Mark McGwire decided to come clean and finally admitted using steroids throughout his career, including the year he broke the single-season home run record.

McGwire had basically fallen off the map since dodging the steroid question in front of a congressional committee in March 2005. Now that the former Major League Baseball player is preparing to coach this season for the St. Louis Cardinals he must have thought it was best to address the issue prior to the season to avoid a media circus when spring training starts (Google Alex Rodriguez).

During an interview with the Associated Press, McGwire apologized. “The toughest thing is my wife, my parents, close friends have had no idea that I hid it from them all this time,” said McGwire. “I knew this day was going to come. I didn’t know when.”

McGwire went on to admit using steroids and HGH throughout a decade and during the time he broke Roger Maris’ home run record in 1998.

“I wish I had never touched steroids,” McGwire said. “It was foolish and it was a mistake.”

According to the AP, McGuire called Commissioner Bud Selig, St. Louis manager Tony La Russa and Maris’ widow, Pat to personally break the news then called the AP for the interview.

“It was a wrong thing what I did. I totally regret it. I just wish I was never in that era,” he said.

McGwire finished his career with 583 home runs, tied for eighth on the all-time list. His record of 70 home runs in 1998 only held up for three years then it was surpassed by Barry Bonds’ 73 homers in 2001. In addition, his resume includes 1987 AL Rookie of the Year and 12 trips to the All-Star Game.

Ironically this admission comes just days after the latest Hall Of Fame vote that saw McGwire get a mere 23 percent vote, well below the 75 percent necessary to make it to Cooperstown.

“This has nothing to do with the Hall of Fame,” he said. “This has to do with me coming clean, getting it off my chest, and five years that I’ve held this in. There’s no way a pill or an injection will give you hand-eye coordination or the ability or the great mind that I’ve had as a baseball player,” he said. “I was always the last one to leave. I was always hitting by myself. I took care of myself.”

He said he first used steroids between the 1989 and 1990 seasons, after helping the Oakland Athletics to a World Series sweep when he and Jose Canseco formed the Bash Brothers.

“When you work out at gyms, people talk about things like that. It was readily available,” he said. “I tried it for a couple of weeks. I really didn’t think much of it.”

He said he returned to steroids after the 1993 season after being told steroids might speed his recovery.

“I did this for health purposes. There’s no way I did this for any type of strength purposes,” he said.

McGwire’s 70 homers in 1998 was part of a head-to-head battle with Chicago Cubs Sammy Sosa who finished with 66. Sosa, like McGuire, has brushed off and denied using steroids thus far and was reprimanded when he was caught using an illegal bat around that same time.

Selig praised McGwire, saying, “This statement of contrition, I believe, will make Mark’s re-entry into the game much smoother and easier.” If anyone knows about damage control it’s Selig. The commissioner has had his hands full over the years with the New York Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez admitting using steroids, Bonds facing criminal charges accused of lying when questioned about steroids and Roger Clemens currently being investigated for possibly lying to Congress concerning his involvement in steroid use.

Rafael Palmeiro is another player who denied using steroids but then tested positive for one later that year.

“I’m sure people will wonder if I could have hit all those home runs had I never taken steroids,” McGwire said. “I had good years when I didn’t take any, and I had bad years when I didn’t take any. I had good years when I took steroids, and I had bad years when I took steroids. But no matter what, I shouldn’t have done it and for that I’m truly sorry.”

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Copyright © 2010 – Sports Climax

As stern criticism concerning Jose Canseco’s lack of character, ill-intentions and sleaze factor mounts, there seems to be a sudden shift in gears with his public relations strategy.

After glowing in the spotlight as MLB’s snitch of the century and taking in tons of cash, Canseco decides it’s time to say he is sorry and he does it in his new A&E documentary called, “Last Shot.”

Now bankrupt, Canseco said he is sorry he ever created his book ‘Juiced”, and sorry for outing his fellow MLB players for taking illegal steroids.

