Adam Provost
H English
Mrs. Kennedy
Pd. 1

Steroids in Baseball

In the sport of baseball, many players strive to hold records, get inaugurated into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and succeed. However, some players take that goal a little too far when anabolic steroids become involved. Anabolic means "muscle building," which increases the size and strength of the user's muscles ("Steering Clear of Steroids" pg. 1). The intake of steroids for baseball, and for sports in general, is illegal and considered cheating. In baseball, some players take steroids so that they can build larger muscles to hit the ball farther, throw harder, and become a stronger player. This gives them an edge for the time being, but it hurts them in the long-run. They might be able to fool their coaches, fans, and teammates, but they cannot fool their bodies. Steroids in baseball are discouraged due to their perceived benefits, side effects, and the shocking amount of teen usage. In order to understand the "benefits" of steroids, one must first know what steroids are. Steroids are a synthetic version of the male reproductive hormone testosterone. This hormone in a man gives him male qualities and helps promote muscle growth (World Science Book Year [Page 1]), but when it is in the form of steroids, it focuses on building muscles.

Every muscle is made of muscle fibers which are long cylinder-shaped cells. Every person needs proteins to rebuild their muscle cells and muscle tissue, but the protein in the cells wears away when one works the muscle. Cells build new proteins out of complex building-block molecules called Amino acids which are found in the cells' cytoplasm. This cytoplasm is between the membrane of the cell and the nucleus. When an athlete takes steroids, the steroid molecules can easily move the cytoplasm of a muscle fiber cell which gives steroids control of the muscle's growth production ("Performance-Enhancing Drugs" [5]).

These perceived benefits, according to Steroids for Sale, include increased protein synthesis, improved muscle building, elevated nitrogen retention, reduced protein breakdown, increased Androgen receptor sensitivity, increased muscular endurance, reduced FM (Fat Mass), and lower Catabolic hormones (Steroids for Sale). The main benefits are the ones focused on muscle building and enhancing physical performance.

A well-known example in baseball of a player using steroids to elevate his game is Barry Bonds. He currently holds the record for most home-runs hit by a single player in a career. He used steroids to build muscles so that he could ultimately hit the ball farther. With the help of steroids, he could receive the great feat of most home-runs hit in a single player's career. Through the duration of his steroid use, he gained 43 pounds of lean muscle and grew one inch. He had a body fat percentile of 6.2 percent which is extraordinarily low (Game of Shadows [280-291]). He became a physical phenomenon from his use of illegal steroids.

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The graph above displays the best players in baseball based on wins above replacement, and Bonds is at the top along with two other steroid users. This clearly shows that steroids help one improve his or her game. Bonds saw the benefits of steroids and took advantage of them so that he could surge ahead in the world of baseball. However, through all the benefits, most neglect to see the severe side effects of anabolic steroids ("Two Strikes; Drugs and Sports" [1]). Side effects of steroids are sometimes underestimated when compared with the tempting benefits that steroids offer. This does not make these side effects any less severe. These side effects can vary depending on the gender of the person taking steroids, but some side effects affect everyone exposed to anabolic steroids. Some of the negative side effects include tendon rupture, increased LDL cholesterol, decreased HDL cholesterol, atherosclerosis, heart attack,