A-Rod is a Fraud?

The recent news that Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees tested positive for steroids back in 2003 has once again touched off a fiery controversy that has threatened to consume baseball for quite sometime. As the heir apparent of the home-run record with 553, a clean, 33-year-old A-Rod was seen by many as the eraser to Barry Bond’s current steroid-injected, asterisk-tipped record of 762. With this hope now fading away, Major League Baseball must handle cautiously the ongoing defamation of its best player, or else risk the loss of more credibility, something that it has very little in reserve.

No other sport has been rocked by the steroid controversy more so than America’s pastime. When other sports associations cracked down hard on the use of artificial hormone derivatives, it fell in a relatively gray area for baseball. By the time realization dawned on the league that steroid use was inflating statistics, it was too late; records were being shattered at an unprecedented rate. Because of its long and rich history, no other sport places as much emphasis on records as baseball. Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak. Cy Young’s 511 wins. Nolan Ryan’s 5,714 career strikeouts. These numbers stand out in the mind of baseball fans like a lightning rod. The use of steroid put these numbers at risk, and inflamed the passions of fans who want things done right.

Despite not being a passionate follower of baseball, I believe that there is something to be admired about achievement the good old-fashioned way. Humanity’s greatest strength is its ability for improvement. Players today are competing at a level far higher than their predecessors, and advances in workout regimens and diet plans are shaping more physically gifted athletes than ever before. However, a spirit of fairness is far more important than any championship. For a substance that affects every player differently, whose advantages do not come from hard work and sweat but needle pricks, and that causes drastic long-term damages for a few short-term benefits, it is clear that regulation must be handed down swiftly by the authorities of baseball.

Harsher penalties for steroid use were finally issued in 2005, but the larger issue concerns the records that were broken or are in danger of being broken in this era of steroids. These achievements, great as they are, must be recognized with asterisks of sorts, a reminder that they were accomplished under the auspices of a powerful and advantageous artificial enhancer. As for Rodriguez, it would be best for him to come clean with his mistakes. Sports fans may be passionate, but they are a fickle crowd. There is no doubt in my mind that this whole mess will just wash over soon enough.