As spring training draws near, baseball received a black eye this week from book sales and TV interviews; regarding former baseball great, Jose Canseco tell all book, whose steroid allegations involve some of the sports' elitist athletes of past and present. I will not name the book written by Canseco, because it is not my provocative to promote it without reading it in its entirety. Now more than ever, there is alarming suspicion concerning apparent steroid drug use in Major League Baseball.

Turn on any news channel since last week, and just about everyone had Jose Canseco on the brain. People are intrigued about what insight would be revealed in his book, which debuted this week. While many would consider him to be a traitor to his former teammates and colleagues, his wild allegations a few years ago about rampant steroid baseball now has us all listening. Now that Yankees Jason Giambi and Gary Sheffield, and Giants Barry Bonds have been linked to the Balco steroid case, baseball has no where to run from the steroid issue. Former players such as Canseco and the late N.L. MVP Ken Caminiti have admitted to using illegal steroids, while they played baseball. However how many other baseball are out there now, or once competed using the enhancing drug?

The reason baseball is catching so much sack for steroid use, whereas the NFL does not receive the same condemnation, is because in the 1980's the heads of football laid down the law, and banned its use. To many in the public eye, MLB did not seem as concerned, and let the players' union set the agenda, in regards to the enforcement of illegal, enhancing drugs such as steroids. Think about it, how many people in baseball have been suspended for steroid use; can you name them without looking up the answer?

Yet now for the sake of the league it appears that both the player's union and heads of the MLB including Commissioner Bud Selig see the writing on the wall. They will have to make a example of and punish some people who fails a drug test for steroid use. Baseball, unlike football needs people to believe the players are stoic in manner and faith. Some people see themselves through the ball players, therefore it is clear why some fans are now offended by the mention of baseball and steroids. Both Jose Canseco's book and the Balco incident should be a lesson to all sports that people do not want to support those who cheat to gain an unfair advantage! Eventually baseball will recover from the bad spotlight it is now experiencing, but they will have to sway the opinions of those who have lost their faith in MLB's ability to police their players.

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