Just My Darned Opinion: Are they worth it anymore?

Ryan Braun could've taken the easy way out, just admitted that he was using performance-enhancing drugs, and everybody could've gone on their merry ways. But he went on a different journey instead and became the only the most recent performance-enhanced villain of the sports world.

Depressing? Yeah, maybe. But it doesn’t have to be the end of one’s enjoyment of sports. We just have to be watchful of who and what we’re rooting for – and yes, keep rooting for them, especially in baseball.

Look, it’s not like many people don’t already make compromises with which public entertainers they admire. Some rock stars who come up with soul-stirring music do drugs. Some celebrities who command screens big and small cheat on the people they love.

Now, I’m speaking for myself here, but knowing the rather legendary extracurricular activities of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards doesn’t make “Exile on Main Street” any less awesome of a CD. I go to David Letterman for laughs, not relationship advice.

The point I’m belaboring to make is, I’m not naïve about the upside and downside of my favorite entertainers. Enjoying someone’s work doesn’t mean accepting them whole cloth and idolizing them. They have one function: Entertain. They do that, then it’s mission accomplished with me. Less chance of getting burned that way.

Baseball players are in the same category although, sometimes, they seem different because the field they’re in, as many have pointed out, is more of a meritocracy. As an uncle of mine once said about why track is great: “It doesn’t matter what your last name is.” Cronyism and nepotism infect the other arenas of public life, but they really do take a back seat in baseball. One can come from the richest, most famous family in the world, but money can’t buy a great batting eye. There’s a purity to that.

But when some players, who are supposed to represent the advancement of human potential and determination, take shortcuts to get to the top, it seems like a betrayal, a dirtying of that purity. There’s truth in that, unfortunately. And it stains every other player, no matter their levels of innocence.

At this point, however, it should no longer be on the players to lift us up. We should be the ones deciding who does the lifting, and how much.

Consider taking an a la carte of greatness. We should love the blazing fastball, the great catch and the quick, crisp swing of the bat. We also maybe could enjoy their comments on Twitter, or something intriguing said during an interview. And then leave it at that.

Also, we shouldn’t accept those who are pandering or condescending. Kick to the curb any athlete who pathetically tries to have us relate them by saying they “made some mistakes,” like Braun did. A mistake is smaller in scope, pal. A mistake is forgetting to buy milk when getting groceries at the supermarket. A mistake is NOT “put a bunch of illegal stuff in my system to make me a better, richer player,” followed by “get all indignant while lying.”

OK, so all that means pro baseball players maybe can be tolerated. So why should we go beyond that and root for them? Because there seems to be a sea change happening. In the wake of the Braun deal, there seems to be a groundswell of anger among the players. It’s disgust, not just disappointment. The ones who claim to be clean are tired of being lumped in with the liars and the cheats.

And some may see the road this is going down – severely decreased earning power due to longer suspensions – and will try to do all they can to avoid it. Here, the ends could justify the means. That’s the opportunity baseball needs to take the next step and crush the money opportunities of anyone who is caught cheating. Knock ‘em down to the minimum salary and not allow any more. Deny them any and all possible bonuses or post-playing-days benefits. Find some way to cut off most of the money, and things will turn around fast. They just took away about half a year’s salary from Braun; why stop there? The players can bring that about in their union, to save their own images if nothing else.

So yeah, baseball players can be rooted for in the post-Braun era. He should almost be thanked because, in his own misguided, self-serving way, Ryan Braun may end up being the guy who helped baseball’s image.

You can follow me on Twitter, or email me at bwzwriter@yahoo.com. And check out my sci-fi e-book, “Shock Effect,” here and here. Thanks.