“Palmeiro just tested positive for steroids?”
It was a surprising statement that no doubt was echoed around the country by numerous unsuspecting baseball fans, who probably developed a confused, dumbfounded look on their faces.
Major league baseball player and former Mississippi State athlete Rafael Palmeiro recently failed a drug test and just finished serving a ten-game suspension.
Palmeiro, the All-Star first baseman of the Baltimore Orioles, hails from Havana, Cuba, but played his collegiate years at State.
Palmeiro wore the maroon and white for three seasons from 1983 to 1985, earning All-American honors all three years, batting .415 in 1984 on his way to becoming the Southeastern Conference’s first Triple Crown winner.
Palmeiro was drafted in 1985 by the Chicago Cubs in the first round (22nd pick). He was called up to the majors for the final month of the 1986 season, batting .245 and belting three home runs.
These numbers were only the tip of the iceberg, as Palmeiro knocked in 30 RBI’s in 221 at-bats in 1987 before breaking into full-time duty in 1988, batting .307.
Rafael departed the Cubs in 1989, beginning alternating five-year stints with the Texas Rangers, Baltimore, and then again for the Rangers. He is currently in the second season of his second tour of duty with the Orioles.
Palmeiro tested positive for a banned substance sometime earlier this spring, only months after his March 17 appearance before a congressional committee, where he shook his finger vehemently at the investigating panel stating, “I have never used steroids. Period.”
The embarrassing turn of events that have followed have caused significant question as to the validity of Palmeiro’s 569 home runs – ninth most in major league history – as well as his 3,020 hits.
Current Mississippi State students are torn between their loyalty to an otherwise respectable player and alumni, and the need for justice to be served in a steroid scandal that is plaguing professional sports in America.
“There’s no telling how many players have done illegal stuff,” MSU senior Steven Odom said, “but they have to draw the line somewhere. It wouldn’t be right for Randy Moss not to get in trouble for drugs just because people got away with smoking pot in the NFL 20 years ago.”
The suspension and consequential negative media attention come at a time when MSU is well in the midst of erecting the Palmeiro Center, an indoor practice and office facility for Rafael’s former program.
The building is being funded in part by a gift from Palmeiro to MSU baseball. The unflattering moniker, “The House that ‘Roids Built,” has already been tossed around on message boards and chat rooms, providing a certain level of embarrassment to a program just three months removed from an SEC Tournament Championship.
Students, however, expressed no shame when asked about the scandal’s affect on their view of our program.
“As long as he wasn’t doing it here, I don’t think it involves us,” Chris McMillen said, an art major on campus.
“You can’t judge a program on one player,” Odom added. “It is ironic that this happened right after we named a building after him, and it’s unfortunate, but it’s not anything against our team.”
Head coach Ron Polk says that this black cloud will not change any plans to celebrate Palmeiro or his contributions to Mississippi State baseball.
“Anytime something like this happens it’s a little disconcerting,” Polk said, “but I don’t think it’s any kind of black mark. He was here 20 years ago. As I tell everybody, we’re still in support of Rafael. Right now he’s back playing, and we’re happy for that. Hopefully he stays healthy and finishes strong.
“The Palmeiro Center is rising out of the ground,” Polk continued, “and we hope to have some type of ceremony before the season starts, and we’ll move forward.”
One of the major debates stemming from the Palmeiro fallout is whether or not he should be admitted into the MLB Hall of Fame.
His numbers are comparable to some of the game’s greatest athletes, however some vilify his success as a byproduct of performance enhancing drugs.
“I don’t think he should get in,” student Drew Wilson said, “because who is to say how much of his numbers are because of him and how much are because of the steroids.”
Others feel that just because Palmeiro has tested positive, he does not stand alone in the timeline of baseball history as the only player to ever cheat.
“If he’s not going to get into the Hall of Fame, neither should Sammy Sosa, Mark McGuire, Barry Bonds or any pitcher who has ever doctored a baseball,” McMillen said.
Palmeiro’s former coach remains optimistic about his chances at being enshrined at Cooperstown, despite carrying the stigma of being the first upper tier player to test positive for a banned substance.
“By my estimation, I think now he’s going to have to put up a few more home runs, a few more hits,” Polk said. “But if he gets to the 600 home run mark it’d be tough to keep him out.”
Palmeiro has served his suspension, and is currently sitting out a few games with a minor ankle injury.