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Derek Jeter of the Yankees is one of the elite players that MSNBC.com columnist Michael Ventre wants to speak out against drug use among players.

Am I sure they’re clean? Of course not. They could all be walking around with more juice inside them than BALCO at its peak. But they’re all prominent names who command respect and who have thus far escaped the taint of steroids. It would be stirring if a few of them came out and castigated people who cheat.

Just about everyone in and around Major League Baseball allowed the drug issue to explode into a pandemic because of self-interests and because of the game’s version of the blue curtain that often exists among police.

Those who used steroids and other drugs wanted to produce unnaturally big numbers so they could get unnaturally large contracts. Protecting the integrity of the game now and in the future, and showing respect for those in the past who attained their storied statistics the old-fashioned way, weren’t even in the thought processes of guys hungry for glory and riches. They especially didn’t care if young players emulated their performance-enhancing shenanigans. The traditional attitude among the selfish is, “You’re on your own.”

Baseball failed to act for so long because it was prospering while preposterous numbers were posted by hulking heroes. I can almost understand it without condoning it. If everybody involved is happy with the status quo, then why change it?

Unfortunately, it changed with the BALCO revelations, and baseball may never be the same. With that in mind, it might be time for the game’s more honorable men to take the initiative here and demand action.

The current scourge is HGH, for which there is no known reliable test. But if a chorus of disapproval rang out from some of the game’s most respected stars, it might put pressure on others to avoid using HGH. Granted, if players really want to cheat, they’ll cheat regardless of what their elite colleagues say. Yet public lobbying from top-tier major leaguers could prove to be persuasive. Such action certainly would be preferable to what we have now, which is inaction.

Players caused this mess. By their short-sightedness and their wanton desire for instant gratification they put their own health and the well-being of baseball at risk.

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Right now the two groups are indistinguishable because the good guys haven’t separated themselves from the bad ones. Here’s hoping that will happen soon before the next Jason Grimsley comes along. 

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