cub82, you're probably right. The NL Central teams aren't that upset. But you probably should take a look at the bigger picture. Because of all the steroids talk, Pujols has become the Muhammad Ali to Barry Bonds' George Foreman. Hero vs. villain. Real fans won't mind so much. They still have their hometown/favorite teams and favorite players. But the rest of the country, the people that will rally behind whomever is posh, have lost, at least for a while, someone who was probably deserving of their attention. Much like the home run chase of 1998 (with which I'm sure you are well familiar), Pujols record setting pace was helping bring fans in. Without him, who's left to bring in the unwashed masses?
grum@work, it's funny that you brought up the steroid question in this thread because my brother-in-law and I were discussing that today in regards to Pujols. What is one of the main signs of steroid use? Injuries, which Pujols seems to get from time to time. Not big injuries but muscle type injuries, because the steroids push the muscles too fast and cause them to strain or pull. That has pretty much been Pujols' injury M.O. for the past few years. When he goes down it's a strain or pull, for the most part. And I love the comparison in HR numbers. If Pujols had gone for 70 this year his four year total would almost match Bonds exactly for the four years that ended with Bonds' 73 HR season in 2001. For comparison: Bonds had 37, 34, 49 and then 73 Pujols had 43, 46, 41 and then this year's total... And the years following Bonds' 73 HR season he had 46, 45 and 45 HRs. If the juice worked so good why didn't he go all Sammy Sosa on us and blow past 60 every year? The comparison with Maris' numbers is telling because Maris never was a big-time power hitter (he did have some pop, but not overwhelmingly so) and then one season he belts 61. Yet, no one thinks he was on steroids. Why not? It's amazing how the public has completely demonized Bonds yet Pujols is the face of the "clean" era. Give me a break. I'm not saying Pujols has done steroids, but you can't ignore his sudden power surge and how he injured himself. He was running for a pop up, for pete's sake!!!!! I mean, c'mon, he's supposed to be a top athlete. He can't run back for a pop up without getting hurt? And once again, I'm not saying Bonds didn't use anything. I'm just saying everybody else in this equation, namely Pujols, should be looked at closer. Level the playing field, so to speak, in the investigative work done on these guys.
What is one of the main signs of steroid use? Injuries, which Pujols seems to get from time to time. Not big injuries but muscle type injuries, because the steroids push the muscles too fast and cause them to strain or pull. That has pretty much been Pujols' injury M.O. for the past few years. When he goes down it's a strain or pull, for the most part. This is the first time Pujols has been on the disabled list in his 5 1/2-year Major League career. Do you know of some kind of link from steroids to plantar fasciitis?
Just for the record, I don't think Pujols uses any PEDs (but then again, I didn't think Bonds did either, back in 2001...). I think what we are looking at is one of those rare superstar players who have "it", and can perform at a level that exceeds most people's expectations. Baseball Prospectus produced an article (by Jonah Kerri, called "The Prince is Dead, Long Live the King", only viewable if you have a subscription, which I highly recommend for a baseball fan) that listed the 10 greatest five-season starts to a career. It adjusted for league and park factors (so hitters in pitcher parks and pitcher-dominated seasons weren't punished, and hitters in tiny parks and hitting-frenzy seasons weren't unfairly rewarded) and was based on rate stats, not culmulative totals (so that partial seasons didn't hurt a player's rank).Ted WilliamsFrank ThomasStan MusialJohnny MizeJoe JacksonAlbert PujolsDick AllenDan BrouthersLou GehrigJoe DiMaggio That's pretty damn amazing company.
You're right, it is absolutely amazing company. It is just a shame that players like Canseco (so he says) brought steroids into the game at all. If is wasn't for that jerkoff, none of us would question the abilities of raw superstar talent like Pujols (assuming that he is not on the juice himself). I wish him well nonetheless, he's not an asshol* like Barry and at least treats the fans and media with respect. The last time I checked, the fans are what this game is supposed to entertain. Long live baseball.
Wow grum@work, that is an amazing list. I think Pujols is a great player, and I don't think he's juicing, but I just thought I'd bring up the point and start the discussion. Pujols seems like one of the honest ballplayers, if there is any of them left. As for the start of his career, if you figure out his home run pace for his first five years, it is 40.2 HRs a year. If you go deeper, he has hit home runs in 26.8 percent of the games he's played up to this point (226 HRs in 843 games). Let's say he misses 6 weeks and ends up playing 60 more games this year. He'll finish with 41 HRs if he maintains the 26.8-percent pace and his career total will be 242. Then project that pace over the next 10 years. He'll add 402 more HRs and be 36 years old with 644 HRs. That isn't that much of a reach to think he could average basically 40 HRs a year until he's 36 years old. Alex Rodriguez might eventually crash into the 700-HR club along with the Babe, Barry and Hank Aaron, but I think Pujols is the only current major leaguer with a shot at 800. If he maintained the pace I stated above for four more years he'd have 805 HRs at the age of 40. Maintaining that pace at that age is hard to do. Most of the game's sluggers throughout history have seen their long-ball production go down in their late 30s with few exceptions. That said, Pujols has set himself up for a run at it. I hope he can bounce back from this and stay healthy enough for the rest of his career to give it a shot. Wouldn't that be something? 800 freakin home runs!!!
This assuming his stated age is accurate.
of course, charlatan...assuming is age is correct.
Not big injuries but muscle type injuries, because the steroids push the muscles too fast and cause them to strain or pull. Actually, it's more common for steroid users to suffer injuries to joints versus muscles. The steroids help to strengthen the muscles around joints, but do nothing to help the bones in the joint, or, even worse, the connective tissues (ligaments, tendons, etc.). The increased strength generated by the muscles exerts more and more torque on the joint, until it finally gives way.
I long for the day when we can have ANY (practically) baseball conversation without it turning to steroids. Words can't convey how sick I am of that topic. Steroids are a fact in recent baseball history, so just deal with it. It's the same with greenies, prescription pain pills, you name it. Every time a player has a good couple of months now, we're going to have to talk about him using PEDs, which ultimately turns to Canseco, which then turns to Bonds, blah, blah, blah. Quit acting like the direction of humanity on earth has been altered because of a bunch of baseball players. Enjoy the game taking place on the field and stop worrying so much about a bunch of old records that don't really impact anyone's daily life at all anyways. Honestly, some of you act as if Barry Bonds pissed on your parents' grave or something. He's an overpaid entertainer, period. Sit back and enjoy the show.
If everyone had not put so much pressure on Pujols to erase Bonds record. Redeem the sport. Give the game a nice clean, humble face he may still be playing. One of his best hits was on the media regarding Bonds. You still have to see and hit the ball, steroids cannot help with that. I am so with dyams. Let's embrace our drug driven era(always has been) of sports, (pain-killers etc) and enjoy the entertainment. Do you really want to go back to 40 homers leading the league. Mark Mc and his creotine put Baseball back on the map. As for the kids, parents watch your children. No drinkingor drugs that has always been the right way to raise them. We act as though this is the Curt Flood issue. Now that was important....And what about Selig? That maybe the real integrity of baseball question...
100+ years of history can be wrong, that it?
