I don’t know. Call me a cynic. It just seems as though every time something new comes along to feel good about there’s an unforeseeable scandal looking to cast a shadow on our “Hip-Hip Hooray Parade”.
Take Rick “HGH” Ankiel for example. Like Roy Hobbs out of the movie script The Natural, Ankiel emerged from obscurity to capture the hearts of baseball fans across America. In true Hollywood fashion, Rick returned from our distant Wild-Thing memories to slug homeruns at an astonishing rate and catapult his team back into pennant contention. Unfortunately we’ve now learned that he’s a “cheater”. That is if you consider a cheater to be a person who "broke" the rules prior to their existence (Ankiel is reputed to have received prescriptions for HGH in 2004 to recover fromsurgery). HGH was not banned in MLB until 2005.
So what? Last I checked this is 2007. Let the man have his moment of glory and inspire our imaginations. Has our self-righteous society deteriorated so far that we are at the point where we would rather tear down an athletic nobody to uphold our pious standards of nothingness. Most people are overly competitive to a fault. Almost anyone of us would stoop to uncommon levels to gain a competitive edge that would allow us more notoriety, prestige and material assets. Why is it that when athletes do the same so many are quick to discredit their abilities?
As much as we like feel-good stories they always come with a “standard”. These tales must remain “pure” because otherwise they lose all relevance and integrity. It’s almost as though us commoners believe we were capable enough and could have accomplished these achievements ourselves under different circumstances (Yeah, like we basically didn’t sucktoo much to become professional athletes). I could use HGH for a decade, possess biceps like Hulk Hogan and yet still hit 4 homeruns a year in A-Ball if I was lucky.
Inherently, for unknown reasons, athletics turn us into a bunch of blabbering hypocrites. I guess the more things change the more they stay the same.
Peyton Manning couldn’t win the “Big One” but once he did we were forced into watching two-dozen of his commercials on “Thursday Night Football” to open the NFL regular season. Now he is arguably the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) and the Indianapolis Colts are a shoe-in to repeat.
Alex Rodriguez was reduced to water-cooler insults for his unprecedented failures in the clutch, yet he is once again the “most talented” player in MLB. His former detractors now claim that the Yankees should pay him 30+ million dollars a year or risk losing him to the dreaded Boston Red Sox.
Speaking of A-Rod, American tennis player Andy Roddick still can’t beat Roger Federer and is therefore a no talent bum. Why bother mentioning that Federer just may be the most dominant tennis star that any of us has ever seen?
Anyone checked the “Dream Team” lately at the FIBA Americas basketball tournament. I guess James Naismith’s game hasn’t passed America by. The word on the street is that the current Team USA just might be the “best” version ever.
Michael Vick (and yes he’s shady) has become Public Enemy #1. Who cares that people have been threatening to “sic” their dogs on those they do not like (and their pets too) since canines became domesticated centuries ago? And for the record I do not endorse dog fighting or abusing animals but did most Americans really not know that this happens?
Speaking of surprises how about NBA referee Tim Donaghy and point shaving? Haven’t we truly always known this went on? I think commissioner David Stern certainly has. The outrage…YAWN!!! Just ask homophobe and former Miami Heat player Tim Hardaway about #### “Knick” Bavetta.
Heaven forbid if the Yankees should happen to win the World Series this year. Then everybody and their mother would claim that they “saw it coming all along”.
While we’re at it what if the J-E-T-S beat the New England Patriots to open the season? Will Eric Mangini really earn genius status… or will the Patsies simply have an old group of linebackers, truly miss the often injured defensive endRichard Seymour, rue the day that Rodney Harrison failed the drug test that nobody this side of MLB seems to care about, blame it on Randy Moss’ hamstring, claim that Asante Samuel isn’t in game shape or fail to mention that Tom “Wedlock” Brady has a sore throwing shoulder from swinging so many hot chicks? God I sure hope so.
Yes it’s root-root-root for the home team and as long as they win it’s the same…or it’s one…two…three strikes your out at the public opinion game.
Can’t they all just play ball? Oh yeah wait…that’s already the case. That is what they do. We’re the ones getting our panties in a bunch.
I got a game to watch and so do you. Just do it…Nike style…or doggie style…whatever you prefer…cause it’s all good until we say it isn’t.
