Show Congressional Baseball Hearings Strike Out Fay Vincent Special to The Hartford Courant The last time I appeared before Congress to discuss baseball issues I told the dozens of reporters covering the Bismarck was correct TheIron The TheIron TheIron event that Iron Chancellor had said There are two things a person should never watch being manufactured sausages and legisla legisla- tion His point was shown last week by the grim spectacle of a congressional committee committee committee com com- attempting to conduct a public investigation into the steroid problem in baseball Neither the committee nor baseball distinguished itself and the only likely winner in the sordid drama has been the public which finally got some solid information on what has been going on inside baseball Some things are clear There is a asteroid asteroid asteroid steroid problem in baseball and Congress has noticed Last year the players union and the owners were forced to reopen their collective bargaining bargaining bargain bargain- ing agreement in midterm and renegotiate program Clearly some ate a testing drug-testing remarkable part of the impetus for that concession by the union was pressure from Sen John McCain and President efforts to players support Bush But most rid baseball of steroids The new testing drug-testing program was announced with a flourish by Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig and union executive director Donald Fehr Although the new policy was a solid step forward it was criticized by some including Sen Jim Bunning s sHall a aHall aHall Hall of Fame pitcher for not including sufficiently harsh penalties and for foi excluding some forms of drugs such as amphetamines But the new policy had the support of McCain who had threatened threatened threatened threat threat- ened legislation if baseball did not begin tough testing programs and most of us thought baseball was heading in the right direction Then the story turned ugly On the eve of the Thursday hearings we learned that the new agreement had not been finally agreed to It had not been signed and different parts of it were significantly from what was described by Fehr and Selig when it was originally announced McCain fired frred off an angry letter to the parties saying he was at least misled voiced The chairmen of the committee dismay and baseball representatives entered the hearing clearly on the sive The hearing itself was pure theater but not good theater The members' members questions questions questions ques ques- were seldom crisp or focused The and only important witnesses were Selig Fehr and there was limited time for them One wonders what purpose was served by including testimony from parents parents parents par par- school player who killed of a high himself when he went off steroids And why did Congress have to for th that t matter drag before us several players mentioned I as users of steroids by Jose Canseco who is becoming the Whittaker Chambers of this topic Not surprisingly there were few winners winners winners win win- ners in the hearing Bunning led off with witha a bunt that was anticipated He called the new agreement a baby step and proposed proposed proposed pro pro- posed much more severe sanctions for steroid use The committee demonstrated the difficulty of dealing with a complex subject with only five minutes allocated to each member for questions There were repeated threats to remove baseballs baseball's antitrust immunity something something something some some- thing Congress has failed to do for 70 years On the other hand the committee made very clear that it strongly supports a much tougher steroid policy and Fehr at least professed to be listening Yet it is very unlikely any legislation will come out of all this Selig is overmatched in the public arena He is a master of the inside game of owners' owners politics and is often and mated He has considerable skills loves baseball but he comes off badly in these kinds of hearings Despite a stumble stumble stumble is remarkable legal talent talent talent tal tal- tal- tal ble or two Fehr a ent but he is totally committed to his players and sees his obligation as protecting protecting protecting pro pro- them and not the game He once told me that the future of the and not his He concern was my game through this drill and Selig have gone before They appear to believe Congress is a paper tiger not to be taken seriously I think they are very likely correct |