Sammy Sosa was on ‘roids and I am still a fan of professional baseball.
On Tuesday June 16th, Sammy Sosa name was once again linked to steroid use. Except this time it wasn’t just an allegation, there is now physical proof that he knowingly took banned performance-enhancing drugs while playing Major League Baseball. And at this point I don’t think it really matters. Hell, I will even go as far as to say the man still deserves a shot at the Cooperstown.
With baseball in the current state that it is, I really don’t see how these new finding can really surprise anyone. Over the last few years it seems that all of the stars from the turn of the century have either been proven “cheaters” or their names have been so closely linked to this event that their careers were nearly ruined. Even with all of the “evidence” flying around(I use evidence in the sense that some sports writer now feel it there to duty to call out anyone who has a career season after age thirty as being on ‘roids.), I still find it had to believe that these players legacies are being tainted. Take Barry Bonds for example, possibly one of the ten greatest baseball players of all-time. While no real, physical evidence has been put up against him, he has received extreme allegations of steroid use. While he very may well have, and probably did, used performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career, that doesn’t take away from the fact that he still had to make contact with the 90+ mph fastball and drive it 400 feet. Not the mention the fact that he is the only player in Major League Baseball history to hit five hundred homeruns and swipe just as many stolen bases. My point in the is that there is now way that steroid use alone made for his exceptional career. I find it appaling that sports writers who have never made it past rookie league spring training can claim that steriods seem to have account for all of his statistics.
At age 37 Raul Ibanez of the Philidelphia Philles is having the season of his career, currently batting .316 with 22 homeruns and 59 runs batted in. However, it could not have been because he worked hard during the offseason, found a club that fits him well, or because he has always been talented. Its because he’s “juiced.” Give me a break.
The 1980-90′s have been labeled the “Steroid Age” and for right reasons, as it seems that an unbelievable number of players have been linked to banned substances. The Mitchell Report was published on December 17th, 2007 and it solely responsible for the downfall of average American’s faith in their nation’s past time. This waste of paper had in it eighty-nine printed names of known “cheaters.” Or did it? Rick Ankiel’s name was printed in the Mitchell report after it was found that he took dosages of human growth hormone, also known as HGH. However, when Ankiel took this substance in the early-2000′s, when it was not a banned substance (HGH did not become a banned substance until 2005). But to people like my roommate’s dumbass girlfriend he is still a “cheater.” That nonsense of a situation would be like a highway patrolmen giving you ticket for driving 55mph in a zone that used to have a 45mph speed limitation.
Many of these “steroids” are not even illegal substances. Being a mediocre NCAA athlete I can say that I have seen a list of substances that are banned from my consumption. On this list were, of course, illegal substances, but the list was also riddled with many items that could be easily purchased. Even one of those banned substances, Musle Milk (a product of the company Cytosport), could have been purchase by any member of my team by simply walking down two flights of stairs and buying it from the same drink machine that the Gatorades are found in. So its not as if these players are having to skip the country to obtain these drugs. I can guarantee that if i walked into GNC tomorrow morning i would be able to find half of the stuff the NCAA forbids it’s athletes from consuming.
Another side of this story that need to be looked at is the player perspective. While I can’t speak for any of them, I can say that if I was a struggling Minor Leaguer and a former teammate who had taken HGH was now making millions in the majors. I would be tempting to take the risk. A lot of these drugs don’t have the extreme medical consequences that anabolic-steroids possess. If I were a minor league ball player and was told by a medical professional that if I took this supplement before i worked out and it would make me stronger and better my chances of signing a major league contract without any major medical side-effects, it would be hard to say no. The general public need to realize that this is these men’s livelihood, not just a boyish dream to play ball for the Yankees.
I am, in no way, condoning the use of performance enhancing drugs. I am just simply stating that at this point in Major League Baseball, does it really ruin the game? The answer to that question is ‘No’. And i cant see how it has really effected teams. The only teams with a real drop in attendance lately is the Washington Nationals. And that is probably linked more the fact that they could be beaten by the majority of Triple-A minor league teams than any connection to steroids. The Steroid Era has changed how many look at the sport. However, i believe that any true fan can appreciate baseball regardless of what is being said has happened.
When i heard of the Manny Ramirez incident I wasn’t shocked, not one bit. Manny Ramirez is the best hitter in the game today. I would still pay good money to watch ‘Manny be Manny’ and crush a towering five hundred foot homerun out of Dodgers stadium. Oh, you can bet your ass I’d pay, regardless of what “substance he was on.”
