Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

**Skerik** · 06-11-2009, 08:33 AM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

I don't really see the big deal in all this, personally.

Originally posted by JROD

Major League Baseball has reached a point where everyone, including two of its most high character, consistent, and hard working players, are the subject of general speculation by genuine baseball fans about whether or not their numbers are legit — baseball fans who want nothing more than to believe in their heroes whose mighty on-field exploits are a daily obsession for so many of us.

Say what you will about my post, about me, and about bloggers in general. But to me that is the saddest fact of all.

Bingo. As I've been saying for a while, the saddest part of the whole steroids problem is that players who were and are clean now have no way to clear their names, besides saying, "No I am not on steroids." Which everyone has said, regardless of whether they're on steroids or not.

Nobody is immune from speculation. Not Ibanez, not Pujols, not Jim Thome, not Jimmy Rollins....nobody. It's the culture and the climate that Selig has created for baseball with his pathetic response to the steroid problem. And while I can understand a player taking offense to someone saying their numbers and performance are artificially inflated, I'm continually surprised by professional athletes and other famous people getting so bent about what some guy says on his blog about them.

I mean, you're famous and you've been famous for years. The limelight comes with attention and criticism (both positive and negative) and if you know anything about the internet, you know that it takes all of about two minutes for me to make a site called "RaulIbanezisonSteroids.com" and call Raul Ibanez out for being on steroids. Who cares. Who am I to him, or any other famous person? It's the internet and people will say what they're going to say.

But....since nobody is able to clear their names thanks to Selig and his woefully inadequate testing policies, I can totally understand why players who are clean feel the need to respond, and respond passionately, when someone speculates that they're on steroids. It must be frustrating to be doing things the right way and be unable to prove it to anyone.

**JohnDoe8865** · 06-11-2009, 08:43 AM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

Wow, just read and watched all of this. First I have heard about all of this blowup.

Thanks for the links.

**slickdtc** · 06-11-2009, 09:06 AM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

These 'professional media' guys are getting all bent out of shape over this. People have written this stuff ever since blogs were created. People make these accusations on this very message board! It just so happens that Jrod's blog got 'picked' to be a story and now it is.

**SoxFan01605** · 06-11-2009, 10:03 AM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

Oh the hypocrisy. If John Gonzalez and Ken Rosenthal don't decide to make the blog world a news story and a topic source, then none of this escalates. Maybe I'll "blog" on how rediculous it is that major media outlets actually cite blogs as reference and scour them to come up with a story.

I can go find a blog that speculates on the sexual preference of any hollywood star, their secret drug addictions, etc. Amazing that some joe with a blog takes more heat for a lack of "journalistic integrity" than actual major media outlets...lol.

It makes for an interesting read though. Watching the comments degrade into mindless insults being slung back and forth was entertaining.

**ryan36** · 06-11-2009, 10:16 AM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

I think JROD was being honest. 37 year-olds do NOT generally have career years.

**ryan36** · 06-11-2009, 10:21 AM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

ALSO ... a BLOG is SUPPOSED TO BE as Gonzalez put it "whispers amongst friends." That's what makes a friggin' BLOG a BLOG. It's allowed to speculate. That's the only reason anyone READS A BLOG.

**J0nnD0ugh** · 06-11-2009, 10:55 AM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

Nice of jrod to get some publicity. MLB should just realize the speculation is completely their own fault. You can't blame the speculators when you turned your head & whistled while your stars shot up. Anymore than Stern can get mad @ people questioning his refs when he allowed the NBA zebras to screw w/the results of games & then tried to cover up the scandal.

**P2K** · 06-11-2009, 12:49 PM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

Jrod is right that Selig and baseball caused all of this. It's really sad. Everyone is being put under the microscope.

**SPTO** · 06-11-2009, 01:01 PM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

Originally posted by P2K

Jrod is right that Selig and baseball caused all of this. It's really sad. Everyone is being put under the microscope.

BINGO!

Also I find it a little funny how Ibanez ripped our boy JROD. He's been one of the most level-headed and well rounded guys ever to be part of the OS community. I don't see anything really inflammatory in what he has speculated about.

It IS pretty interesting how a 37 year old is suddenly having a career year out of nowhere. It's not like JROD (or anyone for that matter) is saying unequivocally that Ibanez is on the juice but rather when there's an anomaly like this one would normally chalk it up as such but because of the revelations of the last 15 or so years then it's only natural to speculate that it's more then just an anomaly and that it's due to some "help".

It's MLB's fault that this has happened and Ibanez has no room to go around blasting people based on what we know about the last 15 years or so.

**P2K** · 06-11-2009, 02:23 PM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

Originally posted by SPTO

It's MLB's fault that this has happened and Ibanez has no room to go around blasting people based on what we know about the last 15 years or so.

I disagree that Ibanez has no room to talk. If someone accuses you of cheating, you're naturally going to defend yourself. Nothing wrong with that. Maybe the tone of the defense could be bad, but Ibanez defending himself is fine, IMO.

**Skerik** · 06-11-2009, 03:08 PM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

By the way, I think it's funny that Raul Ibanez has become the lightning rod of steroid talk this season because of his performance. It's not like he hasn't been a very good hitter his entire career and he performed well at an already advanced age last season as well.

While I'm in no way saying I think he's on steroids, I'd cast dispersions on a guy like Russell Branyan a lot faster than I would on Ibanez.

**JBH3** · 06-11-2009, 03:35 PM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

Originally posted by Skerik

By the way, I think it's funny that Raul Ibanez has become the lightning rod of steroid talk this season because of his performance. It's not like he hasn't been a very good hitter his entire career and he performed well at an already advanced age last season as well.

While I'm in no way saying I think he's on steroids, I'd cast dispersions on a guy like Russell Branyan a lot faster than I would on Ibanez.

Which is a good point...

I mean out of his 20 HRs, 8 have come at home, and 6 against Washington.

**Jackdog** · 06-11-2009, 04:03 PM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

Originally posted by JBH3

Which is a good point...

I mean out of his 20 HRs, 8 have come at home, and 6 against Washington.

No doubt,band boxes to say the least. Hell, Ronnie Belliard can hit homers in the Nats Park.

**Jackdog** · 06-11-2009, 04:04 PM

Re: Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

Originally posted by Skerik

By the way, I think it's funny that Raul Ibanez has become the lightning rod of steroid talk this season because of his performance. It's not like he hasn't been a very good hitter his entire career and he performed well at an already advanced age last season as well.

While I'm in no way saying I think he's on steroids, I'd cast dispersions on a guy like Russell Branyan a lot faster than I would on Ibanez.

Branyan has always had very good power. He just sucked at making contact.

Raul Ibanez rips one of our OS members.

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