Mitchell Report Fantasy Round-up

A week after the Mitchell Report, with the dead identified and properly buried, here's the score in our Mitchell Report fantasy draft:

I had three hits: Eric Gagne, Chuck Knoblauch, and "Maurice" Vaughn. Gagne was a solid mid-round closer pick, and I was saved by my late drafting of Knoblauch, very much a sleeper, and Big Mo. Again, though, I'm kicking myself for not going with Clemens in the first round when I had a chance (took Bret Boone instead) and changing my mind after originally drafting Pettitte. That's gonna haunt my for a long time.

Rawjah Clemenz had 3.5 hits: Todd Hundley, Lenny Dykstra, Miguel Tejada (the number one overall pick, who did not disappoint) and, the half-hit, Juan Gonzalez. Gonzo was named in the report but his steroid use was only vaguely implicated, without the usual concrete, iron-clad evidence that was customary of former Senator Mitchell's flawless investigatory process. Juan Gone's name generally was left off of the lists of those fingered by the report in the aftermath, although the New York Times chose to put him on its list.

The third mystery team also had three hits, connecting with Clemens, John Rocker, and Mike Stanton.

Names On the List That Nearly Made Me Cry: 1. Hundley, 2. Jack Cust. Hundley was my favorite player and hero growing up, the hard-nosed catcher who seemed to will his way to 41 homers, at the time the single-season record for a backstop, in 1996. (No one can convince me that the fraud who eventually took Hundley from the record books, Javy Lopez, who hit 43 in 2003, wasn't juicing.) Hundley was the bright spot on some awful Mets teams, and unfortunately didn't get to enjoy the team's playoff runs in 1999 and 2000. It was pretty sad to read about his association with Kirk Radomski.
And Cust, my hero of last season. The A's picked him off the scrap heap for nothing, handed him a bat, and gave him a mandate to mash. Free for the first time in his career to concentrate on killing the ball without having to worry about a front office that focused on the negatives in his game (striking out, poor defense), Cust hit the ball out of the park and drew walks all season long, providing a remarkable return for Beane and the A's. That he was on the list is a sore disappointment. But the Three Run Homer hasn't given up on you, Jack.

And how could I forget--Tim Laker. Say it ain't so, Tim!