McGuire comes clean

[starang21]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

I didn't want to make my last post too long, so I'll double-post...

This is another part of the problem for me. How much of a difference do steroids really make? Look at some of the guys on the list, like Adam Hiatt and Todd Pratt. People who think that steroids magically make you an All Star are, to put it mildly, crazy.

Do they make a 5% difference? 10%? More? Less? We really don't know, although I think there are studies out there that have taken stabs at answers.

well how much does strength contribute to bat speed? he wasn't taking it make his fielding skills any better.

[groovypq]

McGwire also says he was taking them to help him heal faster from injuries - and he did get injured quite a bit. Which then begs the question - did they keep him off the DL and in the lineup so that he could hit more of those homers?

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by starang21

well how much does strength contribute to bat speed? he wasn't taking it make his fielding skills any better.

That's the thing, I'm not sure, and I'm not sure there is anything out there that gives us an answer. Bat speed is about strength, but there are other factors. Plus, even if you have great bat speed, you still need to have the hand-eye coordination, or it's not worth anything.

Basically, I don't buy the argument that guys like Bonds and McGwire (especially Bonds) weren't great players without the performance enhancers. Lots of athletes took something, and they didn't all become Hall of Famers.

I'm also waiting for the sportswriters who rip McGwire and Bonds to rip Shawne Merriman, Rodney Harrison, and other athletes who used performance enhancers.