Over the past few decades, baseball and performance enhancement drugs have been joined together. It has been a hot topic to speak about from the late 1980s to the early 2000s, also called “the steroids era”. During that time period talk about doping in baseball specifically, but multiple sports too, had become huge. There was not a day that passed by in the sports world that doping was not talked about in some way, shape, or form. This was understandable; America’s Pastime has just been preyed open to what has been going on inside of it for years. There was not just talk about steroids and performance enhancing drugs; actions were being taken to stop this immediately. Major League Baseball players being put to trial, getting suspended or kicked …show more content…
It is obvious that these men have been cheating in their sport and using drugs to enhance their play, but what about all of the players that preceded these men. It is impossible that baseball players and other athletes were not doping before the late 1980s, but their records, careers, and names stay untarnished. This is the media’s way of skewing information and almost giving false information to the public. By focusing so heavily on what is happening in the here and now they seem to turn a blind eye to everyone who preceded the men playing now. News articles and media’s play in this historical era have played a huge role in all sports and baseball in particular.
It is a huge debate of whether the use of performance enhancing drugs is even cheating. John Whetton, a biology professor in England and former Olympic athlete holds to one side of the argument strongly; “‘Using chemicals to do what your body isn’t capable of doing is cheating, but it is a form of cheating that is hidden and therefore it is a nasty form of cheating.’” (Whetton 2014). He states that the use of these drugs creates an unfair advantage against the athletes that choose to abstain from use of these such drugs. It also creates additional pressure to these athletes to use them so they can be better at their respective sport. Since
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Ancient Greek Olympic athletes dating back to the third century BC used various brandy and wine concoctions and ate hallucinogenic mushrooms and sesame seeds to enhance performance…while others were taken to mask pain, allowing injured athletes to continue competing,” (Drug abuse in athletes 2014). Since performance enhancing drugs have been shown to be used in Ancient Greek Olympic athletes, it is plausible that athletes that preceded the 1980s had access to the same type of drugs accessible to the men in “the steroids era”. Even if these other men have been using, no one would know for a fact or not, “Though steroids have been banned in MLB since 1991, the league did not implement leaguewide PED testing until 2003,” (ESPN 2012). If there was no testing in the league it is literally impossible for men to get caught using these drugs. This is media’s way of blinding the common person. It has always been thought that there was a “Golden Age” of baseball and it was before all of these drugs and different ways to do things, just men playing America’s Pastime. If the media blew this out of the water and showed that the greats such as Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Willie Mays were doping, then all of the people holding on to the Pastime of baseball’s Golden Age may leave the sport. Although people bash the media and how “horrible” it
Players since the beginning of baseball have used some type of drug to enhance their game such as in 1889 Pud Galvin ingested monkey testosterone and Grover Cleveland Alexander used banned alcohol to enhance his game (Chafets). This should prove that baseball will never fully stop the use of PEDs, they can only cover up the ones that have. As Zev Chafets puts it “Chemical enhancement won’t kill the game; it is the cover-up that could be fatal” (Chafets). This cover up will ultimately hurt the game of baseball so the league should give the players the opportunity to use the PEDs, and if they choose not to then that is their decision ...
Major League Baseball (MLB) has widely been regarded as America’s pastime for the longest time, however it is now becoming known as the sport tainted by one thing, anabolic steroids. An anabolic steroid is related to the natural steroid, testosterone. They are able to stimulate growth in the muscle tissue. They usually increase muscle mass and strength. The MLB has created some of the most historic American icons, such as Babe Ruth and Ted Williams. Players like them showed us what it was like to play baseball the right way. They played with passion, heart, and above all they had fun playing. Players today in the MLB focus way too much on becoming the best player ever to play. They see what the greats did before them and they want to match them, so they turn to anabolic steroids. An example of this is Alex Rodriguez. In 2003 he tested positive for anabolic steroids because he was “naïve” and couldn’t take the pressure of his expectations of being called the best. He felt the pressure from the game and he turned to steroids. Anabolic steroids are ruining the game of baseball. They are tainting the records and the changing the game for the worse.
Baseball?s reputation has been painted with a red asterisk. The non-medical use of steroids has been banned according to the Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 1990. Many baseball athletes have been caught or presumed illegal users of HGH or Steroids since the act passed in 1990. All these athletes have one thing in common, they want to have an edge or advantage on the game. Some athletes even admit to administering the drug to other athletes and themselves. Jose Conseco testified to personally injecting the steroids into Mark McGuire (Cote).
