Andro - It's Legal But Is It
Ethically Correct?
Mark McGwire uses steroids. That sentence alone should be enough to exempt the partner in crime, andro, from Major League Baseball and have an asterisk placed next to his home run record in history books, thereby restoring some sanity to America’s pastime.
But it isn’t and not many seem to be publicly bothered. This is not right.
Androstenedione is a substance with the ability to raise levels of the male hormone, thus building lean muscle mass and speeding up recovery after injury. It is legal in Major League Baseball, but banned by the National Football League, International Olympic Committee and NCAA and considered dangerous by many doctors.
McGwire broke Roger Maris’ record of 61 home runs in a single season this past year and finished with a total of 70 round-trippers. He says he has been using andro for over a year. Any correlation here? It is absolutely possible.
In all likelihood, the St. Louis first baseman’s feat was a result of his prolonged use of andro which boosted the testosterone in his body. Granted, Mac has always generated impressive power numbers, but why is it that all of a sudden, a while after he begins consuming a steroid, he sets a home run record? It must be the andro!
McGwire’s use of the substance enhanced his ability to the point of four-bagger immortality. This should be enough for baseball officials to ban andro and reprimand any future abusers to the fullest extent. Then, and only then, would some true dignity be restored in the leagues. To their credit, baseball commissioner Bud Selig and his horde have recently elected to have a team of doctors research the effects of the drug.
But the damage has already been done.
Which is exactly why an asterisk should be included next to McGwire’s name and the number "70" in that oh so holy baseball bible: the record book. All people should be made aware of the fact that this man did not hit all of those home runs by virtue of sole human strength. The proverbial standard bar needs to be raised.
But then again, this is indeed America we’re dealing with here. For the most part, people would celebrate and revere anything, it seems, regardless of how tarnished it may be. The asterisk would help remedy this and set a precedent that hopefully would promote honest and real ball-play, two subjects of which McGwire probably knows nothing.
Well, at least his gargantuan biceps don’t.
(From MounTimes, 12/10/98)