Scotch Files: The Rafeal Palmeiro Ed.

The biggest news is sports right now is Baltimore Orioles first baseman, Rafeal Palmeiro's recent suspension for testing positive for steroids. When the story first broke, I thought it had to be fake. There was no way the man who sat in front of Congress and adamantly denied using steroids could have tested positive. It had to be some GNC-type concoction that set the test off. Or maybe it was the Viagra he had been endorsing. He always seemed like a good guy and someone a parent could point to and say, "Now that's a role model." As we learned a couple years ago, athletes are not necessarily who they pretend to be.

So today numerous outlets are reporting that he tested positive for stanozolol, the drug that sprinter Ben Johnson tested positive for during the '88 Olympic Games. According to the article, this is a steroid that is potent and not available in any dietary supplements. And of course, Palmeiro is in denial and a self-imposed befuddlement as to how the drug found it's way into his system.

So we, the fans and to a lesser degree the general public, are left with numerous questions starting at: Well, how do you not know what is going in your body? Having given up my organized athletic dreams after high school, I have no clue how a multi-millionaire proffesional athlete could be given something without full knowledge of what it was he/ she (WNBA anyone?) was taking. Ultimately, that will be between Raffy and his body. Jose Canseco in his book Juiced said that he introduced and injected Palmeiro with steroids back in '93. Whatever the case may be, this is for sure. None of us will be surprised if Raffy ends up like Lyle Alzado.

The other side of this is how it effects Palmeiro's legacy in baseball and especially in Baltimore. He was a hero, destined to have his number retired by an organization that embraced him in the mid 90s and then again in 2004 when he resigned with the team. When he was traded in 1999, the city was furious. When he returned the city rejoiced. Now we are faced with a question none of us would have ever thought possible. In the words of Jay-Z, "It was all good a week ago!"

It would have been completely different if someone like Albert Belle released a statement saying he was a user. No one would bat a lash. The same can be said for Brady Anderson, who in 1996 hit 50 homeruns. I think we all know in the back of our minds that he was on more "juice" than Michael Jackson could ever dream of handing out to little boys.

So now the debate goes from is Palmeiro a Hall-Of-Famer to will he ever get into the hall. Having acheived the milestone of 3,000 hits and more than 500 homeruns, many thought he was definintely deserving to be included in the hall. That is not to say everyone as Skip Bayless stated his beliefs in a column almost 3 weeks ago. At the time, I disagreed with Bayless. Today, I am not so sure, but for a different reason. I have no clue if he really used the 'roids, but I do believe the writers and current HOFs will penalize him.

We'll see as the story continues to unfold.