An error, a gyroball and a strike

In his tenure, Bud Selig has done a fantastically poor job as the commissioner of Major League Baseball. His conflict of interests has continued to toil, only to be overshadowed by his absolute negligence toward addressing the steroid problem.

And yet, in spite of it all, baseball continues on. There are a number of interesting stories brewing as this long season gets underway. But one, thanks to Selig’s inaction, threatens to dwarf them all. Naturally, it centers on Barry Bonds.

Bombs dropping on Bonds

The New York Times reported Wednesday the possibility of federal prosecutors interrupting Barry Bonds’ season before he breaks Hank Aaron’s home run record because they care more about the sanctity of baseball than Selig. Bonds, who currently has 734 career homers after hitting 26 last year, needs just 22 to break Aaron’s mark of 755.

Bonds’ lawyer Michael Rains told Times columnist Selena Roberts he expects federal prosecutor Jeff Novitzky to make a move on the accused player sooner rather than later. “I think he is so fixed on Barry getting the record that he would want to take him out first,” Rains said.

It appears as if Rains has correctly identified the most substantial threat to his clients, but that’s not how it ought to play out.

Selig needs to stop passing the buck. No more asking Congress to investigate the steroid problem–he needs to step up to the plate for once himself. It’s time for a real steroid policy to clean up this game before the core rots out. If baseball’s most heroic and cherished record is scarred with an asterisk, it’s goodnight nurse (and God help them all if Clemens is discovered to be a juicer).

Given his track record though, the odds are stacked against Selig (who took home a whopping $14.5 million in 2005) saving the day. More likely, he will continue to murmur, twiddle, frighten young children, and procrastinate on Bonds, hoping someone else fixes the problem for him.

But maybe there is a silver lining in this steroid cloud after all. If the string of spectacular wrongs culminates with another Bonds debacle, Selig’s terrible tenure may have finally run its course.

Luckily, there are a few truly baseball-related stories to look forward to.

Domo Arigato

Together, the Red Sox and Yankees paid over $75 million just for the exclusive rights to negotiate with two Japanese pitchers. Both ended up inking multi-year deals with the respective clubs, Boston taking the sensationalized Daisuke Matsuzaka and New York securing the lesser-known Kei Igawa.

Boston ended up paying $100 million to get the supposed gyroball-throwing Matsuzaka, who originally became popular after winning MVP in the World Baseball Classic. Igawa snuck over to the majors with very little commotion, but brings with him an assortment of pitches and a good resume. While playing for the Hanshin Tigers in 2006, he had 14 wins, nine losses and an ERA of 2.97 in 29 games. Conversely, Matsuzaka had 17 wins, five losses and an ERA of 2.13 in his 25 appearances.

The two pitchers are going to be under some serious pressure in lieu of their high-price tags, and figure to be interesting stories to follow, even if they flop. Either way, the expensive imports add extra flavor to what is by far the most exciting rivalry in baseball.

Injury-free Big Unit?

Perhaps Randy Johnson has some words of advice for Igawa, who will be taking over his old starting job. After two dismal seasons in the Bronx, Johnson recognized the bad mess he’d gotten himself into and headed back to his old home with the Diamondbacks.

After the disappointing rut he fell into in New York, Johnson is determined to rediscover his dominant self. He has recovered from back surgery and is reworking his game from the ground up-literally. Johnson just threw 60 pitches for Arizona’s Triple-A team and reported no ill after-effects.

With only the bright lights of his own unyielding competitive spirit, the 43-year-old (steroid-free) Johnson ought to be a delight to watch as he trudges on through the comeback trail.

Other comeback pitchers to watch this year will be the Cubs’ Kerry Wood and Mark Prior, the Brewers’ Ben Sheets and the Twins’ Francisco Liriano. Pitchers who dominated the game at one point and have since fallen off look to return in 2007.