Levine: Hall Of Fame Will Include PED Users At Some Point

By Bruce Levine-

(CBS) Sooner or later, the hallowed halls of the Baseball Hall of Fame will include players who used performance-enhancing drugs. For all anyone is sure of, players who used some form of HGH or steroids may already have a golden plaque in the Cooperstown museum.

This summation is a simple case to make. As a media member covering baseball for the last 34 years, I've never seen a player take a performance-enhancing drug or cream -- ever. Neither has any other writer or broadcaster that covers the sport, to the best of my knowledge.

My point is we will never know how many players cheated during their MLB careers and used illegal drugs. That being the case, why does the Hall of Fame not direct voters to vote on the steroid era for what it was?

Unless a former player is on baseball's suspended or restricted list, voting should be based on what you are sure of, not what you think may have happened. The Baseball Writers' Assocation that does the voting should have a much clearer directive from the good people who run the museum. The writers should have a list of guidelines on how to judge or ignore possible PED rumors when voting. This information should clearly spell out to each voter what substantive  evidence you need in determining how to vote for this era.

The biggest test case will be whether Mike Piazza is enshrined in the very near future. Speculation on Piazza has been floated in baseball circles for 15 years. Piazza has never failed a drug test or had any former player come out and say he cheated. In his case, with a major league-record 398 home runs as a catcher, why have some voters (69 percent this year) had him on the ballot while others have ignored his accomplishments?

The answer is simple: Some people who vote don't want to guess.

My friend Bob Nightingale from USA Today just votes by a player's record regardless of steroid implications. He isn't wrong, but neither is the writer who at this point has to guess on a players possible PED use in determining his list.

The number of Hall of Fame players who used speed in the form of greenies or red juice during their careers is probably well over 100. The use of this type of  performance enhancer has been laughed off by former players as a mere stimulant for one game, not a drug that continues to give an edge.

Lots of hypocrites in all areas of life make up their own rules about what is acceptable and what isn't. Maybe Jane Clark Forbes, who runs the Hall of Fame, will come to the realization that she needs to give the steroid era some recognition for having existed and impacted the game and record books forever.

At this point, Forbes has let the baseball writers twist and agonize over how to vote. Her inaction has made the writers try to be judge and jury and chemist all at the same time.

Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.