The past fifteen years of baseball have contained dirty play by some of the best players to ever play the sport. Kids all over America look at these athletes as role models. The money hungry players proceed to send a terrible message to fans of the game by taking drugs to succeed. After commissioner Bud Selig cracked down on steroid use in 2005, several baseball player’s legacies have been ruined due to steroid allegations. Players are even being charged with perjury by lying to Congress over steroid use to protect their reputation.
Performance enhancing drugs have been a longstanding problem in sports. It not only deteriorates the honesty of the game, but also can have broader social affects that one may not even realize. The use of performance enhancing drugs is especially apparent in Major League Baseball. This problem can be traced back to the 1980’s when baseball was facing one of its first “dark periods”. During the 1980’s Major League Baseball was experiencing a home run drought. Home run totals were down as far as they had been since Babe Ruth, and fans were seemingly becoming bored with the sport. The lack of home runs was a growing concern for players whose salary relied on home run totals. Players needed to find a quick way to boost their power and performance in order to keep the sport alive and to keep bringing in their paychecks. This desire for fame and fortune introduced steroids into Major League Baseball in the 1990’s and 2000’s. Home run totals jumped tremendously during these decades and players were willing to risk being caught using illegal substances in order to shine above the rest. New idols and role models started to sprout up from these outstanding home run statistics and young children started to take notice. This all came tumbling down when these new idols and role models who were making the big bucks and hitting the ball out of the park tested positive for performance enhancing drugs. Here lie the affects of a growing social problem in sports. These famed athletes become walking advertisements and promotions for the use of performance enhancing drugs in sports. The influence professional athletes have over aspiring young athletes is very powerful and these roles models make it seem acceptable to use performance ...
Steroids have taken over the game of baseball and more players are starting to get involved with them. Steroids are a big part of the Major League today in 2014, yet they entered the game of baseball through trainer Curtis Wenzlaff in 1992. Players and the game’s images are ravaged when they become caught up in steroids. Some of the best players to ever play the game of baseball have been caught up in steroids, including Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, and Mark McGwire. Players with this level of skill are supposed to be role models for younger kids, yet younger kids see that they used steroids and are tempted to use them. When their young, impressionable minds witness steroids use, naturally kids attempt to imitate their idols. More importantly, steroid users damage their own well-being and the image of the sport. Baseball players who decide to use Anabolic steroids are affecting themselves just as much as the game of baseball itself.
Children who have grown up in America have been brought up with baseball and have looked up to a sports figure as one of their heroes. Steroids and other PEDS have tarnished the American past time favorite game. These drugs have cause doubts and suspicion about the validity o...
“We have to make some radical move to get the attention of everyone. Cheaters can 't win and steroids has put us in the position that it 's OK to cheat” (“Steroids Quotes”). Unfortunately, baseball has been plagued with the assistance of performance enhancing drugs to lengthen players careers, to boost statistics, and create an extraordinary ballplayer out of an average player. Contrary to the steroid abusers’ beliefs, steroids are not positively influencing any aspect of their game or personal life. The credibility and dignity of baseball has decreased due to performance enhancing drugs, which is not only cheating, but it also leads into a even
Since at least the 1980’s performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) have been a major challenge in the world of Major League Baseball, and past trends indicate they will continue to pose an ongoing problem. A number of the most prominent and accomplished professional baseball players, such as Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Jason Giambi, Roger Clemens, are also the most famous examples of baseball players who have broken longstanding records, attracted countless numbers of fans, and allegedly have taken performance-enhancing drugs. Athletes who have been caught using steroids in order to increase and better their performance rates have been suspended, fined and traded from the teams on which they once played. Despite the punitive actions taken against them by the League and lawmakers, players continue to use performance-enhancing drugs and likely will continue to do so, because the associated athletic effects will draw more fans and bring more money to the individual player and franchise.
