Tumbling Effects of Steroids in the Mlb
Brad Stone
Poltical Science
11/25/2010
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
Poltical Science
11/25/2010
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
Bibliography: with Annotations. Troy: Whitston Pub., 1991. Print. Pitch, By. "Barry Bonds Statistics and History - Baseball-Reference.com." Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Baseball Statistics and History. Web. 25 Nov. 2010. <http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/bondsba01.shtml>. Podell, Janet. Sports in America. New York: Wilson, 1986. Print. Roberts, By Selena. Baseball 's Steroid Era » News, Lists, Quotes, Timelines, Statistics. Web. 03 Nov. 2010. <http://www.baseballssteroidera.com/>. Simon, Robert L. Fair Play: Sports, Values, and Society. Boulder: Westview, 1991. Print. Wilson, Wayne, and Edward Derse, eds. Doping In Elite Sport: The Politics of Drugs in the Olympic Movemement. Champaign: Human Kinetics, 2002. Print.