Steroids in Baseball Was Not a suprise

The Modern Steroid ERA in Baseball began sometime in the 80’s  and if you listen to Jose Canseco it was before the 1985 Baseball season. My first major idea of steroids was between Rocky IV and1988 when Olympic Sprinter Ben Johnson was stripped of his Gold Medals for steroid use. (Growing up every commented on how big Rocky aka Sly Stallone got for Rocky IV and how it was Steroids.)

 In 1989 the NFL added steroids to the list of drugs it could test for and according to the San Diego Tribune 13 players were busted in August of 1989 for Steroids. (NFL Steroid Article) In 1991 Commissioner Fay Vincent sent a Memo that steroids in baseball were illegal even though there was no plan for testing. (This memo must have gotten lost when Bud Selig took over as Commissioner, it must have been the temp agency’s fault)On May 14, 1992 former NFL player Lyle Alzado died and admitted to taking anabolic steroids in 1969 and never stopping.

What does NFL testing and a Olympic Sprinter getting busted have to do with Steroids in baseball? Well these events should have opened someone’s eyes in Major League Baseball that steroids was currently a problem or could become a serious problem. If they were considered illegal in 1991 what took new commissioner Bud Selig  till the “confidential” test of 2003 to pilot steroid testing? It was not until 2005 after Selig and Fehr had to go before Congress that MLB really had a true testing Policy in place.  

If you visit baseballssteroidera.com and a story by ESPN the Magazine, they really put out great information on the subject. I think Bob Gibson at the All Star game summed it up best.

Guys have always been cheating, period. It just takes a little different form today. I’m just glad they didn’t have steroids when I was playing. I don’t know what I would have done. It’s very difficult to go out and perform when you know the guy next to you is taking steroids or some kind of drug to make you perform better and not do it yourself, to let this guy get an edge on you.

It is up to Major League Baseball to prevent the players from using steroids and performance enhancing drugs for the integrity of the game. The Commissioner and Union need to work out Olympic style testing so MLB can honestly say they are doing everything possible to prevent it. They were too soft in the lack of policy and enforcement in the 80’s, 90’s and 2000’s so it’s probably going to be stricter for future players.  

Commissioner:I think Bud Selig should take some responsibility for not paying attention to society and being proactive to the issue or potential issue. I think his whole “I don’t want the blame for steroids” is really chicken-hearted to say they least. Bud Selig had no problem with his $18 million dollar salary for fiscal 2007 so he should be a man and take the good with the bad.

Union Chief:  Donald Fehr who is the MLB Players Union Leader is also co= responsible for not working to get testing in place back in the late 1980’s or early 1990s for the integrity of the game.

Players & Owners: The players who did cheat and fought testing via the union, the players who did not cheat who rolled with the process knowing people were cheating. 

I personally no longer care if someone cheated back in the 1990s or 2000s by using steroids cause all parties involved let it happen. The players now will be second guessed by the fans based on the actions of the fellow union members of the past, but the game will go on.

©2009 The Fair Ball. All Rights Reserved.

.