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And now, the Mitchell Report card

Ken Davidoff

December 16, 2007

At least the Mitchell Report is behind us now, even if illegal performance-enhancing drugs aren't. So let's see what this highly publicized investigation begat.

Winners

1. Bud Selig. Ultimately, he was right. We were better off having this endeavor, however flawed, than nothing at all. The commissioner did nothing so many times before and deservedly received flak for it.

Selig played this nearly perfectly. Before the report's release, word leaked out that baseball took just as big a beating from Mitchell as did the Players Association. That perception turned into reality - even though, if you actually read the report, Selig is barely mentioned and the union repeatedly gets hammered.

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2. Jose Canseco. If Mr. Impeccable, George Mitchell, credits you with getting the ball rolling on an improved drug-testing plan, then there can be no higher honor, right? Canseco added to his lovable clown persona by trying to get into the Mitchell news conference; Major League Baseball officials turned him away.

3. Barry Bonds. He benefits every time more names come out, as it further neutralizes the finger-wagging moralists among us. The report features interesting testimony from Giants owner Peter Magowan, who said Bonds gave him the same "I didn't know they were steroids" line that the home run king told the BALCO grand jury. Hey, the more people who can corroborate Bonds' state of mind, the better for him.

4. The many who got away. You all realize, I hope, that Mitchell got only those who chose to purchase from former Mets clubhouse attendant Kirk Radomski. Who knows how many other Radomski clones are out there?

Losers

1. Roger Clemens. Just don't see how he'll ever dismiss the testimony of Brian McNamee, his longtime personal trainer, whom the government compelled to flip on the seven-time Cy Young Award winner. The biggest curiosity is how much, if at all, this will impact Clemens' outgoing personality. I can't envision him becoming a recluse like Mark McGwire or Rafael Palmeiro.

2. Players Association. They were losers from the moment Selig announced this investigation. While Mitchell forgave the union for its refusal to cooperate, he nailed the PA's head honchos good in the report for myriad transgressions. And in next month's congressional hearing, you can rest assured that Mitchell and Selig will be hailed as morally upright geniuses and Don Fehr will be torn up and down for daring to mention civil rights.

3. Mitchell. Sorry, but the notion of his perfection cannot be accepted here. The burden of proof clearly was not very high to make the report; witness Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts getting taken down because former teammate Larry Bigbie said Roberts had told him of using steroids "once or twice" in 2003. And whenever the topic of Mitchell's myriad conflicts arose, he screamed "Northern Ireland!" as if his past work should make him bulletproof in this investigation. The bottom line is, now that he has completed his investigation, Mitchell is returning to his cushy, paid job with the Red Sox. And that's not right.

4. Tony La Russa. Remember when he got all high and mighty when Canseco released his book, "Juiced"? The Cardinals' manager told "60 Minutes" that he knew Canseco took steroids when they were together with the Athletics. But La Russa told Mitchell's staff that he "exaggerated" in that interview because he felt Canseco was trying to damage Mark McGwire. That's a big hit to La Russa's credibility.

Always a struggle

We've got to get over this obsession with testing for human growth hormone. When a reliable test is ready, it'll be ready - and if it's a blood test, you can be sure that Congress will push the Players Association to sign off on it.

Gary Green, a doctor at UCLA and consultant for MLB, put it succinctly: "Drugs in sports have been going on for hundreds if not thousands of years ... In the past, we were talking about steroids. Now we're talking about human growth hormone. In the future, it might be genetic doping."

So even when the HGH test comes, that won't be the end game. It's never going to end. Sorry.

Actual baseball thoughts

At this point, if other teams' offers don't improve, the Twins should keep Johan Santana. Yes, they lost Torii Hunter, but their acquisitions of Delmon Young, Craig Monroe, Adam Everett and Mike Lamb should make them more competitive, when you factor in the return of second ace Francisco Liriano.

Having jettisoned Dan Haren, the A's can't seriously go after Bonds, can they? You can pretty much concede the AL West title to the Angels right now.

Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long said he already has been to Alex Rodriguez's Miami home once this offseason to work with A-Rod. He plans a return trip shortly.