Perfect Storm Looms For Baseball

The baseball gods that smiled on the Red Sox in October are now beginning to frown on the sport as a whole. The topic that was ignored from the McGuire/Sosa home run chase through the current season by most baseball executives and fans is about to rear its ugly head. Steroids will be the biggest story in baseball this off-season. The Mitchell report will be released any day now and could name names. Bonds is indicted and may be going to trail. A former Met's bat boy and clubhouse assistant has been helping prosecutors since April in the investigation of current and former MLB players on his steroid client list. His sentencing has been delayed again because he still has more info to tell. The line from "Full Metal Jacket" comes to mind when I think about the impact of all of this on baseball..."Its a big ol' sh*t sandwich and were all gonna have to take a bite." Attendance is up, the Sox are on top and set for a repeat, things are looking good. But the bubble is about to burst and this is not the news anyone wants. All teams are going to be affected, childhood heroes are going down in flames, and America's pastime is going to look like the WWF (or WWE whatever they call it these days.) Let the chips fall where they may, baseball has survived the Black Sox, Pete Rose, strike shortened seasons and it can survive this. Its just not going to be fun.