Waiting out Steroid D-Day

So today’s the day, huh? At 2 p.m., George Mitchell of the Boston Red Sox will unveil his report on steroids in baseball to the world, and sportswriters everywhere will cover a story they should written about 10 years ago.

As Joe wrote on Tuesday, we’re not holding out much hope for the Mitchell Report. Yes, it will make headlines. Yes, some players will be judged guilty in the eyes of the public. And yes, the Astros probably traded for a headache they don’t want.

But the problems — and ESPN detailed more today — far outweigh the benefits. Who cares which sluggers were doping before MLB had a solid testing program and drug policy in place? While Mark McGwire looked foolish saying it in front of Congress, the past is the past. George Mitchell cannot change what happened, and baseball should really just be trying to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Needless to say, neither the Commission’s Office or the MLBPA seem too concerned with drugs to institute a top-notch policy.

For all the proselytizing I can do on steroids, for fans of individual players and teams, it’s personal. How would Yankee fans react if some big names showed up on the list of around 80 names that are supposedly in the report? What happens if it’s one of the good guys who actually matter? Or one of the guys still on the team? I guess we’ll find out.

Here at the RAB, I’m just hoping that none of the homegrown talent shows up. Last week, Yankees Chick released her list of Yanks who better not be in the report, and it’s a solid rundown of the fan favorites. Right now, only time will tell, and we will, of course, have a story about it as the report is released.

In the meantime, follow The Big Lead’s lead. They’ve called for a Mitchell Report fantasy draft. Name the guys most likely to appear in the report, and if Barry Bonds, anticlimactically, isn’t on the top of all the lists, I’d be pretty surprise.