An historic black-out on analysis of methods

"The Commissioner also retained the right to prohibit publication in this report of any information that he is under a legal duty to keep confidential.

• To enable him to make that determination, I agreed to provide his office the opportunity to review this report

three business days before it was released publicly.

• No material changes were made as a result of that review."

page SR-5, The Mitchell Report. But:

• The day before the report was to be released, Bud Selig said, "I haven't seen the report yet, but I'm proud I did it." (Reported by Chicago Tribune)

At the end of the same article Phil Rogers says MLB lawyers had been allowed to review it. He did not say anyone had in fact done so. Selig was charged with important legalities in the report, but conveyed no concern about them.

• The publicity surrounding the so-called Mitchell Report continues round the clock as of March 8, 2008--but only in the form of rehashing about select players or teams. There is no publicity about questionable methods and exclusions apparent in the report.
• In few walks of American life do you find such a complete black-out of analysis on the methods of an "historic" report.

Instead, on the front page of the NY Daily News' sports website is still a banner trumpeting false information about the Yankees "Championship Teams" (of 1996-2000) saying they were "fueled by steroids," and other drugs. The only name associated with steroids during those championships was Roger Clemens. Any other Radomski McNamee hearsay or paper evidence did not take place until after the 2000 season. I've posted the names and documentation from the Mitchell Report several times on this blog.

• On 12/23/07, The NY Daily News ran a story with the headline, "Reliever Dan Naulty from 1999 World Series Team Spills Ugly Truth on Steroids." The first sentence of their interview with him begins as follows:

"The night we won the World Series," etc.

• But Naulty was not on the World Series roster
• and according to his words didn't use steroids while on the Yankees (said steroid use was in the "off season.") SO HE DOESN'T QUALIFY AS FUELING A 'ROIDS CHAMPIONSHIP ANYWHERE. He had a minor role on the team as he described having been traded from the Twins to the Yankees in 1999 and coming off an injury.
• But he did not make the cut to the World Series team.
• With the opening statement ("The night we won the World Series') the reader is invited to believe he was and isn't invited by the News to think otherwise.

He appeared in some mop up relief appearances during that one season but "fueled" no Yankee championships. Among the media coverage Naulty received, the following is from the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, 12/15/07 by LaVelle Neal:

• "He stopped taking performance-enhancing drugs in 1999 with the Yankees -- and watched his velocity drop under 90.

• By 2000, Naulty was done with baseball. He did go to spring training with the Dodgers that year but already was thinking about doing something else.

The Star Tribune describes Naulty's stay with the Yankees as a bust. Something quite different from "fueling" a World Series Championship team. And says he stopped the drugs when he was with the Yankees.

• But from the NY Daily News Sports Website, 3/8/08:

"'Roids Report Bombs Bronx"

• "The Yankees' most recent championship teams were fueled by steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs, according to the explosive, long-anticipated report released Dec. 13 by former Sen. George Mitchell."

So, it was just the one player Clemens, who fits the "fueled by steroids" definition and/or performance enhancing drugs. Not the team. But no one gets an award for a headline like that.

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