rob petrie

x-no-archive: yes

...MLB's new steroid testing suspension penalties for 1, 2, 3, and 4
failing tests, respectively, and without any pay for those guilty players.
The number of drugs tested on them includes human growth hormones, andro,
THG, etc., the tests are fully random with nobody spared even after tested
previously, and they will be tested off-season no matter where in the world
they live.
As Frank Cusumano (KSDK-tv reporter, St. Louis) so aptly and wonderfully
put it: "The innocents are tired of being lumped in with the Jason Giambi's
and Barry Bonds'..."
As Brian Williams (NBC) just reported, "dark humor is now circulating
among baseball fans to see which players show up with lost weight."
I know of one already (Giambi), and I'm sure a couple of other
high-profile players will also show up looking as if they went on a sudden,
starvation diet.


http://www.ksdk.com/sports/sports_article.aspx?storyid=73238
"...Tony Clark, another senior union leader, said public questions
about steroid use had caused players to think about a tougher
agreement.

"The integrity of our game was beginning to come under fire,
and there are too many great players, past and present, that
deserve to be celebrated for their ability to play this game at a
very high level," the free-agent first baseman said in an e-mail
to the AP. "If a stricter drug policy brings that level of
appreciation back, we felt that it was worth pursuing."

john poutre

It's a very big step. Is it perfect? Probably not but I think it's a good
thing. I would have liked to see bigger punishments, first time, 40 games,
2nd time, 1 season, 3rd that's it, out of baseball.

But it's much better than they have now.

randy heaton

Question: What will the reaction be if Barry Bonds comes back in 2005 and
has another 40 home run, 200 walk, .350 ba, 1.300+ OPS season?

Similar Question: What if he has a 1.100 OPS season?

rob petrie

x-no-archive: yes


Depends on how much he weighs. Age should also be catching up to him
after 40, so I don't expect him to do anything like those numbers
again--without his special drug help.
As for 200+ Walks, if the pitchers choose to IW him another 120 times
(as he was that number in 2004) what good does that do to help his team when
the Giants have no back up hitters behind him?
What if the pitchers walk him EVERY TIME HE GETS AT-BAT so he walks 617
times (his exact number of plate appearances in 2004)?
What good does *that* do for the Giants offense by taking the bat out
of his hands, so he has 0 hits, 0 Doubles, 0 Triples, 0 HRs, less than 10
RBIs (incl. walking him when bases may be loaded)?
120 IWs (112 earned Walks of 232 total) doesn't show how good Bonds is
in the slightest, it only shows the opposing defense strategy and how weak
the Giants are offensively as a team.

tom k

If you intentionally walk Barry Bonds every time he comes to the plate
during the season, you are likely to lose against the Giants more often
then you are going to beat them. As great as Bonds is, the
intentional walk strategy used against him is not always a good
strategy...actually, I would bet the majority of the time that teams do
it, they are doing themselves a disservice. Allowing a guy to get on
base 70 percent of the time is just never a good thing.

rob petrie

x-no-archive: yes

But the point is, the Giants offense is so inept, Bonds is the only
legitimate threat in the whole freakin' lineup!
You couldn't do that with a Mickey Mantle or Willie Mays 'cause they had
other big boppers after them in the lineup.
But you could get away with it with a weak lineup and only one good
hitter to have to pitch around.

randy heaton

And yet, the Giants had the best offense adjusted for 3 year park effects in
the NL.

david malbuff

the


I must have missed something. Did Bonds test positive for steroids? Or is
this
just more "He admitted it!" innuendo?


617


Bonds with a 1.000 OBP? Giants would lead the league in runs scored and
probably
win the pennant .

Hey, they were, what, third in the league in runs scored when he had "only"
a .600 OBP.

Even when he hits .360, Bonds still makes an out 64% of the time he puts the
ball in
play.

The intentional walks help the Giants offense.


is

"Earned walks" is a fantasy, not a statistic. Every base is earned. That's
why errors
don't count as hits.

It would be great if opponents walked Bonds every time he came up. But they
ain't that
stupid.

David M

todd hawley

There's no way under an agreement like this that a third time offender
would be thrown out of baseball. Look at Steve Howe, Daryl Strawberry,
and a few others whose names don't come to mind. Repeatedly they
failed drug tests and they somehow kept finding their way back in to
organized baseball.

-th

a jaunty one

Shouldn't his 2004 season have already established what you're trying to
imply?