Mitchell’s not-very-shocking admission

by 9 Comments

Pettitte owns up to HGH use
The great double standard

According to the Washington Post, the esteemed former Senator George Mitchell used a different standard of proof for his infamous report than he would have used in a court case. The article — a must-read page two for anyone interested in the legal recourses available to those named in the report — simply shows that backpedaling can’t begin soon enough.

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Pettitte owns up to HGH use
The great double standard
  • bkight13

    I guess that is why McGwire, Sosa and Palmeiro never sued Canseco. You’ll hear alot of blustering, but in the end I bet Mitchell was pretty accurate.

  • E-ROC

    Ummm….why hasn’t Bud Selig or Fehr apologize yet?

  • E-ROC
  • Steve S

    Everyone has to understand why these defamation lawsuits are not a reality for these players. If you read the article you see there is a different burden of proof for a public figure (and every baseball player is a public figure). You have to prove falsity, malice, and damages. The second element is very difficult in these situations, it is impossible for a guy like Clemens to prove malice on the part of MLB and Mitchell (while he could possibly against the trainer). And the third element of damages is also difficult to determine also. So everyone has to stop listening to Jose Canseco when saying that a lawsuit is a alpha and omega of guilt or innocence.

    Also Mitchell is right about testimony from direct witnesses, but the evidence against Brian Roberts is the definition of hearsay and would never be admissable in any court in this country.

    • Kevin23

      It does carry weight to basically say “I have nothing to hide, lets go to court and make everything public”. But it’s true that, legally speaking, it is possible to be innocent and have no case.

  • pounder

    Mitchell is a Red Sox pimp.A man as renowned in the legal field as he,would never,never put out a report,naming some,but not all people suspected.It was a hachet job from day one with the congress in full support.For those of you interested, Mitchell goes back on the Red Sox payroll tomorrow morning,probably with a raise,for successfully targeting certain teams and certain players,to their satifaction. Naming some of the guilty, and ruining some lives,while others skate free,is a travesty.The Red Sox wanted Clemens scalp on their teepee and their #5 man in their organization got it for them.Merry Xmas.

  • Floyd

    Is it just me or does this whole Steroid Report seem to be about the Yanks…The papers in New York are acting as if the Yankees are the only team in baseball to put this dark mark on the sport…THEY HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING!!!!!!There were major omission of names from all ends of the baseball spectrum…Everyone outside of the Yankee Universe seems to have realized that the only reason for so many Yankee names is that the feds had the goods on McNamee ….I’d dare to say the 50% of every team was doing some kind of performance enhancement and a great number is still doing and will continue doing HGH until they come up with a urine test for it….But please give me a break…….THIS IS NOT A YANKEE THING

  • LiveFromNewYork

    I think Arod could prove malice with Caneseco. He keeps saying Arod needs to be on the list.

    Also, I agree it’s a witchhunt for Yankees and NY area newspapers should be ashamed for not pointing this out.

  • Kevin23

    Canseco has more credibility than anyone in baseball on the steroids issue. There is absolutely no ground for bashing him or trying to say he has ulterior motives. Thats what they all said last time, and look how that turned out.

    I just wish more people would talk about PED’s like he does…from the perspective that it could have benefits that aren’t outweighed by the negatives when used correctly. Instead of an honest debate, we’re sitting by and watching them torch the evidence locker…cheering and jeering the whole way.