In his commencement address to the University of Wisconsin graduates, baseball commissioner Bud Selig, didn’t mention the steroid controversy that haunts baseball. Selig, also a Wisconsin graduate, focused his speech about his dream of living a “baseball life” while still in college. He used his story as an example for graduates who he also encouraged to dream big and face failures at the same time. Selig, a Milwaukee native, is the former owner and president of the Milwaukee Brewers and on 1998 he became a commissioner. “In baseball, as in life… hope and faith are critical in success,” he said. “Take advantage of these difficult times because if you have hope and faith, if you are smart and tenacious and dedicated and willing to sacrifice, you can make a difference and make this a better world. And don’t be afraid of a failure.”

Selig not only avoided talking about steroid use in baseball but he also spoke reverently of the game. According to him, baseball “provides a window to escape from the tedium and difficulty of ordinary life. It gives people hope and faith, an opportunity to live vicariously through the boys of summer.”

Notwithstanding the steroid related problems of the previous years, this baseball season has a tumultuous start because of players testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. Just last May 7, Selig has released a 50-game suspension to Los Angeles Dodgers’ star Manny Ramirez. A day later, Alex Rodriguez, the third baseman of New York Yankees returned to the field after a hip surgery. Last February, A-Rod admitted that he used banned substances between 2001-2003.

Aside from steroids, Selig also have to deal with sagging attendance, which is approximately 7 percent down as compared to last season. At the Yankee Stadium, tickets are pegged as high as $2,625 and there have been empty seats near the field at each game. Instead of discussing these to his speech, Selig focused on his own story to tell. He remembered reading baseball articles in the library and from newspapers across the country, and books about baseball commissioners. Selig also narrated that he grew up idolizing Joe DiMaggio, but his dream of following his footsteps never became a reality. “You see, I couldn’t hit a curve ball and I still can’t. But that didn’t diminish my love for the game or end my dream for a baseball life,” he said.

The commissioner also told the story of how he struggled to get a baseball franchise in Milwaukee after the Braves left for Atlanta in 1965. Meanwhile, he bought the bankrupt Seattle Pilots in 1970 and moved them to Milwaukee to become the Brewers.

Selig received his bachelors degree in American institutions, a combination of political science and American history at the University of Wisconsin. His connection with the university does not end there as he also served on the advisory boards of Wisconsin’s La Follette School of Public Affairs and the department of political science. He got the acting baseball commissioner outright and served for 6 years. In 2008, Bud Selig’s contract is extended through 2012 when he plans to retire.

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