The Andy I know...

For those of you who are not sports fans, the next several weeks is bound to be full of sports posts from yours truly....consider yourself warned!

I was so excited when Roger and Andy signed with the Astros. The time they were in Houston, our city truly became a baseball town (which I still think it is, but it hadn't really been before). We made it to the World Series for the first time ever. And I fell in love with this crazy sport that is baseball.....

The Mitchell report (a 400 plus page document, naming dozens of players for their use of steroids and other illegal substances) has turned the baseball world upside down.


On Saturday afternoon Andy Pettitte did what very few professional athlete's ever take the time to do.

He risked his entire career, his legacy, his chance to be in cooperstown to simply do the right thing.

He told the truth.

"In 2002 I was injured. I had heard that human growth hormone could promote faster healing for my elbow...I felt an obligation to get back to my team as soon as possible. For this reason, and only this reason, for two days I tried human growth hormone. Though it was not against baseball rules, I was not comfortable with what I was doing, so I stopped. This is it — two days out of my life; two days out of my entire career, when I was injured and on the disabled list."
Pettitte emphasized he has not used steroids.
"First, I would like to say that contrary to media reports, I have never used steroids," he said. "I have no idea why the media would say that I have used steroids, but they have done so repeatedly. This is hurtful to me and my family."

If I had a son, I would make sure to use Andy Pettitte as an example of what a real man does when his character is called into question. This is what a real man does when he has made a mistake, no matter what the personal cost may be for him or his family.