Skip to main content

Constant Leakage Sheds New Light on Steroids

Today, I think many people are in agreement with White Sox manager, Ozzie Guillen, when he said, "please, stop. I'm sick of hearing about this" in regards to the latest steroids controversy. And to be honest, how can you not agree with Guillen? It seems the dark cloud that is the steroid era has made its way over us again, and is raining down its drops of allegations, admissions, speculation, and degredation over the game.

However, the truth of the matter is that this is not over. As more names are leaked, and the confirmation of our suspicions occur, the Pandora's box that was the steroid era is exposed and revealed more clearly. Does it change the past? No. Should we change the past? No. Nonetheless, no matter how much certain writers and members of the national media prefer to add asterisks, labels, and cause a frenzy, there are two distinct (and very polarizing) perceptions that are rising from the constant leakage of these names.

The first situation is the greatness of Derek Sanderson Jeter. For over fifteen years, Jeter has embodied what Major League Baseball seeks in one of the faces of the league. As the names are revealed, ones which were synonymous with power, fame, notoriety and the insane, videogame-like statistics, Jeter, on a pace for 4,000 hits, slowly rises as the single greatest talent during the era. In fact, Jeter is the one player that MLB cannot afford to be connected to performance-enhancing drugs. Any other name will not surprise a fan anymore - except Derek Jeter. And that in it's essence shows how special of a talent Derek Jeter was, and is.

On the other hand...

The second, and most significant situation is the absolute bias towards steroids and baseball. Correct me if I am wrong, but wasn't Calvin Pace of the New York Jets suspended for performance-enhancing drugs recently? Yet, that received little press time, even less scrutiny from reports and sports outlets, and absolutely no criticism based on it it's morality and transgressions of the game. It was a mere blip on the screen. Instead, ESPN's NFL Live focused on how it would affect the Jets defense.

Unbelievable.

Save the excuse of the focus being a result of baseball's historical records and connection to American culture. Save it. Steroids should not be prioritized based on record at stake or sport. It wasn't a priority for the coverage of Marion Jones. It shouldn't be for Calvin Pace. If we are truly concerned with curbing steroid connection with athletes, our sports, and most importantly, our youth, steroid issues should be dealt with equally.

Yet, football and the NFL continues to get a pass. Amazing.

Two players caught for cheating six years ago when awareness and testing were minimal, or a current player being caught today under strict (and federal) supervision?

It seems we're so concerned with the "steroid era" of the past, that we may not even notice it still exists...or in some cases, we choose not to.

Recently Read

Quick Ponder: Future Self

We always think,  what would we say  to our  younger self? However,  what would  our younger self say  if they met us, today?

Quick Ponder: Belong

Trying to... Belong to a Community.  Belong to Someone.  Belong to Some.  Belong.  Be. 

Working in Higher Ed, Lately

"Working in higher education must be interesting these days, huh?" That question was posed to me by several people who recently learned that I worked in higher education. The recent discourse around the industry and field has certainly shifted in narrative and the overall feel within it. I recently wrapped up my fourteenth (!!) academic year. It's remarkable to think that I've been serving students and following a passion for this long. This is especially the case considering the rising turnover, the documented yearly burnout, and the increasing exodus from the field.  And, yup, there is that whole enrollment cliff combined with the politics that are more present than ever on college campuses.  So yeah, higher education is weird right now. Very weird.  Some quick thoughts : IS IT TIME?  Yes, I have thought about leaving the field several times. Especially, over the last few years. COVID didn't really bother me, but it's safe to say that the world of higher edu...