Caminiti not deserving of honor
Saturday, April 23, 2005
By Ron Cook, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
What's next? Charles Manson Night at Dodger Stadium? Or maybe Jeffrey Dahmer Night at Milwaukee's Miller Park?
OK, so those are ridiculous and inappropriate suggestions. It's not as if Ken Caminiti was a mass murderer. But he was a steroids cheat, an alcoholic and a cocaine abuser, presumably right up until the day he died in October at the way-too-young age of 41.
What in the world were the San Diego Padres doing by honoring Caminiti at Petco Park Thursday night?
It's hard to say what was more offensive -- the timing of Ken Caminiti Night or the words Padres officials used to describe him before, during and after the ceremony. "Warrior" seemed to be the popular choice, as if playing a baseball game with a pulled hamstring makes for a true American hero. Sorry, Pat Tillman was a warrior, not Caminiti. You have to wonder what the war veterans in attendance thought during the Caminiti tribute, which included his number 21 etched in the grass behind home plate, a scoreboard video presentation, gifts to his ex-wife and three daughters, the whole nine yards.
But the timing of Caminiti Night, on what would have been his 42nd birthday, was worse. Steroids in baseball have never been more of a hot-button issue because of BALCO, Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, the Congressional hearings, etc. At a time when just about everyone is trying to spread the word about the dangers of steroids use, especially to young people, the Padres made the decision to honor a man who admitted that steroids helped him win the 1996 National League Most Valuable Player award.
That's unconscionable.
Caminiti was the first high-profile baseball player to go public with details about his steroid use. He told Sports Illustrated in 2002 that he began using the drugs after a shoulder injury midway through the 1996 season. He hit 28 home runs after the All-Star break that year after not hitting more than 26 in any season to that point, leading the Padres to their first division title in 12 years. In 1998, while still using steroids, he hit 29 home runs and led the team to the World Series.
It's no wonder Caminiti wasn't remorseful in the Sports Illustrated article.
"Look at the money in the game," he told the magazine. "[Alex Rodriguez] got $252 million. So I can't say, 'Don't do it,' not when the guy next to you is big as a house and he's going to take your job and make money ...
"I've made a ton of mistakes. I don't think using steroids is one of them."
Caminiti was arrested for cocaine possession in 2001. He violated his parole in 2004 with a positive test for cocaine. His sudden death in New York Oct. 10 was attributed to a drug overdose, coronary artery disease and an enlarged heart.
"It's a tragedy he's not with us," Padres manager Bruce Bochy told the San Diego Union-Tribune this week.
A tragedy, sure.
But the cold, hard truth?
Caminiti's death was a self-imposed tragedy.
That didn't make Caminiti a bad person, just a sick one. By all accounts, he was a wonderful teammate, beloved by those he played with. "This guy was all about winning and sacrificing himself," Bochy told the Union-Tribune. "No one can take away from how he handled himself on the field and in the clubhouse. I consider myself fortunate to have this guy with me as a player and a friend."
Certainly, Caminiti was a crowd favorite in San Diego, right there with Tony Gwynn and Randy Jones. Padres fans reacted warmly to the tribute Thursday night and had given Caminiti an enormous ovation when he was introduced after the final game at Qualcomm Stadium in 2003 even after his steroids and cocaine use were common knowledge.
That's not surprising, in a perverse kind of way. Caminiti was a great player. Many in San Diego credit his and the Padres' success in the late 1990s as the driving force behind getting the public funding it took to build Petco Park and keep the team in town.
But, really, isn't there something dead wrong with standing and applauding a drug addict?
It's hard to say why Padres officials decided to hold a Caminiti Night. Perhaps they just wanted to wash his blood off their hands. In the spring, general manager Kevin Towers said he had long suspected Caminiti's steroids use and wondered publicly if Caminiti still might be alive if he had done something about it. That angered owner John Moores. "Inappropriate guilt," he called it. But who knows? Maybe Moores was feeling some of that same guilt, too, when he came up with the idea to do a Caminiti tribute.
But the place to eulogize Caminiti was at his funeral.
Doing it at Petco Park sent the wrong message at the wrong time.
