Sosa and the Hall of Fame

Just as everyone else is the sports world is talking about it already, I feel I must too.

Ryne Sandberg, Hall of Fame Class of 2005, said that he does not believe that Sammy Sosa should not be voted in to the Hall of Fame.

I am going to have to disagree with him for numerous reasons.  

First, Sammy Sosa was using a performance enhancing drug, that during most of career, that was not tested for.  The owners and GM's of baseball pretty much allowed players to use them as long as they kept putting butts in the seats and ticket prices on the rise.  It became more evident after the 1994 player's strike.  The owners needed to bring fans back to the stadiums and "letting" the players use was a way to accomplish that.  The home run chase between McGwire and Sosa in 1998 was the pinnacle of the steroid era.  Plus, it allowed some marginal players to become good players and fatten their wallets.  All around it was a win-win situation.

Secondly, the Baseball Writers Association of America has a voting standard for the Hall of Fame:

"Voting shall be based upon the player’s record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team(s) on which the player played."

I find this statement funny as most of the early part of baseball was played by only white men.  Where's the integrity in that?  What about sportsmanship?  It has come out, mainly through word of mouth, that there were some much better players in the Negro Leagues than in the Major Leagues of that era.  Josh Gibson, Cool Papa Bell, Buck O'Neil, and Rube Foster just to name a few.  So how can the BBWAA, in good conscience, vote in players such as Ty Cobb who were known to be racists?  Granted he was the greatest hitter of his time, but based on the criteria they set up for themselves shouldn't Cobb NOT be in the Hall?

So what's the difference between Cobb and Sosa?  A lot really.  But what it comes down to is a different form of cheating.  Cobb cheated by playing against only white men, when it was obvious there was some superior talent not allowed in the Majors.  He never challenged himself to see if he was as good as them.  

Sosa cheated by using a drug to help himself to gain money and fame.  Which is of course, I do not condone at all.  Especially in an age where kids idolize and mimic most things they see on TV.  

Finally, why is it up to the BBWAA to determine if a known steroid user should get elected?  Why not have the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown determine what should be done?  It is after all their museum.  They should be the ones making the final determination.  It has come to light that there was a dead ball era and live ball era.  Both of which are accepted by Major League Baseball.  Why not add another era called the Steroid Era?  Or if that's to harsh the PED Era.  Everyone knows that it has gone past just Steroids at this point.  

The writers need to take a look at themselves first before saying that McGwire, Sosa, Palmeiro, Bonds and in about 15 years Alex Rodriguez & Manny Ramirez should not be elected into the Hall of Fame.  They have elected racists, bigots and cheaters already.  So what is a few more?  All it takes is a little note saying they played in an era when performance enhancing drugs were widely used by players.  

The Steroid Era is part of baseball just as the Live & Dead ball Era's were.  Elect Sosa and others to the Hall of Fame and move on with it.