The consenus of baseball minds points to the banning of amphetamines as the culprit. The drug, which is designed to give players added endurance and stamina, has been part of hitters' routines for decades but was often shown a blind eye by fellow players. I contend, however, that drugs, as a pure element of the game, are much more evident in minor league baseball, where players struggle to pay their monthly expenses.
Down on the farm, every player obsesses over the promotion to the major leagues. Therefore, he looks to impress team scouts each game, and whatever potential advantage to impress evaluators will be seized. Common sense would then point to a drug program throughout minor league baseball that is incredibly more stringent than in the major leagues. Unfortunately, this not the case, in fact, drug testing is weakest in the minor leagues. Major League Baseball, who governs over the minor leagues, refuses to allocate additional funds, believing that little money should be distributed to ensure the integrity of an often ignored league.
On the surface, Commissioner (right) Bud Selig's plan is logical. With smaller crowds, less expensive ballparks and little media coverage, a poor drug testing program doesn't really matter because frankly, no one will care. The notion, nevertheless, that these minor league players will become the next great major leaguers is not even part of the thought process. If Selig were to start with a strict policy early on, players would be scared into not using drugs as often. Thus, they would arrive in the big leagues without an upper hand against competition, and the average veteran would keep his job for a longer period of time. Clearly, the MLBPA would be in favor of keeping its wily, old veterans. They are the players who often best resonate with fan bases in the major leagues, plus most veterans act as the faces of baseball. Just imagine if the Yankees brought up some amphetamines and HGH crazed shortstop with 40 HR power and could hit .350 each year. Derek Jeter, the face of the entire franchise, could lose his job.
The most obvious support in favor of banning minor leaguers from drugs lies in the statistics. This season, only Edinson Volquez was found to be using performance-enhancing drugs. He blamed the positive test on a drug used to help with rehabilitation from injury. In the minor leagues, 36 players tested positive for this year. As previously mentioned, the program is hardly effective in the ranks of A, AA, and AAA, so the players found guilty are only those careless enough to actually get caught. The true numbers of cheaters is incredibly larger.
Being a lifelong baseball fan, as well, I wonder how someone truly finds themself bigger than the game of baseball. Look at Pete Rose or Mark McGwire. Each should be in the Hall-of-Fame based solely on baseball merits, yet they each broke the laws of baseball. If there is one player I even think to respect throughout the entire era, Andy Pettitte is the only name that would come to mind. He openly came out to admit the truth, saying he used HGH.
That being said, there is no true excuse for disrupting the integrity of baseball, a sport with over a century of history. Players, such as Williams, Gehrig, Robinson, and Mays, were all beloved for their efforts on the field, and the general public wanted to emulate them. Regarding participants in the era of performance-enhancing drug, I just want to forget them.
-Justin Silberman
No comments:
Post a Comment