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My opinion of PEDs has evolved quite a bit. At first I took the traditionalist view and thought that Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds were monsters for cheating the game and history of baseball. I've thought a lot about this issue over the years and my view point has changed dramatically. I believe baseball players did what nearly all people would do in a immensely competitive environment that offered little consequence (at the time), and actually encouraged the use of PEDs. If there was a drug that was easily attainable, and would increase your performance, and offered the opportunity to dramatically increase your salary, would you take it? I would have to answer YES, emphatically. How can I judge those baseball players, many of whom have little to fall back on, that take PEDs if I would do the same? I can't. They did what people have done since the beginning of time. They took advantage of the things that were available to them to help them succeed.
If you have some time, take a look at Joe Poznanski's comparison of PEDs and Viagra. He makes some excellent points.
Joe Poz
Here's a quick cut, but try to read the whole thing if you can. As usual, I think he makes a lot of sense.
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->As far as steroids being demonstrably against the rules … well, of course, that’s a pretty new thing. Before the recent outrage, the rules against performance enhancing drugs were nebulous at best and emboldening at worst.
Sure, it was always cheating — everyone knew that, which is why steroids were taken in dark rooms and injected by sleazy trainers — but the problem is: Cheating who? Cheating the other players? Well, damn, a lot of them were already doing it. Cheating the fans? Maybe, but you sure didn’t hear too many people complaining about seeing longer home runs and watching 95 mph fastballs. Cheating your team? You think your teammates or manager cared what you were doing as long as you got people out in the eighth inning or drove 10 more home runs out of the yard? Cheating baseball? Well, hell, if those baseball people cared so much they would have started testing 20 years earlier.
So … cheating who? Well, people would say: Cheating history. That’s what they were doing. And baseball is the one game that relies deeply on history. Tennis, golf … there’s a titanium and graphite wall between those games and their history. Oh, everyone likes golf history. But it’s only that: History. After all, what would a golfer using today’s equipment shoot on the 1986 version of Augusta National? Every Par 5 would be laughably easy. Every Par 4 would be a drive and a pitch. Would 25-under be possible? Thirty-under? You better believe it.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
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I don't care anymore either. Hell, I wish the entire Cubs roster would start taking them.
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I'm starting to not care about baseball in general more and more. That said, PEDs, unless they are steroids, don't bother me.
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Does anyone consider cortisone a performance enhancing drug? How about modern medicine in general?
Some men are born mediocre, some men achieve mediocrity, and some men have mediocrity thrust upon them.
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I still care a great deal. I think the damage done to the historical record of the game...all the meaningless modern records...I find it horrific.
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I care to the degree that I think the potential side effects of some of the PEDs are dangerous and I don't want my son (or any other kid) to get cancer of the dick because his favorite baseball player does 'roids or HGH so he wants to do them too.
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Plus, I want Pujols to be exposed for the fraud that he is. Seeing that douchebag go down in flames would give me a month-long boner.
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I still care a great deal. Anyone taking them is sacrificing their health to entertain me... and I don't like that thought.
I do feel like I'm being cheated as well. I watch sporting events and admire the abilities of these players. To think that some of them are only able to hit the ball over the wall because they used an illegal substance gives me the feeling that the wool is being pulled over my eyes.
Also, I have a lot of respect for a lot of the players I root for. I have so much respect for a guy like Derek Lee, not just because he's a great athlete but because of the way he conducts himself. If I were to find out he was sacrificing his own health and taking away from himself/family/friends just to be a better baseball player... I just don't think I could respect or root for him anymore.
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<!--quoteo(post=57844:date=Aug 14 2009, 09:56 AM:name=Scarey)-->QUOTE (Scarey @ Aug 14 2009, 09:56 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->I still care a great deal. Anyone taking them is sacrificing their health to entertain me... and I don't like that thought.
I do feel like I'm being cheated as well. I watch sporting events and admire the abilities of these players. To think that some of them are only able to hit the ball over the wall because they used an illegal substance gives me the feeling that the wool is being pulled over my eyes.
Also, I have a lot of respect for a lot of the players I root for. I have so much respect for a guy like Derek Lee, not just because he's a great athlete but because of the way he conducts himself. If I were to find out he was sacrificing his own health and taking away from himself/family/friends just to be a better baseball player... I just don't think I could respect or root for him anymore.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I agree with most of this, as well.
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I'd bet my left nut that Lee to PEDs.
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<!--quoteo(post=57846:date=Aug 14 2009, 10:00 AM:name=Coldneck)-->QUOTE (Coldneck @ Aug 14 2009, 10:00 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->I'd bet my left nut that Lee to PEDs.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'm not sure what makes you so sure. I'm not going to get into an argument and take a stance that he didn't because I honestly have no freaking idea. But to stake your reproductive organ on something so up in the air just seems strange to me.
Although, if you're of the opinion that everyone in MLB has done them, I understand a bit better. I still (maybe foolishly) hang on to the assumption that there were a decent amount of players that didn't do it and unless there's a lot of smoke, I'll give player's on an individual basis the benefit of the doubt.
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<!--quoteo(post=57854:date=Aug 14 2009, 10:19 AM:name=Scarey)-->QUOTE (Scarey @ Aug 14 2009, 10:19 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=57846:date=Aug 14 2009, 10:00 AM:name=Coldneck)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Coldneck @ Aug 14 2009, 10:00 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->I'd bet my left nut that Lee to PEDs.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'm not sure what makes you so sure. I'm not going to get into an argument and take a stance that he didn't because I honestly have no freaking idea. But to stake your reproductive organ on something so up in the air just seems strange to me.
Although, if you're of the opinion that everyone in MLB has done them, I understand a bit better. I still (maybe foolishly) hang on to the assumption that there were a decent amount of players that didn't do it and unless there's a lot of smoke, I'll give player's on an individual basis the benefit of the doubt.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
His 2005 season seems suspicious. But it's certainly not something that would stand up in a court of law.
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I wouldn't call his 2005 smoke though. Players have career years. I realize Lee had a huge career year, but to me a player doesn't just very suddenly start getting monstrous results from PEDs like that.
It would be more damning if Lee went from a 20-25 home run guy to consistently being a 40 home run guy. As it is, the 5 years previous to 2005 he pretty conistently had about 30 HRs and a .500 slugging percentage and had one monstrous year with 45 HRs and a .662 slugging %.
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If Lee had gone from being a bum to a great player, then back to a bum again, I might be more suspicious. He's had a solid career, so I'm only mildly suspicious.
I'm actually very curious as to which pitchers juiced and took PEDs. It seems that they've gotten sort of a pass during these scandals (aside from Clemens and Grimsley), unlike most sluggers and position players who get hounded with questions all the time.
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