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No Matter What, Baseball Survives

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By IRA KAUFMAN | The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 28, 2009

ST. PETERSBURG - In some ways, baseball is the ultimate survivor sport.

What other competition has been forced to overcome work stoppages, betting scandals and All-Star ties?

Pro football may claim to be America's Game, but baseball holds a special place in our heart that not even A-Rod, Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire or Roger Clemens can destroy.

Major League Baseball celebrated its past and discussed its future last week during the Governor's Dinner at Tropicana Field, where Hall of Famers Al Kaline and Robin Roberts mingled with Rays manager Joe Maddon and Yankees GM Brian Cashman.

Also on hand were Commissioner Bud Selig and former Lightning president Ron Campbell, once a promising high school second baseman in Michigan.

Before the festivities began, The Tampa Tribune caught up with some of the guests to talk about baseball's special resiliency.

Has baseball proven beyond a doubt that it's here to stay?

Kaline: Baseball survives everything that comes its way, but I must say that players today are testing the very sport itself. There may be down periods here and there, but then a new team like the Tampa Bay Rays comes along like last year and gets everyone excited again about our great game.

Campbell: For a sport that has faced so many challenges, it's remarkable the way baseball has prospered.

Roberts: It's amazing. With all the bad stuff that has affected baseball in recent years, players and fans just can't get enough of it.

Cashman: People love it, and this is a sport that has withstood the test of time. Everyone in this game has a responsibility to protect it.

Maddon: Every 20 or 30 years, it seems something significant happens that you would think would stop us from continuing, yet baseball endures. What would happen if we didn't have baseball in the summertime? I think there would be a tremendous void.

What is it about baseball that allows the sport to overcome such adversity?

Maddon: It is so much a part of the American fabric. Our history is a lot longer than other sports, and you can play it at any size. It's a sport for every man. Baseball is fathers tossing balls to their kids and forming a bond. If you're talking about a distinctly American game, it's ours - and it's not going away.

Kaline: Greed is a terrible thing, and it can do a lot of damage, but baseball is too good a sport to be down for long. There's something about baseball that brings people together.

Selig: Baseball has more parity than any other professional sport and greater than at any time in our great history. This sport today is more popular than it's ever been and it will set records again in future years.

Campbell: It's an innate sport. There's something different about baseball. It's American pie, it's grass-roots Americana.

How well is baseball handling the steroids issue?

Kaline: It's very unfortunate for Alex Rodriguez to be the only name to get out from a list of 104 players. He's taking the brunt of it for the other 103 right now. Hopefully, baseball has its act together and stays ahead of the curve.

Maddon: In his very difficult job, Bud Selig has to satisfy a variety of people with different interests. I have a lot of respect for the man and what he's doing. Let's remember that the majority of players did not use steroids, but some did. I am here to support what the sport of baseball is doing. If we consistently lance boils, it's not going to heal. At some point, we have to draw the line and almost create a kind of amnesty.

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