"Strangely, the year before the Baseball Hall of Fame's year of the steroid abuser is the year of the Rockie. Three of them appear on the ballot for the class of 2012, constituting 11 percent of the nominees.

Actually, four, or 15 percent, if you count Dale Murphy?, but let's not. It seems safe to assume that even Murphy would just as soon forget the season that proved even altitude can't save the hitter who can no longer hit.

The Rockies and the steroid abusers have one thing in common — baseball traditionalists, most of them back East, don't believe the numbers of either group are legitimate."