Cheating In Sports Research Paper

Induction into the Hall of Fame is the highest individual achievement in baseball. Each player strives to have his career recognized as one of the best of his era. Unfortunately, the sport of baseball has had many players who are willing to cheat the game in order to achieve this prestigious honor. Recently, the use of Performance Enhancing Drugs have distorted both the records and individual statistics of the game. This era, known as the Steroid Era, has come to an end with recent improvements in drug testing, but the players of this era who had amazing careers are now up for induction and voters must make an important decision. They must decide whether or not they vote for these cheaters. In order to uphold the prestige of the Hall of Fame, …show more content…
Through the process of using PEDs, “the game was cheated. The fans were cheated. Even the record book took a beating” (Bauman np). PEDs are used for a number of different reasons. Older players may use them to negate the loss of physical ability that comes with old age. Smaller players may use them in order to make muscle gains that would improve their batting. All instances of PED use share a commonality. The player using the drug intends to gain an unnatural advantage over the opposing players. When a player is caught cheating in this manner, they receive appropriate short term punishment from the league such as a fine or a ban for a certain number of games, but they are not disqualified from entering the Hall of Fame. Their fate regarding the Hall of Fame is left for the induction voters to decide. This is where arguments arise. BBWAA (the Baseball Writers ' Association of America) election standards include voting based on integrity, sportsmanship, and character, and most voters cast their ballots against PED users accordingly. Unfortunately, there are some who would argue in favor of allowing PED users into the Hall, their argument justified mainly by voting solely on performance or other arbitrary reasons. The use of PEDs has greatly distorted the game of baseball and has caused harm to almost every aspect of the sport. In his …show more content…
Steinberg draws attention to the effect it could have on fans of the game, pointing out that “teenagers idolize their baseball heroes and want to emulate them” (Steinberg np). Steinberg is presenting an easily overlooked argument. He believes that honoring the achievements of PED users sends a message to young fans that PED use is acceptable, which could lead to increased use of steroid and supplement use in adolescent training. There is also the issue of how these players would reflect on the Hall itself. Bauman claims “the National Baseball of Fame is the most exclusive gathering of its sort in all of professional sports”. The Hall would be dishonored if PEDs are allowed to compromise the lofty and necessary standards in place (Bauman np). It would be shameful to the sport to tarnish its most prestigious honor and misrepresent the entire sport in the process of doing so. It is clear that no confirmed PED user should ever be allowed to enter the Hall of fame. No matter the career these players achieve, the damage they are doing to the sport should not be honored. The Hall of Fame is far too important to the sport of baseball to risk compromising. If PED users are allowed in, there may never be an end to cheating in the