Did Mike Piazza use steroids? ‘I didn’t,’ he says in book

The Hall of Fame election came and went without the release of Mike Piazza’s long-awaited book. Piazza might have been the best-hitting catcher in baseball history, but he and everyone else in a star-studded field of candidates was rejected in an election that became a referendum on the steroid era.

Barry Bonds? No. Roger Clemens? No. Sammy Sosa? No.

Now that the Piazza book is about to go on sale, with the book tour about to start in New York, Piazza gave an interview to the New York Times. He said he delayed publication of the book until after the election so he would not be perceived as influencing the vote.

And what does he say in the book about whether he used steroids?

“It shouldn’t be assumed that every big hitter of the generation used steroids,� he wrote. “I didn’t.�

In the interview, Piazza said he was disappointed at the Hall of Fame election results, but not overly so.

“All things considered, I got over 50%, and a lot of people were very supportive,� Piazza said. “I mean, there’s what, almost 600 voters? That’s a lot. I’m on my homeowners board. I know how hard it is to get six people on the same page, let alone 600.�

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