Philadelphia Baseball History

I was on Facebook pursuing a group dedicated to baseball when I saw someone had posted a picture of Mark McGwire as a Cardinal. Immediately under the photo, someone posted a comment that said, “cheater pants.”  I posted that I thought McGwire and Sammy Sosa didn’t get a fair shake. My reasoning is that there was a lot of blame to go around for the steroid era, which included the fans. It was amazing to me how many people responded by denying history and hurling insults at me for daring to defend a cheater. But I stand by what I said. A lot of people were complicit in the steroid era, including the fans.  Let’s go back in time to set the context. The baseball strike of 1994 was catastrophic. Not only did we lose months of baseball, but the Commissioner also cancelled the World Series. Once the strike was settled and the players returned, the fans did not. Baseball, losing popularity, was in a crisis.  Then, something amazing happened. Baseballs were leaving...

Joe Morgan set the baseball world ablaze this week when he emailed BBWAA voters a letter stating that known steroid users do not belong in the Hall of Fame.  Morgan argued that PED users cheated to post big numbers, and in the process made the numbers of players who were clean look small by comparison. Morgan claimed that his opinion represented his only his own thoughts.  But the fact that he signed it as the Vice Chairman of the Hall of Fame, used a Hall of Fame email address, and sent it to an email list only the Hall had led many to believe that Morgan was speaking on behalf of the Hall itself.  Sportswriters also argued that Morgan's letter represented an attempt to counter the rising support Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens have enjoyed, both having received over 50% of the vote last year. Morgan's letter erupted a firestorm of debate.  Some, like Intentional Talk host Chris Rose, criticized Morgan's letter as sanctimonious.  Others wholeheartedly agree...