I just love the spins you put on your posts. Remembering your voice from the Franks show keeps it all in perspective, easy to understand. Geat post !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks Dusty and it's good to be back. I think it's good to take a break and rejuvenate sometimes. I'd been feeling pretty "stale". Hopefully football and playoff baseball cures that.
Hey Marty. Glad the intent of the post was not lost on you. Hopefully you could imagine the sarcasm oozing from my voice as you read the blog. Thanks for the kind words.
husker---Ankiel definitely looks stronger than he was in his pitching days and I use the word "pitching" loosely. I remember him more so for launching dozens of UFOs into orbit. He probably can throw them even higher into space now with his new strength.
I still think his story is great and hope he hits lots more. Human growth hormones---protein shakes---amino acids---it's all good to me.
socrates---I'm sorry I missed out on the contest and thanks for keeping me in mind. I would have loved to have been a participant.
After I got back from vacation I had to begin preparing to go back to work. We also had a lot of visitors from both sides of the family stay with us. Blogging time and motivation were low but it felt good to write something again.
I'll stop by the site and try to vote. I'll see if I can avoid partisan politics by not immediately going for Broblog and the Yankees.
New York is finishing strong. You don't want anything to do with them in the playoffs if we get the chance.
Well when I played American Legion ball at 17 I wore a 7 1/8th size hat. Today I prefer a 7 1/2. And I took some steroids back when, well never mind when or why, just know I took a few. And I still couldn't hit the curve ball from the right side under the lights. I want my money back.
Husker denies it but he took estrogen and still had bad legs in a mini nor could he get around on the fast ball still.
Last edited by OneLastOutlaw on September 8th at 7:18 PM.
Outlaw, I believe the MD who prescribed the estrogen was YOUR MOTHER. Then again, I did pick it up in a Mexico Walmart @ half off.
As for the pics above. Brady ran off with the wrong girl.
How about that Hawaii NOT covering the 28 point spread and winning the game in OT. I said I wouldn't take Hawaii in someone's blog.
G'night. Tomorrow is NFL and FEDEX Cup...really.
And now for a Rocky Patel toro.
Josh Q---Bite my behind buddy. The lead is 5 which makes it really 2 games since the #### are due for another sweep at the hands of the Yanks. Then we make up the difference in the last 15-20 games and voila.
And of course a tie would go to the Yankees just like it did back in 2005.
Don't tell me this hasn't entered your mind either. That would be like me saying the Yankees giving up the wild card lead to the Tigers hasn't entered mine.
Dusty---I took Hydroxycut before to get ready for the beach. It kind of worked. That's performance enhancing too or is it just physique enhancing?
The more stuff I hear about the more I just don't care. Let them take whatever they want. If they want to slurp elephant balls shakes followed by rhino horn pills to get an edge so what.
husker---I agree. Tommy Boy should have held on to Moynahan. Gisele is OK but I really don't get why some claim she is the "best". Her features are a bit too sharp for me. Her nose, chin, cheekbones eyc... seem rather pointy but who's being picky?
I hope the service at those Mexican Wal-marts are better than the ones in upstate NY. Got like 4 cashiers for 5 million customers. I steer clear of that place at all costs and head for the Bullseye of Target.
I agree totally Rivjo. They do everything else under the name "sports medicine". Like I said on another blog, those on the top 10 home run list other than bonds are not going to pass either Aaron, Ruth or Mays and since out of all the juicers there are and have been, the only player around who is projected to do so is Arod and there is no credible suggestion he's ever juiced it would appear that juicing is far more believed to help than actual help.
Last edited by OneLastOutlaw on September 10th at 3:32 AM.
did you guys see on TV the show about the Mexican pharmecuticals? The claim now is that the Amerian pharmecutical companies are dumping expired stuff into Mexico and in many cases just using casing of actual medicine and just placebo "nothing" inside.
Now there's a quandry. Would American drug companies actually do that? You bet they would. On the other hand, would they start the rumor that they do that just to stop Americans from buying in Mexico? You bet they would.
rivjo
Another falsehood that's been laid to rest. The Jets beating New Englans was as likely to happen. As likely it might've been that Paris Hilton would've been accepted to Harvard to do post graduate studies in Political Science. And as usual the Jets' fans were as appreciative as ever by the contributions of Chad Pennington by booing him off the field once he got injured. Things are so bad for Chad that he couldn't find love in a bathroom filled with homosexuals.
Nice job here Joe. It's true, as soon as the Yankees win the pennant, everyone will come out of the wooodwork...except me! because the Yankees won't get by the Angels. (sticks tongue out) Welcome back to the blogosphere, your voice of reason was sorely missed.
