Or... Would the oversaturated media presence of those players make us just as jaded towards them as we are towards todays players. The earlier players are special because getting to watch them was special. Today we can watch nearly every game, and the playoffs and World series are on DVD. We can watch them anytime.
Another factor is how the press treated the players. Prewar many reporters travelled with the team at the teams expense. The team got good and regular PR, the papers got low cost articles for the sports section. The reporters were often friendly with the players, and at the very least had to get along with them on the road. So some stuff that would be a hotly reported scandal today was let slide (It also may have been considered less scandalous by the reporters)
There are some guys today who have been a bit lost in the shuffle of repeated scandals. In The SI article about Manny they showed the recent home run leaders (I can't recall exactly, but I think it was the 500+ homer guys since 2000 or something like that) Of the 7 there was one that hasn't been linked to steroids. Jim Thome, who has put up big but not gaudy numbers apparently without chemical help. And who hasn't gotten as much publicity as he probably deserves.
Steve B
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