Hands-up to those surprised to learn Alex Rodgriguez confessed back in January to doing business with Miami steroid dealer Tony Bosch and using performance-enhancing drugs just as Major League Baseball alleged? Anyone? We didnt think so. Wholesale College Jerseys . Twenty-six years after Ben Johnson professed his innocence to a nation that desperately wanted to believe him. It doesnt take a cynic to roll their eyes in the face of busted athlete drug cheats who profess their innocence. We all know the script of the busted athlete who tries to position him or herself as the victim in a performance-enhancing drug witch hunt. It goes a little something like this: I have always prided myself on my ability to compete clean, I would never disrespect the game, my teammates, the fans and most of all my family. You know the rest. With a parade of all-stars from Marion Jones to Lance Armstrong to Ryan Braun, it was almost laughable that at this stage of things Alex Rodriguez thought he could convince anyone of his innocence, never mind the people who were out to get him. What we need to understand is that taking performance-enhancing drugs is a simple risk-reward proposition for a lot of athletes, during which time they understand the public plea they will have to make if they are accused or caught. So while we might wonder how athletes can so easily compromise their integrity by flat-out lying to the very people who have made them what they are, this part of the equation is settled long before the gotcha moment. Former Canadian sprinter Angela Isajenko said it more than two decades ago during the Dubin Inquiry into drugs in sports when she described the athletes handbook for what to do when you are caught: deny, deny, deny. The few who have deviated from that script are far and few between. Years ago, I wrote a piece in The Globe and Mail which suggested it was difficult to know whether to cheer for Lance Armstrong, purely for the reason that he was so dominant in a sport that was well-known to be dirty. The vitriol I received in response from Armstrong fans, many of them cancer survivors who considered him a real-life hero, was unlike anything I have received before or since in my career. They were simply horrified that I could even entertain the idea that someone of his character and accomplishments might be a cheat. And besides, hed already faced-down his accusers in public and pledged his innocence. Did I really think he would let down the legions of people to whom he was nothing less than a superhero? We all know how that story ended. Im sure there are athletes who test positive or are accused via investigation of using performance-enhancing drugs and it all turns out to be a mistake. I just cant think of any. Alex Rodriguez lying and then eventually confessing to performance-enhancing drug use hardly qualifies as disappointment. And he may truly be as detestable as he seems. But in this case, hes not the worst of the worst. He was merely travelling down the same well-worn path of those who came before him. NCAA Jerseys .Brothers B.J. and Justin Upton each homered and had an outfield assist, and the Braves held on for a 4-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday night. Cheap NCAA Jerseys China . The Kelowna, B.C. rink made the announcement on their facebook page on Thursday night. https://www.cheapncaajerseysjustwholesale.com/ . - Chelseas 1-0 win at the Etihad, spoiling Manchester Citys perfect home record continues to be the talking point of the week.Casey Haerther hit his fifth homer of the year and starter Ethan Hollingsworth got his first win in front of the Shaw Park crowd, as the Goldeyes beat the Kansas City T-Bones 5-3 in front of 5,078 on a chilly Canada Day afternoon. With the victory, the Fish won their sixth straight (theyve won nine of 10), improved to 29-14 on the season and tightened their stranglehold on first place in the American Associations North Division. “This team is firing on all cylinders right now,” said Haerther, who had two hits in four trips and raised his batting average to a league-leading .392. “Ive played on some good teams, but I dont remember many like this. Were pitching well, hitting well and guys are playing great defense. “And it doesnt feel streaky. It feels like were just going out there and playing and when the guys do what they do, we win.” Kansas City opened the scoring with a run in the first, but the Goldeyes answered with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning. In fact, the first four Goldeyes in the lineup hit safely. Tyler Kuhn led off with a single, Josh Mazzola followed with a single, Haerther drove home Kuhn with a single and RRay Sadler drove home Mazzola with another single. Cheap NCAA Jerseys. Haerther homered in the third to make it 3-1 and then, with two out in the sixth, a solo homer by Reggie Abercrombie made it 4-1 and an RBI double by Ryan Pineda drove home Brock Bond with the fifth Goldeyes run. Kansas City scored a pair in the seventh, but Brendan Lafferty and Chris Kissock came on to shut the door in the eighth and ninth innings and the Goldeyes opened this three-game series with Kansas City with a victory. Hollingsworth (2-0, 2.55 ERA) picked up the win for Winnipeg. Meanwhile, K.C. starter Andy Noga (0-3, 4.53 ERA) suffered the loss. Kissock picked up his team-leading ninth save. “I used my two seam and four seam fastballs and just got ahead of the hitters,” said Hollingsworth. “I really didnt throw very many off-speed pitches. I just used the fastball and got some great defense behind me.” The Goldeyes and T-Bones will play Game 2 of this three-game series on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. Chris Salamida (3-3, 4.53 ERA) will get the start for Winnipeg, while Rick Zagone (6-1, 5.40 ERA) will take to the hill for Kansas City. ' ' '