In the wake of the leaked positive test results of Manny Ramierez and David Ortiz back in 2003, there has been unrest on what exactly should happen, and what should happen with the rest of the names on the list. We debated all morning in an e-mail chain that you can decide for yourself what the MLB should do.

Brian: It’s so lame they don’t just release all of the positive test names. The big ones are out there, so why don’t they release the rest of them…

Andre: Apparently Clemens wasn’t on the list, but we all know that Barry Bonds is crapping in his pants every time he hears more names have been leaked.

Tony:If they released, the MLB would be sued immediately by people as well as the players union. Legally they can’t just release because of privacy.

Brian: So who’s getting sued for all of these leaks then? If I was the players union, I’d be going after someone…

Nelson:MLB has not been the ones to officially leak anything, hence why they cannot say, “Here’s the whole list”…. like Tony said, a mess of lawsuits and headaches would come from it.  These names will just continue to trickle out.

Andy:MLB has the rights to this information for they were the ones conducting the test, for the good of baseball they should concede both the players union and MLB with a stipulation that no action will be taken against them.

Tony: The players Union exists for the exactly the opposite to happen. They are there to protect the player across every possible spectrum including players privacy. If a players name on that list isn’t public yet, they will fight to keep it that way.

I do agree it’s pretty much BS at this point however.

Nelson:You guys are all living in a fantasy land….the tests were CONFIDENTIAL.  MLB will never just release the whole list.  It may all get leaked, but you will never see MLB publicize it.

Andy:Nelson your missing the point I am saying what would be best for the game not that this will magically happen.  MLB is just like every other business which at this point is filled with lies, cheats and people covering them up. 

Nelson:What point am I missing?  You guys keep saying what MLB and the players union should be doing.  I’m just saying why it shouldn’t and won’t happen.  It might be best for you to enjoy the game, but it is not best for the business of baseball.

Andy: See I disagree 100% I don’t think bleeding out a list of the course of the next 5 years and constant wondering if your favorite star player took steroids is “best for business”.  Ownership needs to be taken on topic because as the onion slowly get peeled back fans will become more and more discouraged.  Especially in a economic downturn, I mean 1994 people got fed up with high salaries in a recession and it took years to get the fan base back.

Nelson: What I am saying is that opening up the flood gates and saying, “Here’s the whole list, wonder no more” which then opens up the lawsuits that was previously mentioned is not best for business.  I don’t buy the John Q. Public wondering about who did (is?) take steroids is hurting business all that much.  Baseball is hotter than ever right now.  Have you honestly stopped watching any games or buying merchandise because of this?  No you haven’t so why would anyone else?

The fan base went away in 1994 because of the strike.  Baseball is still being played despite these news items, so it’s not the same thing.  There is still something to watch, and since this test was years ago, it really is somewhat irrelevant at this point in time.

Andre: It’s funny, the conversation went from what’s right and wrong in terms of morality, fairness and legality to those names already leaked, to what’s god and bad for the game of baseball financially.

What happened there?  Talk about missing the point, it’s not about how baseball will be affected financially, it’s about gaining the respect and trust of the fans back.  Baseball needs to prove itself worthy of their fans after looking the other way for way too long and hiding information from the public who are the only victims here.  We have watched the entire situation turn into a gigantic circus of smoke and mirrors, sample tests with hidden results,  and privacy contracts that aren’t even really being enforced because they can’t.  The MLB Players Union is not a victim, they are the culprit and shouldn’t be able to hide behind the false pretense of secrecy from sample testing.  MLB Owners and MLB Front Office were enablers willing to put profit ahead of the truth the fans deserved.  NO ONE in baseball should expect any sympathy, the fans are the ones who deserve this way before the millionaires walking around on egg shells waiting for their name to be dropped next.

Matt: Did you guys catch “More to Love” last night?….