“In the end,” said Palmeiro, “the only regret I have is a mistake in judgment. I didn’t really know what I was doing and what I was getting into and I’m paying the price. I’m paying the Hall of Fame price.”

Did he just pretty much confess?

Did he just pretty much confess?

Those remarks could be consistent with his thinking he was just getting a B-12 shot from Tejada. Not the only interpretation though.

I would love to be able to go back in time and see a vintage, Ron Polk-era (er, Ron Polk era Part I) Mississippi State baseball game in Starkville. I can't imagine how great that atmosphere must have been.

I would love to be able to go back in time and see a vintage, Ron Polk-era (er, Ron Polk era Part I) Mississippi State baseball game in Starkville. I can't imagine how great that atmosphere must have been.

That regional was my first exposure to MSU sports. I was getting ready to start as a freshman that fall. State had Palmeiro, Clark, Bobby Thigpen and Jeff Brantley. Barry Larkin was at that regional with Michigan. It was a great experience. Attendance was over 10,000, but they didn't have any idea exactly how many people were at the games other than an upper limit for passes sold. You bought a tournament pass and just flashed it at the ticket takers as you ran through the gates to claim the good seats. They tried to keep up with hand-clickers, but it could not have been accurate. The second night was clearly more than the first, and the announced attendance didn't reflect that. There was a haze over the stadium all weekend long from the Left Field Lounge.

What an indoctrination. (Of course, most of the rest of my State fandom has been on the other end of the success spectrum.)