Posted By:
Al C.risafulli1. The person in baseball I detest the most is Mark McGwire. Head and shoulders above anyone else. He took all the accolades and convinced us all that he was larger than life, a hero who restored the game in the wake of the Strike, a Great American, if you will. But when the rubber hit the road, he cowered in silence, and refused to "talk about the past" by answering any of the questions directed to him. In hindsight, his ability to get away with the use of whatever performance enhancers he used ushered in the steroid era, as players realized you could become a national hero by bending baseball's virtually nonexistent rules. On top of that, in front of Congress, he agreed to work towards educating kids and ridding baseball of steroids - then he crawled back into his hole and disappeared. He is a disgrace and I hope he's ashamed of himself. Plus, he's overrated.
Guys who cheat in baseball don't bother me. Cheating and baseball have gone hand in hand since the 19th century. In fact, it can be argued that the very notion of paying players to be on your team was once "cheating". Giving guys a "job" at your factory to get them on your team was once "cheating". Throwing a curveball was "cheating". But a guy who cheats and still wants to be America's Hero, well, I think a guy like that is a dirtbag.
2. Cap Anson for all the reasons stated above.
3. Bud Selig because I have no tolerance for incompetence.
4. Albert Belle because he was a real jerk.
5. Cal Ripken, Jr. I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I think he's overrated, the Streak hurt his team, he refused to move over to third base despite his managers' request (although he eventually did), and he refused to travel and room with his team. Furthermore, any shortstop that thinks he can call pitches from the infield has a serious ego problem.
-Al