Use of PEDs may mean Hall of Fame isn't the given once thought for Alex Rodriguez.
View full sizeAlex Rodriguez goes after home run No. 600 tonight -- which happens to be his 35th birthday -- at Progressive Field. Normally, 600 homers would make him shoe-in for the Hall of Fame. But his admitted use of performance-enhancing drugs may cast a pall on that.Nineteenth century baseball truly was a gentleman's game. Check out an Akron Black Stockings game at Stan Hywet Hall some time this summer. Pitchers asked batters where they wanted the ball. Cursing was very nearly a mortal sin. Umpires and players alike addressed each other as "Sir." The idea of kicking dirt on an umpire was so ridiculous as to be laughable. Earrings were allowed only if the player so adorned was a pirate (and not a Pittsburgh one, but one who yo-ho-ho'd with a bottle of rum).
From there, we've "evolved" to a culture where it's big news when a day goes by when a manager ISN'T kicked out of some game on the schedule, where performance-enhancing drugs are so prevalent that the league has to institute a policy against them ... and test for them.
The last issue raises several questions. Yankees star Alex Rodriguez is in town for a four-game series that opens tonight, and he's chasing his 600th home run. He's also admitted using PEDs during his Texas Rangers days. Rose's gambling has kept him out of the Hall of Fame. Shoeless Joe has been banned from the Hall. Should A-Rod be similarly removed from consideration?