Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig was a guest on The Mike and Mike Show on ESPN Radio on Tuesday morning and was asked about the "cloud" hanging over baseball at the all-star break as people await the results of MLB's investigation into the scandalous Biogenesis clinic accused of selling performance-enhancing drugs to players.
Selig disputed the suggestion from hosts Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic that Biogenesis has put a "cloud" over his sport.
"I listen to you guys a lot, and I don't want you to take it personally, but this idea -- and I keep hearing you both say it -- that there's this cloud hanging over baseball," said Selig. "The last nine years have been the best years in baseball attendance history... About this cloud hanging over us, our attendance is terrific again this year.?Yes, we are down a little bit because we've had 36 rainouts and we've played games in horrendous weather.
"Last weekend was the biggest weekend of the year. We drew way over 600,000 (total fans) on?Saturday. The interest all over is remarkable. We're setting up with great (playoff) races. Here we are, we have the toughest drug-testing program in American sports. We have a program that WADA -- the gold standard -- says is the best program in America.
"So, now what are we doing? We are enforcing it in a very aggressive way because we have this tough testing program. Let me remind both of you that we are the only American sport that tests for human growth hormone. We've had independent people all over talk about our great program. Last year, we administered 4,200 (drug) tests in the big leagues. We had seven positives; they were suspended. We did 16,000 tests in both the major and minor leagues, and there was less than one half of one percent (positive).
"Years ago, we were criticized for turning a blind eye (to PEDs), which is nonsense. Our minor-league program is 13 years old.?These are collectively bargained items at the major-league level.?We had to wait to '02; we had no choice. The union wouldn't deny that they fought us aggessively on this. We had a cocaine era in the '80s where they couldn't get a drug-testing program. And we had a player like Steve Howe suspended seven times and nothing done.
"I meet with the trainers and doctors, and they tell us this is the cleanest they have ever seen the sport. We've banned amphetamines. Black cloud, why??Because we're enforcing the toughest drug-testing program in America? And our fans know we're serious? I have to seriously disagree with that, really disagree with that."
Golic then acknowledged MLB's tough drug policy but added that baseball is the only sport "that has 20 names hanging out there with the possibility of something." Golic also noted that Baltimore's Chris Davis, who leads the majors in homers, doesn't recognize Barry Bonds' home run record of 73 and considers Roger Maris' total of 61 in 1961 as the real record.
"The only difference is, and I'm going to say this very candidly to you, because our program is as tough as it is, and because there are many people who've always felt baseball is held to a higher and different standard, people will talk about this. But the fact of the matter is we have dealt with it. I'm proud of the players. I've had players, some that you know well, come and see me and object to calling it the 'Steroid Era' and point out that most players on their team touched nothing. Nothing.
"If the objective is to be transparent and be aggressive in your programs, and to do what we have to, then we're guilty of that and I'm proud of it.?I'm proud of our players, I'm proud of the clubs. There was no attempt to hide anything here. There was only an attempt to be as aggressive as we can. I'll agree with the professional athletic trainers and the team doctors that they have never seen the sport this clean.
"We'll work hard. Yes, it's not perfect. After all, steroids are not a baseball problem.?Steroids are a societal problem.?That goes all over the place. We have dealt with it in a way, as I've said, now we have the toughest testing. When WADA says we have the best program in?American, I'm proud of everybody that's taken part in that.
"As for a black cloud, the last nine years have been the greatest years in baseball attendance and I have hopes that this year, if the weather ever clears it up and it stops raining in a lot of places, I'm really very comfortable that we're going to do well into the 70s (of millions of fans). So, I'm sort of just amazed at that kind of attitude."
Mike Greenberg then asked when Selig anticipated announcing penalties in the Biogenesis investigation.
"The only thing I can say to you, and I'm not being facetious, you'll know when?I'm going to do it.?That's all I can say. We're in a very thorough investigation right now and I really want to be very, very careful. We'll do it when the investigation is complete and they bring everything to me."
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