What Kind of Advantage Do Steroids Give Athletes - Essay Example

According to Charles Silberstein, Adil Shamoo & Robert Germeroth (2000), there are various types of steroids, and they are “either naturally occurring physiological steroid hormones or their synthetic analogs.” (p. 110) The relevant steroid about which this paper will discuss is the androgens – those which are responsible for the effects related to growth. Anabolic steroids are the synthetic derivatives of the male hormone called testosterone. This nature of anabolic steroids underscores its significance in sports because testosterone is essential in the health and well-being of humans. The aim of synthetic steroids is to have compounds that selectively enhance anabolic effects. One should remember that the hormone enhances the libido as well as the energy of a person. Accordingly, the intake of anabolic steroids increases the levels of testosterone in the blood causing an increase in lean muscle mass, increase in bone density, strength as well as linear growth in adolescents. (Silberstein, Shamoo, and Germeroth, p. 111) For instance, says David Porter (2004), if a woman is to take a daily dose of anabolic steroids, she would develop masculine characteristics such as increased muscularity, deepening of the voice, and increased facial hair. (p. 145) Besides getting enlarged, muscle fibers repair faster than the average person.

Given the abovementioned facts, one will not be surprised why anabolic steroids are very popular, especially among athletes playing in sports that require musculature and strength such as wrestling. But how is this significant in sports like baseball which sets store in hitting the curveball?

Baseball Connection

Baseball is not as much concerned with the muscle bulge as with some sports. We will quote Stefan Szymanski and Andrew Zimbalist’s illustration on the relationship of anabolic steroids to baseball:

In 1998 Mark McGwire broke Roger Maria’s home-run record while using a steroid analog, androstenedione. Steroids create power, and power makes baseball more interesting… after the 2004 season baseball’s greatest home run, hitter Barry Bonds and slugger Jason Giambi were revealed to have used steroids. (2006, p. 212)

As it is, the competitive advantages of a heightened performance which enables the players to surpass their abilities are the main reason here. Jose Canseco, a Major League Baseball player himself, in a tell-all book called Juiced, goes beyond admitting his own usage to claiming that he often injected Mark McGuire while they were teammates. Fleckenstein, Hanson & Venturelli (2005) wrote: “According to Canseco, steroids and human growth hormone gave McGuire and Sammy Sosa the strength, stamina, regenerative ability, and confidence they needed for the record-setting home run duels often credited with restoring baseball’s popularity after the 1994 strike.” (p. 472)

Conclusion

For baseball, what is important is the performance and power to hit the curveball as well as the stamina to make a series of home runs. Surprisingly, Canseco added another dimension to steroid use when he mentioned that steroids lend a certain amount of confidence which, accordingly, for players, makes a difference when it comes to winning the game.

There are still those who argue that the effect of steroids on muscle mass or at least the mechanism of increased muscle mass due to steroid use is still not clear. Indeed, some effects of steroids on muscles are controversial. However, it has been established that substance use enhances the desire for more training and the ability to sustain more pain, in addition to a direct increase in muscle mass and regeneration. (Silberstein, Shamoo and Germeroth, p. 111) And so, here we achieve the support on why athletes feel confident since it does have an effect on the brain and the athlete’s mindset to train, and, eventually to win. Hitting the curveball is hence, not the sole, factor in winning in baseball. It is a multidimensional sport that requires more than physical prowess but a certain will or desire and confidence in order to win.

Baseball fans thrive on records, especially home run records. If baseball games are not as exemplary as those feats achieved by McGuire and Sosa with the aid of performance-boosting steroids, fans lose interest. In comparison to soccer, baseball is more exciting because of the level of competition. While every match has an uncertain outcome, there are games and sports which have more uncertain outcomes than others. This uncertainty makes baseball interesting. Furthermore, most of us like the idea of David winning over Goliath, of an underdog beating the odds. However, the reality is, in sports the “big guy” usually wins – an advantage that steroids offer to athletes.