McGwire's Baby Brother Throws Him Under the Bus!

[Migrant Redbird]

Deadspin: Mark McGwire's One-Eyed Baby Brother Reveals The Not-So-Startling Truth

...Mark McGwire was pumped full of Deca-Durabolin when he hit 403 homers in seven years. That is if you believe, Jay, the youngest, least successful McGwire brother....

.... Here's what he says:

"Mark is a man I think most would like to forgive because his reason wasn’t nefarious—it was for survival. My bringing the truth to surface about Mark is out of love. I want Mark to live in truth to see the light, to come to repentance so he can live in freedom—which is the only way to live. "

Oh, and, if you didn't know, he and Mark haven't spoken in quite some time.

Jay McGwire sounds like he has a lot in common with Roger Clinton, Bill's brother, who was caught on a drug trafficking wiretap claiming that "Bill has a nose like a vacuum cleaner."

Apparently, Jay has been pushing this book to several New York publishing houses, so far without success. Practically everything I found on a Google search was tied to the Deadspin article I linked and quoted above.

[Mackus]

His little brother is probably just trying to make money on a book deal.

However, I think if you aren't convinced that McGwire was using several different banned substances then you are completely naive. Same goes for Barry Bonds.

[Moose Milligan]

redbird, you kill me dude. You're like the JTrea of cardinals fans.

[Migrant Redbird]

His little brother is probably just trying to make money on a book deal.

Without question.

However, I think if you aren't convinced that McGwire was using several different banned substances then you are completely naive.

There's a huge difference between believing McGwire was totally "clean" and being "convinced" that he wasn't. I'm in the middle on a lot of issues, where I insist upon some legitimate evidence before I reach a firm conclusion. Even a conviction doesn't "prove" that someone perpetrated an act; it just makes them "guilty". There have been several convicts on death row who ended up being vindicated by DNA evidence, despite the conclusions of the juries in their trials.

I'm the same way when it comes to the premise that Peter Angelos is a money-grubbing owner. The evidence may strongly suggest that, but I don't have much insight into his motives. I still remember when he vetoed the Bobby Bonilla trade back in 1996, and his professed motive of owing it to the fans.

Even when it comes to Tony La Russa's fitness to be a major league manager, I present my conclusions as "opinions", rather than as absolute fact.

Same goes for Barry Bonds.

With Bonds, the Feds apparently have lab urinalysis reports requested by BALCO in which Bonds tested positive for steroids and they have dosing schedules for him similar to those which BALCO maintained on Olympic athletes. For Bonds at least, we do have some legitimate evidence, even if the public disclosure of it was illegal. The issue with Bonds apparently isn't whether he was using steroids, but whether he was aware of it.

redbird, you kill me dude. You're like the JTrea of cardinals fans.

Glad I could entertain you.

I've always been as open-minded as I possibly can, even when it comes to the possibility of current players like Pujols using steroids. As fans, lacking hard evidence, we should be willing to admit that we really don't know.

What I enjoy doing is taking an issue and analyzing everything which we know and hypothesizing what we can conclude from our analysis. I'll admit that I enjoy swimming upstream against the current of commonly accepted conclusions.

[SteveA]

http://deadspin.com/5136177/mark-mcgwires-one+eyed-baby-brother-reveals-the-not+so+startling-truth

[blueberryale77]

Gotta love those born again Christians who think having a religious experience entitles them to spend the rest of their lives exposing other people's sins for profit while acting all high and mighy despite having done the same things themselves (note that I mean only those born again Christians who meet that specific criteria, not the entire religion).

[Mark Carver]

Same link I posted at the top of this thread. Didn't you click on it, or recognize some of the quotes?

It was a another thread that was merged with this one...

[Migrant Redbird]

It was a another thread that was merged with this one...

Sorry, didn't realize that. I'll delete my post.

