I always liked Greg Gumbel better than his brother Bryant, but Bryant kept it a little too “real” the other day on his show.
After Mark McGwire came out and admitted that he used steroids during the 90′s everyone started taking shots at “Big Mac”. It didn’t get any better when Bryant Gumbel took his “cannon” of a mouth and opened it the other day.
The Accusation
On Gumbel’s show Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel he read an “open letter” to Mark McGwire. The letter basically said “I don’t care that you did it and we’re over it.”
However, he closed the letter with, “In closing, guys, please feel free to share this letter with Bagwell, Nomar, Pudge and all those others who went from hitting homers to power outages overnight…”
Does that sound like an accusation or what? What’s worse is that none of these guys have tested positive for anything.
The Stupidity
Bryant Gumbel used a public forum that the whole world was watching to accuse former baseballers of doing something they have never been proven to have done.
I honestly don’t understand Gumbel’s need to jump into this issue. As far I’m concerned it’s dead. Lots of guys admitted that they did steroids, and that constitutes an “era”.
There’s also an “era” for segregated baseball, spitballs, amphetamines, gambling, you name it. There’s no way we can condemn players because of the “era” they played in.
For example, should I come out and say every baseball player in 1919 was “on the take” just because that’s when the “Black Sox” occurred? I don’t think so.
It seems as though Bryant Gumbel just picked some big name guys, threw their names out there, and expected us to take him at his word. It would be one thing to be suspicious. It’s another to open and close the case yourself.
The Reality
Gumbel mentions Pudge Rodriguez, Nomar Garciaparra, and Jeff Bagwell by name in his “letter”. Let’s get something straight:
Pudge Rodriguez was old and beat up. He went up and down his entire career, and was never fully healthy because he was catching ALL THE TIME.
Nomar Garciaparra was never a “power hitter”. He got hurt at the wrong time, couldn’t fully rehab, and that’s a shame. Nomar was so respected by “baseball people” that the Red Sox gave him a share of their 2004 World Series Crown.
Jeff Bagwell WAS a “power hitter”, but he also hit pretty well for average. Bagwell worked great in tandem with Craig Biggio in Houston. Accusing Bagwell is like accusing the whole Astros organization.
When you get right down to it Gumbel just picked popular names without even having full-knowledge of what they did in their careers. His lack of knowledge about sports is astonishing.
The Outrage
In the original story by Tom Fornelli on MLB Fanhouse Mr. Fornelli asks where the outrage is. It’s right here baby!
I’m not as angry as Michael Douglas in “Falling Down”, but I am a little “honked off” that Bryant Gumbel is accusing people instead of simply asking hard questions. I would have had no problem if he had said, “To all the players who look suspect because you numbers fell off: Address the situation and set the record straight.”
He can say that all day long. Why? Because he’s saying “Tell us you did or didn’t so we can stop wondering.”
Bryant Gumbel has no right to accuse anyone of doing steroids when he has no proof. At best Bryant Gumbel has no journalistic integrity, and if he had any it went out the window the second he read his “open letter”. At least when I have an agenda–like hating on the Chargers–I’m honest about it.
You could shoot back at me and say that I picked on the Saints for tanking games at the end of their season. That would be true, but I never said they did anything that was against the rules.
I simply said they had no class, and asked where the outrage was–the same kind of outrage over the Colts resting players at 14-0. It’s no secret that I have a strong distaste for the Saints. What about Bryant Gumbel and the players on his list?
Here’s a good question. Where’s the honesty, Bryant? Why did you use these PARTICULAR names? What’s the motivation?
I’ll never know because I don’t think Bryant Gumbel is going to come out and admit he’s wrong. The “steroid era” is over. Can we stop the madness already?
