Now what?

The anticipated Mitchell Report dug up a lot of dirt. But the probe, as George Mithcell made clear, was not complete, and a lot of it is old news on players who have retired, or are in a decade-long approach to retiring (Roger Clemens).

Commisioner Bud Selig has vowed to act. But do you depend on a man who goes to his own press conference without full knowledge of the report?

I thought that was one of the most unbelieveable moments of Thursday's drama. The man in charge of baseball, the man who began this investigation, the man who had a copy of the report days before its release, has not read it. Maybe that is Bud being Bud. He protects himself by not knowing.

That is not leadership. Then again, what can Bud do, especially if the powerful Players' Association does not cooperate? Union boss Donald Fehr made it clear that this investigation was not necessary, and was begun without consultation with the union.

Without the union's cooperation, the investigation did not go far. Players wanted to protect themselves, so they didn't talk to Mitchell.

WIthout the players' help, Mitchell did not find out a lot, but when he did discover something, he was able to fire away, since the players refused to defend themselves.

So now we have Roger Clemens being dragged through the mud. Maybe he deserves it, based on the testimony of a former strength and conditioning coach, Brian McNamee. The Mitchell Report went out of its way to declare that McNamee was under the control of the U.S. Attorney's Office (i.e. a plea deal) and was testifying under the threat of perjury charges.

In other words, McNamee has few reasons to implicate Clemens, and a lot to lose if he's lying. Clemens' lawyer has denied the claim, but it will take more than that to clear his name.

Does the Mitchell report help baseball? Yes, and here is why: By naming some names and showing some of the ways these players obtained their steroids and human growth hormones, it sheds more light on a problem that has been in the dark so long.

Hopefully, it will prompt more action, with the commissioner and the Players Association trying harder ... that usually only happens with pressure (such as Congressional hearings, as well as evidence that the problem is out of control). That is the only reason that serious steroid testing came about.

Mitchell has called for Major League Baseball to create a Department of Investigations. MLB already has a security department, but they seem more concerned about managers wearing their proper jersey in a game.

A legitimate Department of Investigations, with authority to really investigate, would help MLB in the credibility department. Fans would know problems were being looked into - and not just put in a report (which apparently not everyone reads).

E-mail this entry to a friend