Alex Rodriguez cheated.

You’re shocked, I know.

These days I think we’re more surprised when we learn a famous athlete did not bend the rules to get ahead.

That is the legacy of “A-Roid” and all the other pumped-up stars of the early ’90s.

Rodriguez yesterday came clean about his steroid use, confirming a story that first appeared on the Sports Illustrated Web site. The star slugger, widely considered the best player in baseball and hot on the trail of another steroid-besmirched superstar, home run king Barry Bonds, confessed to Peter Gammons of ESPN.

He admitted using the junk while toiling for the Texas Rangers from 2001 to 2003. At the time Rodriguez had just signed the richest contract in baseball history, which earned him a plush $252 million.

At that time there was no testing in place and thus no ban on steroids. A-Rod says he quit the juice during spring training in 2003 and has not used them since.

“Back then it was a different culture,” Rodriguez said. “I was young. I was stupid. I was naïve.”

He left one out. He was – and is – a liar.

Back in December 2007, the three-time AL MVP sat down for an interview with Katie Couric.

She asked him the following question: “Have you ever used steroids, human growth hormone, or any other performance-enhancing substance?”

Seems like a pretty straight-forward question. He replied with a single word: “No.”

Yesterday Rodriguez said, “I wasn’t even being truthful with myself.”

And not with any of the rest of us, either.

I’ll give Rodriguez this. At least yesterday he did not dance around the subject, he didn’t trot out some legalese argument, he didn’t try to spin it.

It may have taken him awhile, but at least he was man enough to admit what he did.

The story that implicated Rodriguez included the names of 104 players who tested positive for steroids. That means there are still 103 names with clouds hanging over them.

It’s a cloud that hangs over baseball, as well as most big-time sports.

Rodriguez says he felt pressure when he signed that big-bucks contract with the Rangers to justify the eye-popping numbers.

So he decided to seek an edge. At the time it was not illegal for baseball players to do so. I don’t think Rodriguez was alone.

I also don’t think he’s alone in lying about what he did.

I doubt you’re surprised by that either. Perhaps that is the real danger of baseball’s steroids scandal.

We’re now surprised when the stars don’t cheat.