Hank Aaron on Mark McGwire’s mea culpa:
“I think that it’s wonderful that he did this. It takes a big man to admit this and I want to commend him for that. A lot of people make mistakes, and for him to stand up and admit what he has done in the past, I think it’s very admirable.
“As far as I’m concerned he has asked for forgiveness. He has my forgiveness. If that’s all that stands in the way between him being inducted into Cooperstown we should all forgive him. He didn’t commit murder. He didn’t commit robbery. He said he took steroids.”
“He told her he had something to tell her - he just wanted her to know the news was going to break and that he did do steroids,” Rich Maris said. “He apologized to her, to my dad, to us kids. That speaks volumes to the kind of guy he is . . . My mom was very touched by his call. She felt sorry for Mark - that he’s going through this. She conveyed that we all make mistakes and move on from there.”
“This [McGwire’s steroid use] is something we thought all along. It wasn’t so much a surprise, but I feel bad for Mark. He’s a very genuine guy and we’re close to him - we love him like a brother. I’m glad he got it out.”