I'd actually completely forgotten about the whole Jerod Morris to-do until Geoff Baker reminded me of it this morning. And, not five minutes later, as part of an unrelated query, I ran across this post from the Toronto Star's Damien Cox:
When it comes to Jose Bautista, how is it exactly that at the age of 29 he's suddenly become the most dangerous power hitter in baseball?
...The Blue Jays, we know, have quietly become known as a bit of a nest for alleged steroid abusers over the years. Clemens played here. Gregg Zaun has been implicated. Ditto for Troy Glaus.
And now comes Bautista. Blue Jay fans will, of course, angrily respond to the suggestion that everything isn't on the up-and-up, just as I remember getting bushels of bitter emails from baseball fans when questioning Mark McGwire's open use of androstenedione back when he was smashing Roger Maris' record.
One could argue rather convincingly that Cox's post is even worse than Morris' with regard to its accusatory tone, since Morris at least dedicated some space to trying to disprove the idea. Cox didn't do anything of the sort. In sum:
Morris: Raul Ibanez is doing well. These mathematical adjustments don't account for the improvement we've seen. We have to ask the question.
Cox: Jose Bautista is doing well. We have to ask the question.
I'm not mad. I'm not even annoyed. I don't care about Jerod Morris, I don't care about Damien Cox, and I don't care about how blogs are seen by the mainstream media. I just feel it's important to acknowledge that, while some blogs will say some shady things, the papers don't exactly keep their noses clean. If Morris deserved to get ripped to pieces for his post, then Cox ought be shred to tinier bits.
It isn't about bloggers vs. media types. It's about quality vs. shit, no matter the source.