Gossage Will Wear Yankees Cap on HOF Plaque

If there was any doubt over which cap Goose Gossage would be wearing on his HOF plaque, that was put to rest Wednesday.

Rich Gossage will wear a Yankees cap when he enters the Baseball Hall of Fame. The announcement was made at a news conference in New York on Wednesday, one day after Gossage was the only player elected by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America in the 2008 class.

“Going to play for the Yankees was an out-of-body experience,” said Gossage, who was known as Goose. “Putting on the pinstripes, I put so much pressure on myself.”

The Hall of Fame determines which caps players wear on their plaques. Gossage will be the 25th Yankees player inducted, the most among major league teams, according to the Hall.

Gossage played all or a part of seven seasons with the Yankees, leading the American League in saves twice and helping the Yankees win the 1978 World Series.

In the article Gossage also revealed that he would have been tempted to use steroids:

“Chances are I probably would have done it, too,” said Gossage, who added that his competitive drive and free spirit, along with the possibility of extending his career and earning more money, might have led him to use performance enhancers.

See this is the major problem, "the possibility of extending his career and earning more money, might have led him to use performance enhancers." this might have led anyone to use them, and it's the reason so many have. It is why the number of users in the last 20 years is probably closer to 500 than it is to the 86 that were mentioned in the Mitchell Report, which is why the Mitchell Report was a pointless joke.


ESPN reported that Gossage also had this to say:

"I've been in that situation, trying to prolong my career with the money that was out there to be made at this time in baseball. I can't sit here and say that I would not have done it," he said. "But had I done it, I'm going to face the consequences. And the consequences are, that whether they belong in the Hall of Fame or not, the records can't stand.

"These guys downplay the significance of steroids. Don't even go there. I don't buy it at all," Gossage added at a news conference. "These guys are getting better the older they get? Nah. The body doesn't work that way. And baseball is a young man's game."