Now, can Geoff Baker ask Sammy when he stopped beating his wife?

A point and a question, Craig.

The point is that Sosa’s statement at the hearing was so obviously threading a rhetorical and legal needle that it was one of the main reasons people (like me) became convinced that Sosa was a user and a liar.  That’s legal art only if you are the kind of analyst who thinks “it depends what the meaning of ‘is’ is” is a slam-dunk rebuttal. Sure, it avoids perjury—-so does taking the 5th on the stand. But they both make you look guilty as hell. (Sosa’s statement is also deceit—-making a statement that is literally true but designed to deceive casual listeners into thinking it means something very different from what it really does mean. This is, as I’m sure you know, specifically designated as ethical misconduct for a lawyer in Rule 8.4 of the Rules of Professional Conduct if a lawyer does it personally. It is a form of dishonesty.)

Now the question: has anyone ever explained WHY a steroid user would take that 2003 test? To find out if the test works? If that was the point, then the union was actively attempting to assist players in cheating. Maybe a player was unsure if he was using steroids? No, even Manny isn’t THAT stupid. To make sure one’s name was on a list that was sure to end up in the hands of the Feds if the union didn’t destroy it seconds after it was compiled? The fact that there were “only” 104 players who volunteered for this only indicates to me that there were 104 morons using steroids, and the non-morons had the sense to take a pass.

But he said “I have never taken illegal performance-enhancing drugs.”  Isn’t that sentence a lie?  The statement that he hasn’t broken the laws of the US or DR may be hazy, but even if he took the drugs in the DR, he still played in the US on the substance. 

Separate thought.  Sosa is probably the best example of a player benefiting from PEDs.  Came up a scrawny base stealer.  Had 32 steals in his first full season and then had 3 60+ home run seasons with ridiculous RBI totals.  But the thing I can’t get past is the guy also used a corked bat!  I mean how many ways is a guy going to cheat?  To me the corked bat on top of the PEDs puts Sosa in a league of his own.  Yet no one brings up that incident.  It’s weird.

Corked bats do not help….physics with Dr. Adair

http://www.slate.com/id/2083972/

“The theoretical edge seems infinitesimal. Assume a corker reduces his bat’s weight by 1.5 ounces. An average major league pitch travels from the pitcher’s hand to the plate in a hair under half a second. The corked bat will give the hitter an additional five-thousandths of a second to see the pitch, judge it, and get the bat head moving through the strike zone.

A quicker bat may help a struggling hitter catch up with pitches, but it actually reduces his ability to smack long drives. The primary equation that determines a batted ball’s distance is p = mv, where “p” is momentum, “m” is mass, and “v” is velocity. Though a corked bat will travel at a greater velocity, the tail-off in weight lessens the mass.

As a result, sluggers like Sosa will actually see the length of their moon shots decrease. In his book The Physics of Baseball, Yale physicist Robert K. Adair estimated that a corked bat will shave about a yard off a 400-foot tater.

More likely to benefit, then, are slap hitters who specialize in singles.

Bob
I think if the question is intent rather than effect, there can be no difference between corking a bat and corking your body

If the question is effect only - I think there are questions of extent of effectiveness for both

I am neither shocked nor outraged, if I could muster even an ounce of outrage it would be for those monkeys in Congress who grandstanded this issue for a constituency that largely does not care.  Fools!

Good point, Jack. If that’s truly the case, then I don’t understand it either. All I can figure is that it was a good faith effort by the union to start moving past this. It’s a shame, then, that someone screwed it up so royally.

RE: Bob Tufts

While I am certainly not an expert in physics, I think the benefit to corking a bat has more to the with the density of the wood.

A 35”/33oz bat will be more dense than a 35”/31oz bat.  By removing part of the core of the 35”/33oz bat, and replacing it with a lighter substance, you can achieve a higher bat speed (as you mentioned) without sacrificing bat density.

The p=mv equation doesn’t address the compression that a bat experiences when impacted by the ball.  A bat with a higher wood density will compress less, therefore transferring more energy to the ball.  Whether this results in a longer ball flight…well, that’s out of my realm of expertise.

“It may not have helped, but it certainly gave him a mental advantage and in any sports a mental advantage helps”

My god, get rid of those rally caps!!!  Yunel Escobar, no more jumping in the on deck circle!!!  Nomar, cease and desist your wrist band and glove fixing!!!  Dude who brushed his teeth between innings, stop now!!!!

EDIT:  Welcome back, David. It’s been a while. You’ll find your unacceptable, off topic post in the trash can I have specially reserved for you.

Very truly yours,

Craig

Matt A:  A quote from Ken Caminiti about his steroid use.  “I think it was more of an attitude.  There is a mental edge that comes with the injections. And it’s definitely something that gets you more intense.”

I think that speaks for itself, but nice try Matt A.  Your attempt at humor was also undermined by the examples you made up.  Would have been funny if maybe you said, like David Cone masturbating in the bullpen before a start.