There’s been so much negative reaction to Alex Rodriguez’ admission that indeed the SI story that he used performance enhancing drugs while as a member of the Texas Rangers was true.

Making matters worse, the three-time AL MVP admitted during an interview with ESPN’s Peter Gammons that he juiced for the first three years as a Ranger from 2001-2003 feeling the need to fulfill heavy expectations due to the then richest contract in MLB history (250 million over 10 yrs) even if it meant going outside the boundaries.

The haunting reality here is that the man known to many as A-Rod never needed steroids to be a great player. We’re talking about one of the most gifted superstars of our Era with God given ability that most athletes could only dream of.

Is what former Yankee skipper Joe Torre said in his controversial book The Yankee Years true about him needing the game along with gaudy statistics to go with it? Might that be the answer for why he felt it necessary to cheat even though at the time, MLB was only first testing with promises that the 104 positive tests would remain anonymous?

So much for that promise. Once again, baseball has failed miserably here and deserves all the blame it gets for what’s now known as The Juiced Era (Error) that claimed stars such as home run record holder Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, Roger Clemens, Rafael Palmeiro, Andy Pettite and definitely Mark McGwire, whose own brother published a book to get the truth out.

So much for family loyalty, huh? But I guess in Big Mac’s world, Denial Ain’t Just A River In Egypt. What is it about lying with these big name ballplayers? Deny, deny, deny until the cows come home only for the proof to come out that they in fact lied to the public.

Roger Clemens is one of the greatest pitchers this game’s ever seen but instead of  all the wins, strikeouts and Cys, he’ll best be remembered for his humiliating performance last year versus former trainer Brian McNamee during trial which influenced a case of perjury against The Rocket. Expect to see him in an orange suit. Might he be next to Bonds?

As for A-Rod or A-Fraud or A-Roid depending on what you prefer, it’s been a rough month for him first with the stuff coming out of Torre’s book even if then bench coach Larry Bowa’s “A-Fraud” reference was supposed to be in gyst. You do wonder though if his own teammates felt that way about Mr. Supersensitive who always wants to make everyone happy.

It’s good that he came forward and admitted on air that he cheated but this was the same man who went on with CBS News anchor Katie Couric and denied ever using steroids. His reasoning is that he couldn’t be honest with himself. What in the heck does that mean?!?!?!?!?!

These days, sports are becoming sadder and sadder with baseball taking the biggest hit. How would you feel if you were the father of a kid playing Little League who looks up to Rodriguez? The cold harsh reality is that there just aren’t many heroes left in sports for kids to idolize.

Can juicing start at a young age? Certainly. Kids in high school can succumb to the pressure of performance on the field. You just don’t know anymore which is very scary.

What’s happened to baseball is sickening and will continue to haunt the game even if it does pick itself back up. How are the Yankees feeling? It seems like players who have worn Pinstripes have been unfairly targeted while other teams haven’t had to deal with as much backlash.

Is Daily News baseball writer Bill Madden right in saying A-Rod doesn’t belong in Cooperstown and that the Bronx Bombers should get rid of him? Does anyone actually believe any of the other 29 teams would get rid of a player the caliber of this man?

I probably would still say he belongs in the Hall despite those three seasons. He did come out and say he’s been clean since becoming a Yankee in 2004. The question is who believes him?

Can he recover his reputation or will it just be another nightmare? How will the biggest star the game has deal with the heavy media and intense fan scrutiny in what’s supposed to be a bounce back year for the Yankees? Will it become too much of a distraction?

There’s no way of really knowing until the real season starts up in April. For now, it’ll continue to be a three ring circus which A-Rod always seems to draw.

I remember when sports used to be fun and some still are like the college Div.III women’s basketball game I attended last night at Baruch College with them defeating New Paltz. I’m going to write more about that sometime later.

Games still can be fun for everyone if played for the right reasons. I just wish we could get back to that instead of the garbage that’s on the front covers these days.

Who’s with me?