In my opinion, baseball has always rewarded cheaters. Whether it's stealing signs, corking bats, throwing the spitter, the phantom tag at 2nd, emery boards, sandpaper, leaving a tiny bit early from 3rd on a sac fly, framing the pitch, whatever. If it gets you an advantage, and you can get away with it, do it.
So, when all these holier than thou types talk about players like Bonds and Clemens and how they shouldn't be in the Hall of Fame, I have to shake my head. If steroids had been around 80 years ago, players would have used them. It's not like there's never been drug use in baseball before steroids. Bennies, booze, marijuana, LSD even. As far as I'm concerned, if a player is doing it to try and perform better, let them ruin their health.
Face it, players used steroids to try and get better, and by getting better they could make more money. And money is what it all comes down to. That's why the owners turned a blind eye, that's why the league turned a blind eye, and that's why it would be a complete joke to keep players out of the HOF that belong there based on the stats they put up.
Which brings us to Pete Rose. Yeah, let's go there. Pete Rose was banned from baseball for gambling on baseball. He denied that for years and years. He flat out lied, and claimed he didn't bet on baseball. And then he admitted that he had in fact bet on baseball, but that he'd never bet on his own team. Sorry Pete, but after years of lies, no one can believe you.
Pete Rose bet on baseball, and lied about it. He cheated on his taxes, and did time for it. He does not belong in the HOF.
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