The big news in Yankeeland, and a few other places in America I guess, is Alex "A-Rod" Rodriguez's hip. He has a torn labrum in his hip and a cyst.

The question is: is A-Rod suffering from the effects of his admitted steroid use through repeated injections of the drugs into the hip when he was a feckless youth of 24?

When this thought first occurred to me this morning (Friday March 6th), I thought the observation was a stroke of my genius, but how could I, not a doctor, credibly make the argument. I also thought that the cyst was the issue rather than the torn cartilage (labrum) in the hip. I was wrong on both counts. Both of Rodriguez's complaints can be, and have been, related to steroid use.

God bless Google, the blogger's friend. A quick search revealed a blog entry by Bob Blitz, a Newsday reporter that covered the issue of both the cyst and the labrum; they are related and the prevalence of such injuries in steroid using athletes. See for yourself. http://njfrogman.blogspot.com/2009/03/hip-cysts-osteoarthritis-anabolic.html

A-Rod's defense is that he was just a kid at 24. The next time you see a TV newscast roll the latest casualties from Iraq or Afghanistan, note how many of them died as brave men or women without ever reaching their 24th birthday.

 I want to avoid sangfroid, but it seems to me not just A-Rod but the Yankees and organized baseball are reaping the wages of A-Rod's sin. If the labrum and cyst are in fact linked to steroid abuse osteoarthritis, then this is not something that will just go away by rest. In may mean that A-Rod's career maybe closer to over than anyone dreamed - or that he will hobble on with diminishing numbers until he retires.

 No one can be happy about A-Rod's condition just because they're a Mets fan or think that Scott Boras is a plague on the face of the earth. But phrases like "just deserts," "wages of sin,"  and "reaping what you sew," do come to mind.

 Steroid abuse can not be excused because a 24 year old was just a careless youth. The economics of baseball, that have allowed big market teams to soak-up the major talents at astronomically high salaries, need a serious examination.

 Going to a Met or Yankee game this year will cost about as much over-all (if you count the outrageously priced hot dogs and beer) as a Broadway show.  It's a question of economics.

 I got an idea. Why doesn't baseball appoint a commissioner,  An executive with real power and the guts to clean-up this mess?  Oh, I forgot, they already have a commissioner.

 But beyond the travails of baseball, the abuse of steroids is causing more important, direct problems for the nation than baseball players limping to an early retirement.  I have another theory. The incidents of police violence that seem to be surging, may be related to the fact that many policemen are avid body builders and steroid users.

 There's evidence of that in New York City. But, that's a story for another time