[Mad Mark]

Gotta love those born again Christians who think having a religious experience entitles them to spend the rest of their lives exposing other people's sins for profit while acting all high and mighy despite having done the same things themselves (note that I mean only those born again Christians who meet that specific criteria, not the entire religion).

Religious zelots and Schrutebags...unlike chocolate and peanut butter, combining the two does not make for a better experience!

(Although when you get right down to it, the two tend to go hand-in-hand...)

[scOtt]

omgihadnoideaicantbelievethis

*yawn*

[byrdz]

Schrutebags...

If this is a reference to Dwight Schrute then it's hilarious.

[getxstoked]

If this is a reference to Dwight Schrute then it's hilarious.

Kind of, also a reference to ESPN radio blowhard Colin Cowherd.

[Migrant Redbird]

One point that I'd like to make. Either Canseco or Jeff McGwire are not telling the truth. Both claim to have introduced Mark to taking steroids, which is obviously impossible, and Jeff insists that Mark didn't use steroids until 1995, long after he and Canseco shared a clubhouse.

Growing up in the middle of Southern California's body building culture and working out with fellow baseball players, football players, and body builders, it would have been inevitable that Mark would have been exposed to acquaintances who were using steroids and who would have urged him to also do so. If Mark didn't succumb then, why would he do so in the middle of his professional baseball career, after having hit 49 home runs as a 22-year-old rookie in 1986?

When this all started, before Canseco's book and the Mitchell Report, there were two things which occurred and triggered all the allegations against individuals that were suspected of using steroids.

(1) It had been common knowledge among ballplayers for years that some among their number were using steroids and that knowledge gradually permeated through the media to the public.

(2) More home runs were being hit, giving rise to suspicions that those players who hit the most must undoubtedly have been getting help. So, the basis for suspicion became the rates at which players were now hitting home runs.

Looking at Mark's AB/HR rate, which are the years where he's "obviously" benefiting from PEDs?

Year Age   G    PA   AB  HR  AB/HR1986  22   18   58   53   3  17.671987  23  151  641  557  49  11.371988  24  155  635  550  32  17.191989  25  143  587  490  33  14.851990  26  156  650  523  39  13.411991  27  154  585  483  22  21.951992  28  139  571  467  42  11.121993  29   27  107   84   9   9.331994  30   47  172  135   9  15.001995  31  104  422  317  39   8.131996  32  130  548  423  52   8.131997  33  156  657  540  58   9.311998  34  155  681  509  70   7.271999  35  153  661  521  65   8.022000  36   89  321  236  32   7.382001  37   97  364  299  29  10.31

Now, if you've figured that out, take a look at Barry Bonds and make the same determination for him.

Year Age   G    PA  AB   HR  AB/HR1986  21  113  484  413  16  25.811987  22  150  611  551  25  22.041988  23  144  614  538  24  22.421989  24  159  679  580  19  30.531990  25  151  621  519  33  15.731991  26  153  634  510  25  20.401992  27  140  612  473  34  13.911993  28  159  674  539  46  11.721994  29  112  474  391  37  10.571995  30  144  635  506  33  15.331996  31  158  675  517  42  12.311997  32  159  690  532  40  13.301998  33  156  697  552  37  14.921999  34  102  434  355  34  10.442000  35  143  607  480  49   9.802001  36  153  664  476  73   6.522002  37  143  612  403  46   8.762003  38  130  550  390  45   8.672004  39  147  617  373  45   8.292005  40   14   52   42   5   8.402006  41  130  493  367  26  14.122007  42  126  477  340  28  12.14

Now that you've got it figured out and you're confident that you're correct, look at the AB/HR rates for Babe Ruth and Jeff Kent.