The era in sports from the late 90s and into the 2000s has often been nicknamed “The Steroid Age” due to the raging use of anabolic steroids and other PEDs (performance enhancing drugs) by professional athletes. The usage of drugs in sports has never been more prevalent during this time, and many people are making it their goal to put an end to the abuse. Influential athletes such as Lance Armstrong, Alex Rodriguez, and Roger Clemens, who were once held as the highest role models to the American people, now watch as their legacies are tarnished by accusations of drug use. The American population, and lovers of sports everywhere, have followed in astonishment through recent years as many beloved athletes reveal their dark secrets. As organizations such as the USADA (United States Anti-Doping Agency) and BALCO (Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative) attempt to halt the use of PEDs, both the drug users and their high-end suppliers work diligently to avoid detection. The use of performance enhancing drugs in recent years has proven to be cancerous to the honesty and competition of modern sports. Although some strides have been made over the past few decades, the use of steroids is in full swing in Major League Baseball, The dangerous side effects of the drugs are often overlooked and many do not realize the message this sends to the youth. The support for halting the usage of PEDs is in need of attention or professional sports will face the loss of all progress made through the past two decades in its war on steroids.
To a sports fan, it might seem as if every news broadcast brings another suspension; some athlete, old or young, loses half of his or her season after failing a drug test. In professional sports, where athletic performance is the primary factor in an athlete’s salary and is practically the only aspect of the athlete that sports fans and owners care about, many professional athletes turn to performance enhancing drugs to gain a competitive edge. One sports organization in particular that has been overwhelmed with the use of performance enhancing drugs, commonly referred to as PEDs, is Major League Baseball, or the MLB. PEDs have been a long-standing issue in the MLB, keeping several of the most famous names in baseball, such as Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, and Roger Clemens, out of the Baseball Hall of Fame despite their stellar careers because of their admitted PED use. Before this season has even started, there have already been a multitude of players suspended for nearly a third of the season for breaking the MLB’s drug policy. But now, many people are insisting that the MLB should drastically alter its drug policy by allowing players to access PEDs to ensure that players are all on an equal footing and to make baseball more exciting. Others believe allowing PED use will ruin the integrity of baseball and will have major
Although there are laws passed with the intention of ridding sports of the use of performance enhancing drugs, it is still a highly debated topic. Supporters argue it is beneficial for the sport. The opposition argues against it. A syndicated political columnist argues “Drugs that make sport exotic drain it of its exemplary power by making it a display of chemistry rather than character—actually, a display of chemistry and bad character” (Will). In light of the overwhelming evidence, one must agree with the 2004 Anabolic Steroids Act, which attempts to ban the use of anabolic steroids in U.S sporting events. The use of performance enhancing drugs in sports is dangerous, unethical and ruins the integrity of the specific sport, by giving an unfair advantage to the user over their competitors.
Recently many athletes from all kinds of sports have been caught using performance-enhancing drugs. When an athlete tests positive or is suspicious about using performance-enhancing drugs, the athlete is usually vilified in the media. There also have been many instances never reported. It has come to a point where an athlete who is doing really well in his sport has speculations on the use of steroids or other performing-enhancing drugs arise. But the upsetting thing about sports today is that the speculations may very well be true. The use of steroids, and other performance-enhancing drugs, is dangerous. It also has diminished the value of sportsmanship and because of this I believe the performance-enhancing drugs should be banned.
Many players that played in the MLB and are now in the Hall of Fame could have been using steroids for their whole careers, but since before 1991 steroids was not a banned substance in the MLB, the players got away with it. Not only that, but the great players that did get caught or admitted to using steroids are not in the Hall of Fame, which in unjust because we don’t know who was and who wasn’t also using steroids at the same time as these great players. Also, steroids and other performance enhancing drugs are not as effective and efficient at making a player better at baseball than many people actually believe. Just because someone uses steroids doesn’t mean they can hit a baseball, they still need to work on hand-eye coordination and reaction time to be able to hit the ball, as steroids only help a player get stronger. Finally, many players with great accomplishments are not being inducted into the Hall of Fame but people such as Tom Yawkey are already in the Hall of Fame. Racism is frowned upon now in the world and isn’t widely accepted thing at all, so if a racist person such as Tom Yawkey can get into the Hall of Fame because of his accomplishments, a person who has used steroids should be able to get into the Hall of Fame as well based on their accomplishments. Sports writers that vote for the players to be inducted
Drug use in sports is considered cheating. Doping has many historical backgrounds, but now it is on a larger scale in order to maximiz...