Baseball's executives embarrassing themselves with each leaked name

ON BASEBALL

This is getting downright silly, and it's making Major League Baseball look, well, silly.

So thanks to one of the outlets that keeps us informed — at least most of the time — David Ortiz, "Big Papi," tested positive for performance-enhancing substances in 2003. Oh, and Manny Ramirez, no surprise, had a positive test then, too, according to the New York Times report.

These are just the latest names to be released — and there will be more.

You see, in 2003, before using PEDs was punished by MLB, 1,198 players were tested. Apparently, over 100 tested positive. The names were never supposed to be released.

But since February, when we were hit by the A-rod bomb — and the slugger admitted to using PEDs — we've learned of others who failed the test, the big ones being Sammy Sosa and now Big Papi.

And think about this — there were more than 100 names on that list.

If we keep going at this rate, we'll still be hearing names 15 years from now. Is that, really, what MLB wants?

The right thing to do, before this public-relations disaster that was already a disaster becomes even worse, was what was pledged — keep the results of the test confidential. After all, it was just a survey to determine if mandatory testing was necessary (the answer, obviously, was yes).

But now that the names are leaking, and low-paid reporters continue to dig up dirt, the only semi-right thing to do would be to publicly release the rest of the names.

If the people running MLB want the league to get past this tainted, dispiriting, distrusting era, that's the only option. Get all the names out there, let them simmer for a month or so, and then everyone can move on and hopefully enjoy a dramatic playoffs.

It doesn't, however, look like that's going to happen. So what will happen is, more names will continue to be dug up. Maybe they won't be big names, maybe they won't be heroes like Ortiz who was headed, prior to Thursday's report, to the highest annals of Red Sox history.

But they will be names, just the same, and they'll continue to remind the public that baseball players can't be trusted when they say those pitiful, lames words: "I never took steroids."

It's sad that the majority of today's players, especially the young guys, don't have the trust of the public and might never have it if names continue to be leaked for the next five to 10 years (or even longer).

I don't think a large percentage of players are using PEDs at the moment. But until we stop hearing names tied to the drugs, until we stop witnessing the falls from grace of so many past and current heroes, it will be near impossible to believe the Steroids Era is behind us.

And that, like everything else about this mess, is a shame.