Hunley: Kids can learn from Manny's, Bonds' errors

Everyone hates a cheater, right?

Well, everyone except the culprit himself.

Whether you’re talking politi­cal elections, tax evasion, sports or something else, it’s crummy when one person uses underhanded means to gain an advantage.

It’s more than “crummy,” really, but this being a family newspa­per, it’s best not to go wild with the adjectives.

With this in mind, then, do we feel bad that Barry Bonds got out of three of the four federal charges against him?

Or, should we be glad that Major League Baseball’s tainted home-run king, more Grand Sham than grand slam, was cited for at least one offense, obstruction of justice?

I guess so.

More importantly, I hope Bonds and Manny Ramirez, who recently quit baseball rather than face a 100-game suspension for again being caught using performance-enhancing drugs, are a lesson to kids.

I don’t want to get too “After School Special” here, but it’s probably good for children to see that using these substances has real consequences, not a slap on the wrist or a look the other way.

But what do I know? My son isn’t old enough to be concerned with such matters.

So I called Jason Ritenour, who coaches the baseball team at Woodbridge High School.

He said that probably half of today’s youth couldn’t care less about what Bonds did or didn’t do.

The other half, though, very well may see professional athletes in a different light.

No longer are sports figures by definition icons, you might say.

Ritenour did note that Bonds and Ramirez were skilled baseball players before they were entangled in steroid scandals.

But, he said, “They kind of cheated their way to some of their success.”

The ballplayers that play on Ritenour’s diamond aren’t the ones who steroid-pushers would likely target. But the coach said that if he ever discovered that a player had used performance-enhancing drugs, the player probably would face a long suspension.

First, however, Ritenour said he would alert the parents of a cheating player.

That’s good, because the integrity of the game is one matter. But ruining one’s health, especially at a young age, is another.

Charles Barkley might have been right when he said that pro athletes shouldn’t necessarily be considered role models.

Problem is, they usually are.

Even today, when we know about most all of their foibles, on the field and off.

So maybe kids can learn from even poor role models, such as Bonds and Ramirez:

Learn what not to do.

Jonathan Hunley is a staff writer at the News & Messenger. Contact him at 703-369-5738, or at jhunley@insidenova.com.