Each year, when Hall of Fame voting occurs, controversy surrounds it. We hear debates every year over whether or not players who used Performance Enhancing Drugs should be allowed in the Hall of Fame. We see people make strong cases for both sides of the debate and why or why not these players should be enshrined in Cooperstown.
But as the years go by, we see some of these players who used PEDs garner more votes and get closer and closer to getting the call. Most fans seem to believe that these players should not be considered for the Hall, as they did not play the game clean and had an unfair advantage over others. I happen to agree with that sentiment, and I believe it also applies to the players who were involved in the Astros sign stealing scandal.
Players who cheated the game don’t deserve to be in Cooperstown. Such is the case with Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, who continue to gain traction in Hall of Fame voting, despite their use of PEDs.
It’s undeniable that all of these players, including Bonds and Clemens, were superstars. Their numbers are Hall of Fame numbers. But when you add in the fact that they took steroids and had an unfair competitive advantage, the numbers lose some of their significance. They aren’t always the types of numbers someone would put up without the use of steroids.
But if these players were to get in, then it would be a slap in the face to some of the players that didn’t use PEDs. Take Scott Rolen for example. He may not have put up the numbers that Alex Rodriguez did throughout his career, but for all we know Rolen played the game clean. He never sought a way to try and gain an unfair advantage on other players.
What’s important here is protecting the integrity of the game. Clemens and Bonds were obviously great players, but if we celebrate players that cheated and tried to gain an unfair advantage, that’s a bad look for the game and the Hall of Fame. Players who weren’t clean don’t deserve to be enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Players who played it the right way, without the use of foreign substances are the ones that should get in, and guys who cheated simply shouldn’t get in at those guys’ expense.
Cheating shouldn’t be celebrated. Bonds and Clemens don’t deserve the Hall of Fame honor, and if players who cheated get in, you’re basically opening the door for certain guys who were a part of the 2017 Astros scandal to be enshrined as well.
