Baseball and the Illegal Use of Steroids: Penalties Should Increase

Jean Vasquez

Profesor Lewis

English 102

Baseball and the Illegal Use of Steroids: Penalties Should Increase

The use of steroids in baseball has tarnish what was once America's Favorite pastime. For the past sixteenth years many athletes have been linked to using performing enhancing drugs in the Major League Baseball. Famous athletes including Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Palmeiro, Roger Clemens and many others have been link to the use of PEDS. Many of these players have broken remarkable records, but to many they are consider cheaters. Furthermore, baseball players have been penalized by the Major League Baseball and The baseball writers have also discipline these players by not allowing them into the Baseball Hall Of Fame. PEDs provide athletes with an advantage over the rest of the players in the league that are not using any form of drug to perform better and that is not fair. However, there are many health risks that come with abusing PEDs, which many players seem to either not know about or simply just not care about. The use of steroids has been in the MLB banned list since 1991, but the league did not started testing their players until 2003 (The Steroid Era). Since then the Major League Baseball has implemented different penalties and punishments to the users to the present day. Currently, I believe that penalties should increase for baseball steroids users because the health risks are far too dangerous and the use steroids are an advantage to the user, penalties for the steroids users are still lenient and are in need of a great change for the best of game.

Steroids or “Anabolic-androgenic steroids” is a synthetic substance that is associated to the male sex hormones or testosterone. They are known to further growth of skeletal muscle and the sexual characteristics of both the males and females. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse Anabolic steroids were developed in the late 1930s primarily to treat hypogonadism, a condition in which the testes do not produce sufficient testosterone for normal growth, development, and sexual functioning. The primary medical uses of these compounds are to treat delayed puberty, some types of impotence, and wasting of the body caused by HIV infection or other diseases ("What Are Anabolic Steroids").

It is beyond important to be thoroughly educated on the health risk of steroids before a baseball player decides to use these drugs. As the results can be a life changing or worst yet, life threatening to the user. The risks of steroid use has a variety of possible side effects. These effects can differ depending on the PEDs user, as the effects vary from male to female and adolescents to adults.

Some of the side effects that comes from the use of steroids includes liver, skin, and infections problems. In the liver the use of steroids can cause cancer, peliosis hepatitis and tumors. As in the skin it cause severe acne, oily scalp, jaundice and fluid retention. Furthermore, the infections include HIV/AIDS and hepatitis. Other more concerning effects of steroid use is that it affects one of the most valuable system in the human body, the cardiovascular system or the heart.

According to the National Institute on Drugs “Steroid abuse has been associated with cardiovascular diseases (CVD), including heart attacks and strokes, even in athletes younger than 30”. Also, the steroid use contributes to the development of a cardiovascular, because it changes the levels of lipoproteins that carry cholesterol in the blood. In addition, “Steroids, particularly oral steroids, increase the level of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and decrease the level of high-density lipoprotein (HDL). High LDL and low HDL levels increase the risk of atherosclerosis, a condition in which fatty substances are deposited inside arteries and disrupt blood flow. If blood is prevented from reaching the heart, the result can be a heart attack. If blood is prevented from reaching the brain, the result can be a stroke...” (What Are The Health Consequences Of Steroid Abuse).I personally believe that not one single baseball player should ever consider using PEDs or steroids, as it is not safe and it can simply put his professional career and life at risk.

Altogether, the risk that a baseball player takes when he steps on the baseball field are not serious; comparing them to the life risk that a baseball player would take when he decides to use steroids. The Major League Baseball should consider increasing more penalties and putting on more pressure on their players about steroids use, because the health risk are beyond significant and are an enormous concern.

Throughout the years many baseball sportswriters and baseball fanatics argued that steroids improves and increases the level of playing significantly of a baseball player. Anabolic steroids increases muscle mass, strength and endurance, and boost sporting performance. This means that the player that is using performance enhancing drugs will always have a great considerable and substantial advantage on the player that is not using steroids.

On the baseball field players like Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, and Barry Bonds are known for the baseballs that they crushed out of the ballpark, and also are great example of how steroids improves the level of playing. The Major League Baseball during the 1990s, faced an enormous surge of an offensive output that resulted in some unmatched number of homeruns totals for these power hitters. Between the 1961 and 1994, baseball season only three players reach the 50 home run mark, but for Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, and Barry Bonds and many others these homerun totals seem to be one easy mark to break after the 1994, Major League Baseball season. Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, and Barry Bonds all have been link to the use of steroids. In the 1997, baseball season McGwire was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals from the Oakland Athletics.

“The move set the stage for a memorable season when he and Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs battled for the National League home run title, during a year in which 13 different major leaguers hit at least 40 home runs...” (The Steroid Era). During this season both Sosa and McGwire end up breaking a 37 year old historical record set by Roger Maris of a the New York Yankees with 61 home run total during the 1961, Major League Baseball season. Moreover, Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa finish the 1997, baseball season with an unbelievable total of 70 and 66 home runs, respectively.

Barry Bonds arguable the best and most feared left handed hitter of his generation. Also, Bonds is the most notorious PEDs or steroids users that has ever played the game of baseball. Currently, Barry Bonds holds the Major League home run record with a total of 762 baseballs hit out of the park. Additionally, the record that Mark McGwire set of the 70 baseballs hit out of the park during the 1997, baseball season was broken three years later. In the majors baseball players numbers start declining their offensive production at the age of 35, but that was not the case with the left handed slugger. Barry Bonds, had hands down one of the most magical and historical Major League Baseball season in 2001. Despite of only being a 37 year old baseball player Barry Bonds, shattered McGwire's home run record when he knock 73 home runs out of the park during the 2001 season. Moreover, Curt Schilling a former baseball pitcher for the Boston Red Sox once said in an interview on ESPN, “HGH (Human Growth Hormone) and steroids make bad players good, good players great, and great players Hall of Famers’’. This is why the use of steroids is beyond unfair, not just for the game of baseball, but for all the sports.