Mitchell Report To Be Released Tomorrow

Sure, it won't fix baseball's history with performance enhancing drugs. The Mitchell Report isn't going to strike Bonds' tainted record from the books or change Jason Giambi's two home runs in game 7 of the 2003 ALCS. It's probably not even going to provide closure, but more likely controversy.

As a fan of the sport, however, I am eager to learn more about the "Steroids Era" of baseball, in which I grew up. I'm hoping none of my Red Sox heroes now, or childhood heroes of the past will be named in the report. At the same time, if a Red Sox player used performance enhancing drugs, I want to know.

And for all the players who kept their noses clean, perhaps it will provide some kind of justice. The players who are to be named in the report did cheat after all. No matter how much the virtues of this report are going to be debated over the next few weeks, the fact that these players cheated is black and white. It's not at all a grey issue.

When the report is released at 2 p.m. tomorrow, it's expected to release the names of about 50 players who used performance enhancing drugs. I expect many of them to be pitchers. With more and more importance on radar gun readings, there is just as much incentive to get your fastball up to 95 mph as there is to be able to hit home runs. And I expect many of baseball's recent "ageless" players to have been using steroids as a kind of fountain of youth.