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December 8, 2004

Steroids in Baseball

A Call For Testing

by Will Carroll

In the case of Steroids v. Baseball, a vastly different process than the one that is supposed to be taking place in United States v. Conte, we have all made rash judgments, sweeping generalizations and false conclusions. Steroids, like drugs or Pete Rose, seem to push rationality and logic out the window. Fans and players who love the game passionately defend any attack at the very soul of "our game," so anything that challenges our perceptions, rightly or wrongly, is likely to get this same treatment.

Biochem 101

Amidst the hue and cry, what's been missing are some basic facts about the substances in question. For example, there are a number of drugs that have come under the generic word "steroids" that do not include anabolic steroid components. I prefer the term "performance enhancing drug" (PED) as more accurate and encompassing. However, it is even difficult to classify things as PEDs without finding yourself on a slippery slope.

Instead, we must further clarify the term. There are legal chemicals and compounds that have clear performance enhancing effects. Coffee, Red Bull or other energy drinks, herbal compounds, protein shakes, and even Gatorade could be considered to enhance performance. Legally prescribed medicines, taken as directed and under a physician's care, may enhance performance. Painkillers and anti-inflammatory medicines, widely used in baseball, definitely allow players to perform more effectively or in situations where, without the chemical intervention, they would be unable to do so. Even medical procedures such as Tommy John surgery or Curt Schilling's ankle repair could be argued to be performance enhancements.

We'll coin a new term here: IPED. An IPED is an illegal performance enhancing drug. This new distinction separates out accepted forms like coffee, vitamins and prescribed medicines from anabolic steroids, off-label prescription medicines and controlled substances. It is the IPEDs with which baseball is concerned.

There is a grey area between PEDs and IPEDs where drugs such as 4-androstenedione ("andro," made famous by Mark McGwire), ephedra and other compounds reside. It is also a place where misused prescription medicines fall. While legal, it is the intent of the use that calls them into question. Modafinil, a prescription medicine used to treat narcolepsy, helps many suffering from that condition, yet it also has performance enhancing effects for those who do not suffer from an approved condition. No one will question that insulin is one of the great medical discoveries of the modern age, yet athletes seeking advantages on the field can also abuse it. It is then up to the respective governing bodies to determine which substances should be on their banned lists, lists that must be continually updated.