Another (MLB player) bites the dust
First case on the docket comes from baseball. After years of notoriously dragging
their feet while one of their most prominent athlete's head changed sizes, MLB’s
testing program is clearly operational and it doesn’t discriminate. We've seen
a reigning MVP accused of PEDs use eventually escape a suspension by the narrowest technicality. Even washed-up, out-of-shape players like the Oakland A’s Bartolo Colon are
not immune from MLB’s testing dragnet. Two weeks ago, Colon got caught up like Usher and received
a 50-game ban for elevated levels of testosterone.
Now it’s the San Francisco Giants’ Melky Cabrera’s turn on the hot
seat. Cabrera, MVP of the 2012 All-star game, was leading the National League with a .346 batting average before his failed test. Melky’s suspension got our attention because of
his behavior after receiving a 50-game ban. Allegedly (and by
allegedly, I mean this definitely happened), Cabrera and accomplices tried to create a fake website promoting a product that they were going to blame for his
failed drug test. They even went as far as buying a domain name that
was several years old to further disguise the plot. Cabrera’s lack of
accountability is startling, there has to be a career at Fox News waiting for him if he
wants it.
Verdict: Guilty as sin. If it walks like a duck, sounds like a
duck, it’s probably a duck. Melky Cabrera is going through all the motions of
someone that knowingly used PEDs and then tried to conceal his use of these
substances by misleading the public. That behavior is really low, the fan in me
wanted to believe that the 22% leap in career batting average from .284 to .346
in 2012 was the result of a dedicated approach. However, not everyone was
surprised by Cabrera’s failed test. Like McKayla, Yankees GM Brian Cashman was not impressed with his former outfielder’s performance this year. Reflecting on
Melky’s meteoric rise and eventual suspension for PEDs use, Cashman said “As you know, he was starting for us in the World
Series, but we had him as a low-end, everyday guy, not a National League MVP
candidate. So I wasn't surprised [he tested positive for PEDs]”.
The Curious Case of Lance Armstrong
From the “Wait...They can do that?” department, USADA banned Lance
Armstrong from competitive cycling (I think he did that to himself when he retired in 2011) and is attempting to
strip Armstrong of his record 7 Tour de France Titles. Post recovery from
cancer, Armstrong’s ability to defy the odds and win cycling’s premier event has
drawn praise and skepticism from all corners of the globe. Critics maintain that chemotherapy isn't the only
chemical substance Armstrong used to his advantage and routinely raised (unfounded) PEDs
allegations throughout Armstrong’s run of 7 consecutive titles. While it’s important to note that Lance never
failed any of the hundreds of random drug tests doping agencies like USADA and WADA
administered, we need to realize that Barry Bonds can make the same claim
during his MLB career. Granted, Armstrong’s head doesn’t have its own
gravitational orbit or mysteriously grow multiple sizes. But like Bonds, he’s
made a career in a tainted sport so skepticism about transcendent performances
is a fact of life.
Verdict: Innocent until proven guilty (I read that’s an actual
legal term…)
The court of public opinion has rallied intensely behind
Armstrong. Within hours of USADA’s announcement to ban him from cycling and attempt to strip his Tour titles,
donations on Armstrong’s website were up 25 times the daily average. Unlike
Cabrera, Armstrong’s reactions in the wake of doping allegations are
encouraging. Lance talks the talk of an innocent man and isn’t sneaking around creating faux websites. Armstrong’s story (and clean history) never wavered since
he established himself as a public figure and cherished athlete in 1999. Whether you
believe him is entirely up to you. What do you think? Did Armstrong use PEDs?
Take the poll to the right (you have to go to the Onions! site to take the poll)
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