Agreed, it seems like you can't enjoy a story in sports for ten seconds before someone wants to tell you how wrong it is to enjoy any of it. Of course, the exceptions tend to be those stories that have been hand-picked for our enjoyment and tend to be so overdone that you get sick of hearing about them rather than taking any enjoyment from them.
Perhaps, the best way to deal with it is to go with your own take on all of them. That is, if you enjoy a certain story, enjoy it and don't let anyone take that away from you.
After all, sports is supposed to be fun. So have fun with it.
rivjo
Why is that no one as such is su####ious of Ankiel's motives ? Especially as the prescriptive substances came via a pharmacy that's affiliated to one here that's under investigation by the Feds. It's all too convenient with regard to his explanation. Any #### can obtain a prescription, it's the circumstances under which they're obtained that matters.
Dusty---That is one interesting story about the Mexican pharmaceuticals. I hadn't heard about it. Quite honestly I wouldn't know what to believe. The medical industry in America is one of the most scandalous places I can think of and has too many gov't connections. I don't like how we politic health care and turn it into a big business here in the states.
As for athletes, I do not want to here anymore outdated stories about past users in the media. Just tell me about new violators and move on.
sportthink---I tend to believe that you and I would see eye to eye on a lot of things. Whereas I bet we both agree on holding people to accountability... we still refuse to stand for hipocrisy and double standards.
I'd love to get on a show with you and discuss some ethical topic of substance. Those are the stories that interest me the most.
tophat---That Jets-Pats game is one that will NEVER be erased from memory...as much as BOTH sets of fans now wish it could.
Bill Belichick has no class and I have always known it. Now the rest of the country realizes it too. He is a disgrace to the sport, quality head coach or not.
As for Ankiel, to be honest his comeback story interests me more than his HGH past. Personally I'm not sold that in some way it does not violate our rights of freedom of choice to put whatever the heck we want in our own bodies. It's not my job to protect people from themselves. If an athlete wants to play some great seasons at the risk of blowing out major ligaments and tendons then so be it.
Nooch---well said. Sports are supposed to be FUN and this has been such a negative period for so long now. Take this current scandal with the Patriots and that dirty #### Belichick.
I hope this becomes a major distraction and the team suffers for it as a result. The arrogance that has long been coming from that franchise is long overdue for a reality check.
I'm a special ed teacher by trade. Funny, I spend my day wanting to say shut-up to people and then do the same here. Just can't seem to. That would be rude and most uncivilized.
I like to write and never met a thought I couldn't continue. My blogs, like this bio, tend to be far too long. I can admit it. If you make it to the end of one of my "essays" there's usually a message that could have been written in half the time by a better writer than me.
Did I mention I was a finalist in NGS II? No really I was, further proving that theyll let anyone in this place. I came in 10th, which is better than 16th I guess. Other than winning the 4th grade graduation writing award it was the biggest literary accomplishmen t of my life. I still haven't gotten used to being famous.
true Hollywood fashion, Rick returned from our distant Wild-Thing memories to slug homeruns at an astonishing rate and catapult his team back into pennant contention. Unfortunately we’ve now learned that he’s a “cheater”. That is if you consider a cheater to be a person who "broke" the rules prior to their existence (Ankiel is reputed to have received prescriptions for HGH in 2004 to recover from surgery). HGH was not banned in MLB until 2005. 
anyone of us would stoop to uncommon levels to gain a competitive edge that would allow us more notoriety, prestige and material assets. Why is it that when athletes do the same so many are quick to discredit their abilities? 
the clutch, yet he is once again the “most talented” player in MLB. His former detractors now claim that the Yankees should pay him 30+ million dollars a year or risk losing him to the dreaded Boston Red Sox. 
pets too) since canines became domesticated centuries ago? And for the record I do not endorse dog fighting or abusing animals but did most Americans really not know that this happens? 
Seymour, rue the day that Rodney Harrison failed the drug test that nobody this side of MLB seems to care about, blame it on Randy Moss’ hamstring, claim that Asante Samuel isn’t in game shape or fail to mention that Tom “Wedlock” Brady has a sore throwing shoulder from swinging so many hot chicks? God I sure hope so. 
Can’t they all just play ball? Oh yeah wait…that’s already the case. That is what they do. We’re the ones getting our panties in a bunch. 
