Selig 'Shamed Game' as Much as A-Rod

So there goes Bud Selig, absentee commissioner of baseball, pointing his long, crooked finger at the latest big-name steroids villain. It's so convenient for Bud Lite to say Alex Rodriguez "shamed the game" when, in fact, Selig and the owners share total culpability in the shame game by never caring enough to declare an early war on performance-enhancing drugs.

Controversies Under Bud Selig

MLB commissioner Bud Selig is getting plenty of attention again, this time for saying that he'll consider suspending Alex Rodriguez and restoring Hank Aaron as the home run king in the wake of the sport's latest steroid bombshell. Click through the gallery to see some of his most controversial moments.

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Selig has drawn the most criticism for turning a blind eye to the rampant use of performance-enhancing drugs in the game during the 1990s and early 2000s. The widespread use of steroids and other drugs helped rewrite many of baseball's most hallowed records and brought the nation's pastime into the halls of the U.S. Congress on multiple occasions.

Scott J. Ferrell, Congressional Quarterly / Getty Images

Selig suspended Game 5 of the 2008 World Series in the middle of the sixth innning with the Rays and Phillies tied at 2-all. The teams played several innings in a downpour with Philadelphia leading. Though Selig claims he would not have allowed the Phillies to clinch the title in a rain-shortened game, he made the decision to halt play only when it could be suspended under MLB rules. (Read MLB Rule)

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Under heavy pressure after a series of incorrect home run calls, Selig instituted instant replay this August on boundary plays -- those that involve home runs and the foul pole. Major League Baseball could be pressured to expand video replay further in the wake of a number of botched calls in this year's Fall Classic.

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The suspension of Game 5 isn't the only controversial in-game call Selig has had to make as commissioner. He declared the 2002 All-Star Game, which took place in his hometown of Milwaukee, a tie after the managers ran out of pitchers.

Darren Hauck, AP

Two years after taking over as acting commissioner, Selig oversaw one of the darkest moments in baseball history -- the 1994 player strike which forced him to cancel the World Series that year.

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Selig also spearheaded a realignment movement and the addition of a wild-card spot in each league, which added two divisions and doubled the number of teams in the postseason each year. The Florida Marlins were the first wild-card team to win the World Series in 1997, pictured, and while it has increased interest in the sport, some purists dislike the fact that a team that didn't win its division can capture baseball's ultimate prize.

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In 1997, Selig helped introduce interleague play. While interleague matchups have likely helped drive some of the record attendance numbers in the last decade, it has also been received poorly by baseball purists.

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