Baseball Takes Another Hit

I had planned on writing about something else today, but, as an avid baseball fan and fellow human being, I have to address the A-Rod (or A-Roid, as some of the media is calling him) debacle.
I can't say I'm shocked at his admission. His excuses for taking them - pressure to perform, a lot of people were doing it - are just that- excuses. Now, after denying these allegations for years, he's decided to come clean and say how sorry he is. Like others who have "come clean" only after some reporter has the goods on them, whether it's a pro athlete, a politician, or a respected member of your community, I cannot stomach to hear all the apologies and excuses. He's sorry? No, he's not sorry for what he did; he's sorry he got caught. He had many chances to come forward and he didn't. He cared more about his image than the truth.
But, what is disturbing me more, are some of the comments I've been hearing from sportscasters and fans. Scott Clark, the sportscaster on NY's Eyewitness News, an avowed Yankee fan, said in his report earlier that A-Rod has taken the " high road" by admitting his indiscretion. The high road? Is he kidding? The high road would have been to never have taken the substances at all or, at the very least, admit to it when the allegations first came out.
Also, ESPN just did a poll and the majority of respondents said they weren't really bothered that Rodriguez took steroids. What has happened to our society where people are so accepting of a pro athlete who lies and cheats? What are we teaching our children? It's ok to cheat; just don't get caught?
IMHO, any ballplayer proven to have taken steroids should not be allowed in the HOF and any records they break should be noted that they had taken performance enhancing drugs.
As far as steroid use in baseball, baseball itself has to shoulder some of the blame. Baseball owners, managers and trainers turned a blind eye to this and there were no consequences if you used drugs.
I am not a fan of Jose Canseco; I have never met the man, but he comes across as an arrogant a-hole. I also haven't read his book. When his book came out, he was called a liar, a traitor and was accused of just trying to make a quick buck. But, it seems, as time goes on, more and more of his allegations are being proven to be true.
I love baseball. I assume the majority of today's active players have never taken steroids. I hope that my faith is justified.