Baseball and PEDs: Further Down the Rabbit Hole
by Ryan Henry After Melky Cabrera, San Francisco didn’t just lose their best hitter and the only person who could cover for Buster Posey in their lineup. They also lost a legitimate MVP candidate. Baseball also came face-to-face with performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) yet again. Not even two weeks later, Oakland A’s ace Bartolo Colon tested positive for PEDs. Their punishment? Each was suspended for 50 games. This seems almost too fitting as Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Roger Clemens all become eligible for the Hall of Fame. Eventually, baseball is going to have to admit that PEDs are a problem and that putting a stop to their use is more important than losing one of their stars. Cabrera before his suspension. Courtesy of mlb.com First of all, 50 games for a first offense is simply not enough of a penalty to actually cut down on PED use. During a radio interview with ESPN Radio New York, Victor Conte, the founder of BALCO, said that “as much as 50 percent” ...