Steroids in baseball is almost as common as the hats that teams put on. I know, in recent news, the steroid era in the MLB is over. But, the problem seems to still plague the collegiate and high school baseball world. As a baseball player myself it seems that steroids seems to still be making an impact on the game.
Anabolic steroids are the drug that athletes and professional body builders use to get massive muscle gains, and get them fast. Anabolic steroids give the normal athlete and bodybuilder an advantage over the field of competitors. Steroids, in short, stop the body of producing naturally the male sex hormone testosterone, and replace the body with a synthetic stronger dose of testosterone. The bodies cells, with steroids increase the protein synthesis within the cell, which creates a build up of muscular tissue. Making a consumer huge!In theory, the idea of a baseball player becoming bigger, stronger, and faster with the extra help of if steroids will enhance his performance on the field.
Berry bonds is one of the most famous steroid cases. Bonds took steroids when he started getting older and had a peaking season of 73 home runs in 2001. Because of bond's steroid use, today if you look at almost any record book. You will find an asterisk next to the records, which he set includes both regular season home run record, and the all time home run record.
One must admit, that the major leagues and the armature levels of baseball are two different animals. Major League Baseball has the authority and funding to establish proper and harsh drug policies that its players and managers must abide by. This is whats separates the two. Though the NCAA does do its part in drug testing its athletes, still many cases go under the radar as it is not constituted that it is mandatory that every single athlete has to be drug tested. The same holds true for NJCAA where there is a drug policy, but the testing seems to be only done on suspicion that a player or manager is using the substances. High School policies vary as the drug policies are different district to district, some assostications of high school sports test more and more effectively than others.
So when baseball annalists on ESPN or other sports media say that the steroid era in baseball is over think again. Maybe, at the professional level they have put a stop cheaters playing in pro-ballparks, but in my eyes until the amature levels of baseball crack down on their policies, and are supported with more funding. The armature baseball levels will never be equal do to the performance enhancers on the market.
I will say myself that i have never been involved with steroids personally, but from playing on many different baseball teams from the age of 13, i am aware of how the steroid market impacts armature baseball. For now until the policies and funding change in armature baseball, i believe that it up us players to support proper lifting schedules, dietary plans, and intensive proactive plans to improve our own baseball skills. Without, the need to take some crazy substance that will help one achieve his goals. Some sort integrity needs to take place in each baseball player to vow to get better naturally and stop the cheating.
