McGwire's Halo - Brian

How many people would consider Mark McGwire to be a good person? Anyone raising their hand? Nobody?

I'm sure you all think he is a bad person because of the steroid issue. He used steroids, cheated in baseball, and continually lied about it (until recently).

This must make him an awful person, right? Wrong. This only makes him an awful athlete. He is actually a very generous person outside of baseball, something that he doesn't flaunt, and because of his humble nature, people only judge him based on steroids.

McGwire works tirelessly and puts a large amount of his money into numerous charities. He works directly with them and the children who need the help. His main work involves working with children who have been sexually abused. McGwire pledges one million dollars annually to his foundation. He funds sexual abuse shelters and makes visits often to personally see how the children and families are doing.

Oh, and when he did an endorsement for McDonald's, he had McDonald's give the money they were going to pay him to a few charities. It was over two million dollars.

So say what you want about Mark McGwire and steroids, but make sure that only tarnishes his baseball legacy, and leave it at that. Mark McGwire, the person, is one hell of a guy and for that he has my respect.