Full disclosure: I'm not suggesting we sanctify the guy. He admitted to doing something he shouldn't have done to begin with, and only after being caught.But before him, the only ones to come clean - of their own volition I might add - were Ken Caminiti, the first and most benevolent instance as it was part of his overall cautionary warning regarding substance abuse, and Canseco, who was motivated out of the perfect combination of spite, bankruptcy (hence the book deals) and boredom at not being the center of attention.
If MLB was truly concerned with preserving the integrity of the game, they would have enacted and enforced this policy immediately after banning PEDs in 1991. Because of the '94 strike, however, they couldn't afford to be idealistic, so they turned a blind eye while players got huge and smashed home runs. It paid off: attendance, ratings and merchandise revenue soared, and within five years (by the time of the McGuire/Sosa HR chase) the sport had fully-recovered.
Only after being pressured by Congress did MLB begin random testing/penalizing. The banned substances list is still a joke: it doesn't even include testing for HGH or some of the more exotic PEDs, and the 'penalties' were initially even more farcical. Meanwhile you had MLBPA (the players association) COO Gene Orza tipping off players as to when testing would occur, overinflating/overreporting false positives to reduce the number of failed tests, etc.
Even when players have been caught red-handed, they refused to admit it outright: McGuire, fighting through tears before a Congressional committee, didn't want to 'talk about the past', and although Giambi was 'sorry' for the 'distraction' he caused, he refused to go into specifics.
Then of course, you have Bonds and Clemens.
Compared to the overall ongoing hypocrisy demonstrated by the entire sport of baseball with regard to this steroid scandal, A-Rod's admission stands out as a responsible, if not commendable, act.
That being said, the rest of that Peter Gammons interview was pathetic, and if its any indication, MLB is in for an long, embarrassing inquisition.
Its amazing that the WWE can maintain a wellness program that randomly tests performers for a very large list of banned substances, suspend violators, and curtail the abuse amidst an industry that was practically grown on steriods, and yet professional sports (MLB, NBA, NHL, NFL) still stumble over the matter blindly and with such poor organization. I say let Vince McMahon control all major sporting outfits and police them as he deems fit.
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