The following quotes from the book and other interviews have revealed a  character unconcerned about his fellow athletes and former friends.

During a past interview with Mike Wallace: “When the cameras stopped rolling, Wallace asked me if we could talk, off-camera. He kept me there for another hour, clearly curious about steroids. . . . He wondered how the steroids and human growth hormones (HGH) might help him, a man in his 80s, live a longer, healthier life. He wanted to know everything.”

In his book: “I met Mags (Magglio Ordonez) in 2001, when I was with the White Sox. When it was all said and done, when Maggs had the information he needed, he told me he was in. A few days later, we went into the back room in the clubhouse, and I jabbed a needle into his butt. ‘Ow,’ he said. ‘That hurt.’ ‘You’ll get used to it,’ I said.”

Canseco also mentioned the comments he made about Roger Clemens were edited out of interviews he had with ESPN and 60 Minutes and attributed that to the fact Clemens, who is a member of our Famous Mugshots Gallery, is from Texas and is very close to the Bush family.  “Clemens is a personal friend of Bush Sr. and his wife, Barbara. Clemens still has a standing invitation from Bush Jr. to visit the White House anytime. Getting the picture? Maybe the President of the United States, or his daddy, the ex-President, made some calls and took care of things for good ol’ Roger.”

In another chapter: “So A-Rod, if you’re reading this book, and if I’m not getting through to you, let’s get clear on one thing: I hate your — guts.”

Canseco’s National-Enquirer-like tale has ruined the careers, reputations and lives of several people including Clemens, Barry Bonds and Mark McGuire to name only a few.

Canseco’s life since retiring from baseball, has taken the route of a desperate man, whoring himself out to productions like Celebrity Boxing along the way; it doesn’t get much more pathetic than that.

Celebrity Boxing has included other people over the years who were trying desperately to cling to fame. There was a Tonya Harding vs. Clinton-sleaze Paula Jones, Refrigerator Perry vs. Manute Bol; and even a Partridge-family member vs. Brady Bunch member bout.

Canseco was knocked out in his bout by a sportscaster, Vai Sikahema. Canseco, 6-ft 4in, 245 lbs. got pummeled by the much smaller Sikahema, 5ft 9in, 205 lbs.

Sikahema knocked Canseco down with a left hook and again with a flurry of punches, both in the first round and the fight was called after just one round.

Entertainment? Depends who you ask.

Is his book ‘Juice’ entertainment? Depends who you ask.

So how sorry is Canseco, really?

Canseco recently released a second book slamming steroid use as well as the A&E documentary. Creating more negative exposure against the same sport and people he threw under the bus sounds more like a PR and marketing tour. It’s no wonder most people do not see any sincerity in his apology and look at it as another money-making scheme.

When filmmakers make a movie, they go on tour, doing interviews to draw attention to their movie and stir interest . . . the exact things Canseco is doing. If Canseco was sorry and concerned about the damage he has done why give it more exposure.

In this interview on A&E he recites a script that many feel are nothing but words without meaning, “I should not have written that book. The more I think about it the more I regret mentioning these players in my book because I admired them, I respected them.”

Respected them so much, that instead of trying to brush it under the rug; he writes a second book then goes in front of a camera talking about them.

Canseco goes on in his interview making statements that does nothing more than question his intelligence, “I never really realized this was going to blow up as big as it was going to blow up and hurt so many people.”

What planet has he been living on?

“If I could meet with Mark McGuire and these players I would definitely apologize to them because the more I think about it, the more wrong I was.”

If he were really sorry he would help pay for Bond’s and Clemen’s legal fees and pursue getting Mark McGuire into the Hall of Fame instead of going on his PR tour.

The only thing Canseco is sorry about is that very few people care what he has to say anymore so his new book sales are down and bill collectors are said to be banging on his door.

His greed and lack of concern for his fellow players and his sport will make him remembered as nothing but a greedy snitch who stabbed his friends in the back.

Copyright © 2008 – Sports Climax