Arod = Kobe??

[ballsandstrikes]

Remember when Kobe was charged with rape and everyone dumped his stuff? I must have bought 200 assorted rookies for pennies on the dollar at our local shows during that time.
Now the same things seem to be happening to Arod.
Basketball, and Kobe himself spent alot of time repairing his image because the sport needed him. Now his rookies are as popular as they ever were.
Baseball needs Arod they are going to spend the next few years repairing his image as he nears Bonds. They have to. Do you guys see any other player currently playing that has a chance to approach 700 home runs? With Baseball cracking down on steriods, if Arod breaks the record, he will probably hold it for a long long time. Baseball is going to want to put him in the best light possible. So if you want to dump his rookies, I'll take all you have! :)

[mikpaq77]

The Roids issue is a big one...and it seems to have a deeper and longer lasting impact than other issues in Football and Basketball. I read an article on ESPN Mobile today where the auther wanted to have all the MVP trophies won by Roiders given to the people that finished in 2nd place...all the way back to Mike Greenwell when he lost to Canseco. I am mainly a hockey collector so I do not have a strong grasp on Baseball BV's but it is my understanding that players that have been accused of, or it's been proved that they've used have seen a reduction in their cards values.

[EdgarM_11]

The difference, whether or not Kobe actually comitted a crime, is that Kobe was never found guilty, and his accused crime had nothing to do with the game itself. He admitted to not being a good person, and I think its possible to move on from that.

Arod, while also not having been charged with a crime (yet), he admitted to clearly illegal and unethical activities, and did so in a very damaging way. His "apology" and show of emotion were laughable, and his press conference "tell all" was a sham. During his long, "emotional" pause, I couldn't tell if he was trying not to cry, or trying not to laugh. His card prices may bounce back a bit. But this isn't something that just goes away. Very different thing in my mind.

[dooly]

Arods steroid use affected his ability as a baseball player, Kobe as a potential rapist did not give him an advantage as a basketball player. big difference... that and kobe was not found to be guilty

[ballsandstrikes]

Arods steroid use affected his ability as a baseball player, Kobe as a potential rapist did not give him an advantage as a basketball player. big difference... that and kobe was not found to be guilty

Actually, the stats do not show much of a difference over other years in which, if we take him at his words he was not using.
He did have two 50+ home run seasons but he has also had one since then and several 40+ seasons that approached 50.
I am not saying he will be looked at the same ever again but I do think 5-6 years from now, after enormous efforts are made to put Arod out there in a good light, when he breaks the record, his cards will be in as much of a demand as ever.

Here is something to think about....
What were Bonds and Mcgwire on as compared to what Arod was on?
Why didn't Arod hit 70 home runs? He never bulked up the way Bonds or Mac did. I look at photos of him in 2002 compared to now and really don't see much of a difference.
Arod must have been on something less "extreme" because had he bulked up the way those two did, with his natural talent, he could have hit 100 home runs.

[dooly]

I guess I should have clarified, that wasn't really my point. The point was that Arods "crime" if you will, directly brought into question the effect of the steroids on his abilities, whereas being a rapist did not. The matter of if steroids really helped Arods numbers at all is another argument altogether and I do agree that it probably didn't help him all that much as he was at the height of his career and was playing in a hitter friendly park.