NHL's Gary Bettman all negotiate on behalf of the owners in collective bargaining. They are hired by, paid by, and expected to perform for the owners. Baseball is no different. And although Selig must take the lead in handling the aftermath of BALCO, safeguarding the sport as best as possible against a recurrence and protecting the image of the game, he is accountable to the owners for the health of the business. And that has never been better.
