NewsHall president 'saddened' by Manny news
Vows Cooperstown won't shy away from controversy
By Mark Newman / MLB.com
05/08/09 3:53 PM ET
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. -- Hall of Fame President Jeff Idelson said during 2009 Inductee Rickey Henderson's orientation visit here Friday that Manny Ramirez's suspension news "moves us one step closer" to purging the game of performance-enhancing drugs -- and that no matter who is inducted going forward, the Hall will not "shy away" from telling the story of this era."Personally, it saddens me, because I'm a fan of the game and it creates an unlevel playing field," Idelson said. "But by the same token, every time this happens, it moves us one step closer to having it all removed from the game.
"We're both a Hall of Fame and a museum. You can't tell the story of baseball without the players today who are under the cloud of steroids. As an educational institution, it's our job to tell the story. We have a responsibility first and foremost to document the game however it is unfolding. You can't tell history without it. "
The issue has engulfed the careers of several players now who are either qualified or even over-qualified to be enshrined going by past years' criteria. The names are familiar: Barry Bonds. Mark McGwire. Rafael Palmeiro. Roger Clemens. Now perhaps Manny Ramirez, although that is too soon to judge. Baseball writers who vote for the Hall already have made their consensus feelings known through voting, with McGwire's first three futile efforts on the ballot as the obvious evidence.
Who's going to be in the Hall of Fame going forward? Is this just a blip over the course of time? These are the kinds of questions people ask when they come here now.
When asked if the Hall might create an exhibit specifically geared to the issue of PEDs, Idelson said, "You need the benefit of time. I wouldn't put a timetable on it. It's not a subject we shy away from."
As Henderson walked through his tour of the exhibits, he passed a sign that does at least broach the subject for now. If you want to know the Hall's official position on PEDs, then this is it, right there for everyone to see. It reads as follows:
Performance-Enhancing Drugs
"Over time, there has been mounting evidence that steroids, amphetamines, and other performance-enhancing drugs have affected various aspects of the game, including many cherished records and milestones. In this museum you will find artifacts, images and descriptions of players and their achievements on the field, without reference to suspicions of their using these substances.
"The story of the impact these drugs have had on baseball is still evolving and will become better understood with the perspective of time.
"This museum is committed to documented, presenting and interpreting baseball history, honestly and impartially, allowing you to make your own value judgments."
Fans do that a lot here. One value judgment they made with loud volume was by overtaking Cooperstown in record numbers two summers ago to watch Cal Ripken Jr. and Tony Gwynn be inducted. At that time, many fans interviewed were highly negative in their views of any players either proven or alleged to have used PEDs.
Idelson said Hall of Famers themselves "struggle with it a little bit, because it's so foreign to them. It's not something that was available when they played."
Idelson noted that the asterisk-stamped ball Barry Bonds hit to break Hank Aaron's all-time home run record for No. 756 is now in the Giants locker of the present-day room in the museum. When asked if that ball might be in a more prominent spot had it not been for Bonds' alleged steroid use, Idelson said, "Hard to say. It will eventually end up in the records room."
Mark Newman is enterprise editor of MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
