Were Steroids Good for Baseball?

As we wait for the next scouting report for the draft (I think it is Smoak or Posey next), I figured I would muse about PEDs. I haven't done this for a while. Anyway, Shysterball pointed me to this post over at the Sports Economist.

Basically, the response to steroid use was different than it was in football. An idea as to why this was so is that the negatives and positives are different for each sport. In baseball, the negative (i.e. health issues) is personalized. An individual taking PEDs could really only hurt themselves. There may be some overlap in beanings and the occasional splintered bat toss, but really the health issues were assumed solely by the individual who took them. In football, added onto those personal risks are also risks posed to other people playing. Bigger and stronger football players may not only put themselves at risk, but they can also impart a lot of hurt on others. Potential psychological issues associated with steroid use would also have more opportunity in football to cause danger to others.

Benefits of steroid use also differ between the sports. In football, steroid use makes both offense and defense bigger and stronger. The result is a hard hitting, more powerful game. It really isn't much different than a game without steroids. Steroids do not make your skills sharper . . . just bigger and stronger. It doesn't really enhance the experience for spectators. In baseball, steroids potentially really help guys hit homeruns. It may be cliche, but everyone loves the long ball. A tired and true baseball guy like myself loves pitching duels and the occasional climactic moon shot. Casual fans like that thrill of a homerun blast. What ties me to the casual fan is that we both carry a great appreciation for the ultimate play in baseball. Yes, a double play with one out and the bases loaded is more valuable than a homerun, but that sort of value is hard to see . . . to comprehend. A homerun is simple. It is elegant. It is that simple worth that makes it what it is. That is why steroids were tolerated, and likely encouraged, by baseball. That might also be why the fan, in general, ignored the obvious indications of steroid use (i.e., Lenny Dykstra back in the early 90s and Jose Canseco). In a sport where guys piss on their hands to get an advantage, if a good player is doing something . . . others will start doing it too.

Anyway, if all you lurkers wish to discuss this in the comments . . . go right ahead.