Saturday, April 23, 2005
By Ron Cook, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
What's next? Charles Manson Night at Dodger Stadium? Or maybe Jeffrey Dahmer Night at Milwaukee's Miller Park?
OK, so those are ridiculous and inappropriate suggestions. It's not as if Ken Caminiti was a mass murderer. But he was a steroids cheat, an alcoholic and a cocaine abuser, presumably right up until the day he died in October at the way-too-young age of 41.
What in the world were the San Diego Padres doing by honoring Caminiti at Petco Park Thursday night?
It's hard to say what was more offensive -- the timing of Ken Caminiti Night or the words Padres officials used to describe him before, during and after the ceremony. "Warrior" seemed to be the popular choice, as if playing a baseball game with a pulled hamstring makes for a true American hero. Sorry, Pat Tillman was a warrior, not Caminiti. You have to wonder what the war veterans in attendance thought during the Caminiti tribute, which included his number 21 etched in the grass behind home plate, a scoreboard video presentation, gifts to his ex-wife and three daughters, the whole nine yards.
But the timing of Caminiti Night, on what would have been his 42nd birthday, was worse. Steroids in baseball have never been more of a hot-button issue because of BALCO, Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, the Congressional hearings, etc. At a time when just about everyone is trying to spread the word about the dangers of steroids use, especially to young people, the Padres made the decision to honor a man who admitted that steroids helped him win the 1996 National League Most Valuable Player award.
That's unconscionable.
Caminiti was the first high-profile baseball player to go public with details about his steroid use. He told Sports Illustrated in 2002 that he began using the drugs after a shoulder injury midway through the 1996 season. He hit 28 home runs after the All-Star break that year after not hitting more than 26 in any season to that point, leading the Padres to their first division title in 12 years. In 1998, while still using steroids, he hit 29 home runs and led the team to the World Series.
It's no wonder Caminiti wasn't remorseful in the Sports Illustrated article.
"Look at the money in the game," he told the magazine. "[Alex Rodriguez] got $252 million. So I can't say, 'Don't do it,' not when the guy next to you is big as a house and he's going to take your job and make money ...
"I've made a ton of mistakes. I don't think using steroids is one of them."
Caminiti was arrested for cocaine possession in 2001. He violated his parole in 2004 with a positive test for cocaine. His sudden death in New York Oct. 10 was attributed to a drug overdose, coronary artery disease and an enlarged heart.
"It's a tragedy he's not with us," Padres manager Bruce Bochy told the San Diego Union-Tribune this week.
A tragedy, sure.
But the cold, hard truth?
Caminiti's death was a self-imposed tragedy.
That didn't make Caminiti a bad person, just a sick one. By all accounts, he was a wonderful teammate, beloved by those he played with. "This guy was all about winning and sacrificing himself," Bochy told the Union-Tribune. "No one can take away from how he handled himself on the field and in the clubhouse. I consider myself fortunate to have this guy with me as a player and a friend."
Certainly, Caminiti was a crowd favorite in San Diego, right there with Tony Gwynn and Randy Jones. Padres fans reacted warmly to the tribute Thursday night and had given Caminiti an enormous ovation when he was introduced after the final game at Qualcomm Stadium in 2003 even after his steroids and cocaine use were common knowledge.
That's not surprising, in a perverse kind of way. Caminiti was a great player. Many in San Diego credit his and the Padres' success in the late 1990s as the driving force behind getting the public funding it took to build Petco Park and keep the team in town.
But, really, isn't there something dead wrong with standing and applauding a drug addict?
It's hard to say why Padres officials decided to hold a Caminiti Night. Perhaps they just wanted to wash his blood off their hands. In the spring, general manager Kevin Towers said he had long suspected Caminiti's steroids use and wondered publicly if Caminiti still might be alive if he had done something about it. That angered owner John Moores. "Inappropriate guilt," he called it. But who knows? Maybe Moores was feeling some of that same guilt, too, when he came up with the idea to do a Caminiti tribute.
But the place to eulogize Caminiti was at his funeral.
Doing it at Petco Park sent the wrong message at the wrong time.
