Tumbling Effects of Steroids in the Mlb

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Brad Stone
Poltical Science
Clifton Wilkinson

Tumbling Effects of Steroid Use by Major League Baseball Players
Are the Major League Baseball record books tainted? Can a single drug change the way a baseball fan looks at the record set by Barry Bonds or opinions about a man who hit 762 homeruns (Pitch 1)? Steroids have the ability to turn an average player into a player that can qualify and succeed as a Major League Baseball player. They also provide the “good” player the ability to become a “great” player; a “great” player to become a “superstar”. But more importantly in regards to the player’s performance, steroids give the injured player the ability to heal more rapidly, therefore returning to the playing field quicker than the average person. Due to the unfair advantage steroids give the athletes, Major League Baseball has outlawed the use of steroids. In 1988 U.S. Congress passed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act which was a law that “Amended the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and created criminal penalties for persons who distribute or possess anabolic steroids with the intent to distribute for any use in humans other than the treatment of disease” (Roberts 1). Then in 1990, “believing that the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 legislation was insufficient, congress quickly replaced it with the Anabolic Steroids Control Act of 1990” (Roberts 1). This Act added anabolic steroids to the federal schedule of controlled substances which criminalized their non-medical use (Roberts 1). Finally, Commissioner Fay Vincent issued a memo to all Major League Baseball teams regarding the use of Steroids in 1991. In the memo, Mr. Vincent indicated that steroids will be added to the Major League Baseball’s list of banned drugs (Roberts 1). Effects of Anabolic Steroids on Major League Baseball can be described as a ripple effect. The ripple effect begins with the player which in turn affects the team which in turn affects Major League Baseball as a business. From a personal perspective, anabolic steroid use can affect the player both mentally and physically. The affects of anabolic steroid use on the team brings on negative publicity and moral. All the while anabolic steroid use affects the business of Major League Baseball through this same negative publicity and the viability of newly created records. A player chooses to use anabolic steroids to improve his physical and perceived mental advantage. “Steroids are a synthetic version of the human hormone called testosterone” using the steroids to improve their skills mentally gives the player a false sense of hard work and their improved abilities (Mishra 1). Physically, steroid use on the human body according to Raja Mishra, “Stimulates the development of bones and muscle, promotes skin and hair growth, and can influence emotions.” More specifically in males, the human hormone “testosterone, is produced by the testes and the adrenal gland” (Mishra 1). The use of an anabolic steroid can enhance a mediocre athlete’s abilities into the skills of a great athlete. Steroids cause a human’s testosterone level to soar. When this hormone is high, body tissue will repair itself at an abnormally high rate. When a person exercises, the body tissue is broken down because of the way an athlete pushes their body during the workout. An average athlete will take a day off from exercising to allow their body to completely recuperate. Someone who is under the influence of steroids recovers at a much faster rate which helps an athlete gain a significant advantage. Not only do steroids have negative effects, they have many negative effects. “Steroids fool the body into thinking that testosterone is being produced. Sensing an excess of testosterone, the body shuts down bodily functions involving testosterone use, such as bone growth. The ends of long bones fuse together and stop growing, resulting in stunted growth.” (Mishra 1). There are also many other side effects steroids cause; “acne, genital...
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