An investigation that wants to be on steroids

This is ridiculous. Giambi does something almost no player ever does, and certainly something Selig has never done -- tell what he really thinks to a reporter -- and now he's told that he better tell Mitchell what he wants to hear, or else.

After Jason Giambi of the Yankees tacitly admitted last month to using steroids, Commissioner Bud Selig was placed in an awkward position. Selig wants to show that he is tough on steroid users, but punishing Giambi is problematic because if he used steroids, it occurred before Major League Baseball punished players for using performance-enhancing substances.

Would Selig try to fine or suspend Giambi? What would other players think if Giambi was punished for being honest about the past? How would it look if Selig did nothing?

Selig took a calculated approach yesterday when he asked Giambi, the Yankees’ designated hitter, to cooperate, within the next two weeks, with the investigation into the use of illegal performance-enhancing substances being conducted by the former Senator George Mitchell. If Giambi agrees to speak with Mitchell, it is believed he would be the first active player to do so.

In a statement, Selig strongly hinted that any possible punishment of Giambi would be influenced by whether he cooperated with Mitchell. Selig noted that his decision about Giambi would not be completed until after Giambi had a chance to meet with Mitchell.

“It is in the best interests of baseball for everyone, including players, to cooperate with Senator Mitchell in his investigation so that Senator Mitchell can provide me with a complete, thorough report,” Selig said. “Discipline for wrongdoing is important, but it is also important to create an environment so players can feel free to honestly and completely cooperate with this important investigation.”

By asking Giambi to cooperate with Mitchell, Selig is apparently trying to appear to be a disciplinarian while also offering Giambi a way to avoid a possible punishment. If Selig announced a stern punishment yesterday, it would have in effect told players that they could be disciplined for being candid. It might have also ruined the slim chance Mitchell has of getting players to speak with him in an investigation that is now 15 months old.

"Disciplined?" For what? Saying he "did stuff" before there was a policy. Saying he "did stuff" back when Selig was basking in the glow of Sosa and McGuire chasing Maris's record?

Pitcher Mike Mussina, the Yankees’ player representative, was asked if he thought Selig’s approach would work.

“To say either help us or you’re suspended? No,” Mussina said. “But Bud thinks he can do whatever he wants, so we’ll find out.”

Mitchell's investigation is a joke; a CYA beard to keep Congress off of Selig's back (even as MLB now has the strongest testing policy in American professional sports). This was a stupid gambit on Selig's part, because now it's really caught the attention of the Players' Union. And there's a reason it's the most powerful labor union in the United States.

Meanwhile, Ozzie Guillen thinks MLB is targeting Latin players.

Oh, and speaking of sports unions, there's a reason the NFL players' union is the paid monkey of the team owners.