Reggie Jackson, the Hall of Fame slugger, says steroid cheats don't belong in the Hall of Fame or in the record books.

"It bothers me," he says.

Bothers me, too.

Jackson has looked on helplessly as he has slid down the all-time list for home runs, with 563. Since retiring in 1987, Jackson's home-run total has been surpassed by six men — Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Palmeiro, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds. Five of those six (all but Griffey) have either been accused of or busted for using performance-enhancing drugs.

Rodriguez admitted steroid use years after results of an old drug test were revealed; Sosa reportedly tested positive in a 2003 drug test; McGwire, who admitted using androstenedione — a steroid-like substance that was banned by pro football and the International Olympic Committee, but not baseball — famously refused to answer questions about steroid use for a congressional hearing; Barry Bonds is under federal indictment for allegedly lying about PED use; Palmeiro flunked a drug test. Another member of the top 15 home-run hitters of all time, Manny Ramirez, recently completed a 50-game suspension after failing a drug test.

In other words, they cheated. They used steroids or human growth hormone. It's as if they were given a shorter fence and extra at-bats.

Baseball won't even consider Hall of Fame induction for its all-time hits leader, Pete Rose, because he gambled on games, so it seems unlikely that drug users will be invited to the Hall.

What I can't understand is why Major League Baseball won't delete the cheaters from its record book, which is so highly prized by the sport. On the other hand, Buddy Selig, baseball's sloth-like commissioner, is still in charge.

In track and field — another sport that thrives on statistics — if an athlete is busted for PEDs, his name and his records are erased from the record books as if they never happened. Three world record-holders in the 100-meter dash have been stripped of their records after they were busted for drugs. They don't even get an asterisk. They're just gone.

Marion Jones won five medals in the 2000 Summer Olympics, but after she admitted winning those medals on steroids she was forced to return the medals. You won't find her name anywhere in the results of those 2000 Olympics.

Baseball has made no such move. Nobody can look at the sport's record book without a heavy dose of disbelief and cynicism.