Ruth

Year Age   G    PA   AB  HR  AB/HR1914  19    5   10   10   0  1915  20   42  103   92   4  23.001916  21   67  150  136   3  45.331917  22   52  142  123   2  61.501918  23   95  380  317  11  28.821919  24  130  542  432  29  14.901920  25  142  615  457  54   8.461921  26  152  693  540  59   9.151922  27  110  495  406  35  11.601923  28  152  699  522  41  12.731924  29  153  681  529  46  11.501925  30   98  426  359  25  14.361926  31  152  652  495  47  10.531927  32  151  691  540  60   9.001928  33  154  684  536  54   9.931929  34  135  587  499  46  10.851930  35  145  676  518  49  10.571931  36  145  663  534  46  11.611932  37  133  589  457  41  11.151933  38  137  575  459  34  13.501934  39  125  471  365  22  16.591935  40   28   92   72   6  12.00

Kent

Year Age   G    PA   AB  HR  AB/HR1992  24  102  343  305  11  27.731993  25  140  544  496  21  23.621994  26  107  452  415  14  29.641995  27  125  514  472  20  23.601996  28  128  477  437  12  36.421997  29  155  651  580  29  20.001998  30  137  594  526  31  16.971999  31  138  585  511  23  22.222000  32  159  695  587  33  17.792001  33  159  696  607  22  27.592002  34  152  682  623  37  16.842003  35  130  552  505  22  22.952004  36  145  606  540  27  20.002005  37  149  637  553  29  19.072006  38  115  473  407  14  29.072007  39  136  562  494  20  24.702008  40  121  474  440  12  36.67

So, if improved home run rates are sufficient evidence of who was using steroids and who wasn't, what was Ruth using in 1920, 1921, 1927, and 1928? What was Jeff Kent using in 1997 and 1998 when his home run rate improved dramatically, and why couldn't he sustain that rate in 1999 and 2001?

We can't reliably identify PEDs usage from the home run rate stats, unless we believe that Babe Ruth was using them too. The Mitchell Report simply repeats unsubstantiated allegations. Both Canseco's and Jeff McGwire's books are seriously lacking in credibility. The single piece of evidence which seems most damning is McGwire's refusal to testify about PEDs usage before Congress, but the reason doesn't have to be the one that most people are assuming.

[Migrant Redbird]

A humorous take on the Canseco allegations from Slate. This was written back in 2005, but I just ran across it.

For those who have marveled at baseball's homoerotic rituals—the butt-slapping, the excessive man-hugs—let Jose Canseco, author of Juiced, add a more intimate encounter. Canseco claims that while he was playing for the Oakland A's in the late 1980s, he and teammate Mark McGwire would lock themselves in a bathroom stall and inject each other with steroids. Pause on that image for a moment. Canseco was 6 feet 4 inches and weighed in the neighborhood of 250 pounds; McGwire was 6 feet 5 inches and adding beef like an Arby's franchise—for the two of them to squeeze into a men's room stall must have presented something of a geometric challenge. Now imagine McGwire gently lowering his uniform pants while Canseco ("I'm a good injector") hovers over his derriere with a syringe, and add the fact that these men are enjoying this ritual immensely, even laughing about it, and there you have an enduring image of the Bash Brothers.

.... There's a great memoir buried inside this half-great one, and it has nothing to do with steroids. Canseco, who was born in Cuba, was a rarity in 1988: a Latin baseball superstar. He's also the first Latin ballplayer to write an important memoir, and every page seethes with racial resentment. Canseco lashes the media for giving preferential treatment to white stars like McGwire and Cal Ripken Jr.—who he says behaved just as wretchedly as he did but were spared the public vilification. Seizing on his arrests for battery and weapons possession, the media portrayed him as an out-of-control Cuban lout. "They always depicted me as the outsider, the outlaw, the villain. I was never ushered into that special club of all-American sports stars. … After all, I was dark." For all the miracles steroids performed on Canseco's body, that was the one thing Anadrol and Equipoise couldn't change.

Maybe Jose and Mark used the handicapped stall?

[beaner]

Is this still even a story? Honestly, aren't we past the whole "steroid thing"?