Reid Fischer's World of Rants

Is it me, or there something wrong with the picture of Congress getting involved in steroids and more specifically the investigation of Roger Clemens?  Now, I certainly want to see baseball, and in fact all sports, be played on a even field as much as possible.  There is no doubt that steroid use was at least common if not rampant during the mid-90s and early 2000s in baseball, and there are a number of players who used and will not get caught.  That is a reality of the situation.  I would like to think that efforts have been made in recent years to clean up the game, and to make sure that no one is gaining an unfair advantage.  Particularly in the cases of Bonds and Clemens, it would be unfortuante if records were set while utilizing the advantage of steroids That being said, does it really matter at this point if Barry Bonds or Roger Clemens used steroids a decade ago?  What I’m most concerned with is whether the game is clean now.  It is fair to say that Congress’ involvement in this issue, at least to some degree, has helped MLB clean up its steroid policy.  But really, shouldn’t Congress have better things to worry about?  I couldn’t help but notice while watching some of the hearing involving Clemens that many of the politicans asking questions seemed to be playing to the camera as much as or more than Clemens and Brian McNamee.  Now I realize that one of the biggest reasons for Congress to get involved in this issue is MLB’s antitrust exemption, and they would certainly have an ability to revisit that issue.  I just think Congress should have better things to worry about than MLB and steroids; it’s not like the rest of the problems are solved and there aren’t things where Congress might be better served to spend their time.  It is unfortunate that MLB and the players union couldn’t police themselves, forcing Congress to step in. 

 As as side note, it will be interesting to see how Clemens, as well as Bonds, are affected when their time comes for Hall of Fame consideration.  We’ve already seen the issue adversely affect Mark McGwire, who was thought to be a shoo-in prior to not exactly giving himself a ringing endorsement at a Congressional hearing several years ago.  McGwire has only garnered 25 percent of the vote each of the first two years he’s been eligible.  It will be interesting to see if Bonds and Clemens, or anyone else who may be clouded by this issue, gets the same treatment.  I’m not sure if I believe Clemens or not, just as I’m not sure if anything will ever be proven against Bonds.  The point is that the issue will certainly continue to cloud these players and others. 

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As for some leftover thoughts on the Super Bowl, I think that game really reminded me why I love sports so much.  It’s not just because the underdog won the game, or because it was competitive or even because the Patriots got what many (including me) thought they probably deserved, which was to not be the first team in history to go 19-0.  It’s because of guys like David Tyree.  The Giants receiver had all of FOUR catches during the regular season for a total of 35 yards.  In the regular season meeting between the Giants and Patriots, he caught two passes for three yards.  He did not tally a catch and barely played in the Giants’ playoff wins against Tampa Bay and Dallas.  He caught one pass for four yards in the NFC Championship game against the Packers in the freezing cold at Lambeau.  He had a disastrous practice the Friday before the Super Bowl, with reports of no fewer than six dropped balls.  Yet in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl, against a New England team that was on the verge of history, Tyree came up with not only a touchdown catch that put the Giants up 10-7, but also came up with what might ultimately go down as the greatest catch in NFL history, holding the ball against his helmet while Rodney Harrison was viciously trying to rip the ball away.  Not to mention the fact that on the same play Eli Manning escaped from what seemed like three sacks on the play.  Sports is all about guys like Tyree, who can shine under the lights when the pressure is on. 

Tyree’s performance and confidence was a reflection of the team’s attitude heading into the game.  Everyone got all over Plaxico Burress when he predicted his Giants would win 23-17 (which incidentally was much closer than my final score of 34-31, although I was one of the few who actually picked the Giants to win).  It turns out Burress was too generous.  The Giants’ pass rush really has to be commended, as it was clearly the difference in the game.  The Giants were able to do what many teams could not, which was put pressure on Tom Brady.  As the game wore on it became easier and easier to feel that the Giants might actually pull it off.  Even when the Patriots took a 14-10 lead with 2:45 to play, the Giants still showed confidence in their body language.  The poise they showed on that final drive, trailing an undefeated team, in the biggest game of any of their lives, reminded me of why sports is so great.  It makes me want to fast forward to early September so we can get the next football season underway.  Thankfully, there is the NCAA tournament and baseball season between now and then.  But the next time someone tries to tell me that sports is not a worthwhile endeavor, I will simply pop in a tape of the 4th quarter of the Giants-Patriots Super Bowl, to show them that every game is truly unique and you can never ever be totally sure of what we’re going see when a game is played.