Baseball should clean up its act (12/6/04)

Either major league baseball cleans up its act or someone else will clean it up for them.

And that someone is likely to be Congress.

We’d hate to see that happen. Congress’s track record isn’t anything to brag about. But it’s becoming more and more likely every day.

Confirmations of the use of performance-enhancing drugs by some of the biggest names in the game seem to come weekly, and recent record-setting exploits by power hitters will be under a cloud forever.

Why is Congress likely to get involved?

There are three reasons. The first is the failure of the teams’ owners and baseball commissioner Bud Selig to address the problem. The second is the shameful failure of the players’ union leadership to protect the reputation of its law-abiding members by shielding those who have abused steroids.

The third is that long ago Congress granted baseball an exemption from anti-trust laws, in effect stating that the game is a part of the national heritage and deserves special treatment.

Today, that bit of the national heritage has been besmirched.

Sen. John McCain knows that, and he has put the major leagues on notice.

“To restore the integrity of baseball, Commissioner Selig and Don Fehr must meet immediately — not merely by spring training as the commissioner has promised — and agree to implement a drug-testing policy that is at least as stringent as the one observed by the minor league program,” McCain was quoted by The Associated Press.

In a Washington Post interview, the Arizona Republican added, “I’ll give them until January, and then I’ll introduce legislation.”

Even Bud Selig ought to get the message by now. — J.R.[[In-content Ad]]