When children begin playing sports, one of the things that they are taught from the start is that cheating is wrong regardless of the situation. In any level of sport, from pee-wee leagues consisting of five-year-olds to professional leagues and all others in between, cheating and finding ways to bend the rules is frowned upon and penalized. At some point during what seems to be every baseball season, allegations surface regarding yet another prime-time player being accused and/or admitting to using some form of performance-enhancing drug (PED). While steroids have not always been illegal in Major League Baseball (MLB), players continue to use them regardless of its legality in order to improve their performance on the field. Not all steroid users during their playing careers reached stardom and proved to be an asset for their team, but some achieved at incredibly high levels and essentially became human highlight reels. Because of their exceptional on-field productivity, a controversy surfaced regarding whether they should be recognized for their career accomplishments by electing them into the professional baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. The argument in support of their eligibility believes that if a player’s statistics and presence on the field prove their worth, then voters should look past the steroid use and focus their decision on numbers alone. The opposing argument believes that while these players may have had impressive careers, the fact that they cheated by using steroids is a deal-breaker and they should not be chosen. Professional baseball players who used performance-enhancing drugs during their playing careers should not be awarded Hall of Fame eligibility regardless of their accomplishments because they chose to break the rules rather than earn their way to an elite status.

Even though steroids were not added to the list of banned substances until 1991 and the implementation of drug-testing players across the league was not until 2003 (ESPN), players have used them for decades. The drugs are intended to build muscle and increase testosterone levels in the players, thus giving them more power and a boost in performance. Punishment for being caught using performance-enhancing drugs was originally far from extreme to say the least, beginning with a ten-day suspension for the first offense and the fifth offense resulting in a lifetime ban from baseball. Because of how many breaking news stories regarding a player being caught every season, it seems to never end, and some people look at the sport as a game for cheaters and the league as one that allowed it to go seemingly untouched with a lack of proper discipline. After the Senate started to take notice of the leniency, an agreement in 2005 between the league and the Major League Baseball Players’ Association, referred to as the MLBPA, called for a 50-game suspension for the first offense, a 100-game suspension for the second, and a lifetime ban for the third. (Bloom, Molony) Since the dawn of the “Steroid Era” in the 1980s, numerous players have tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. Some of the more recognizable names include Alex Rodriguez, Roger Clemens, Jose Canseco, and Jeff Bagwell. Of those four, only one is in the Hall of Fame, as Bagwell was elected this past year, but Rodriguez will not be eligible for a few years since he retired following the 2016 season. While each of the players mentioned had outstanding careers and had statistics that set them apart, the one thing they all have in common is that they used performance-enhancing drugs to build a perceived reputation as a standout player and athlete.

If any season were to be considered the “year of steroids,” it would be the 1998 season. This year was full of home run hitters, but it was highlighted by the battle between Chicago Cubs outfielder Sammy Sosa and St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Mark McGwire. The race was to see who would surpass Yankee great Roger Maris’ record for most home runs in a season of sixty-one. It was a season-long bout between Sosa and McGwire, and while they both hit sixty-six and seventy home runs, respectively, McGwire came out on top and got to sixty-two home runs first and Sosa was named the National League Most Valuable Player. The two prime-time hitters would later finish their careers with a combined 1,192 home runs. The chase brought more attention to baseball than the sport had seen in years, and the two sluggers became stars. It was the inspiration for a book entitled “The Perfect Season: Why 1998 was Baseball’s Greatest Year” and Sports Illustrated named them “Sportsmen of the Year” (Bishop). While the battle rejuvenated Major League Baseball’s popularity, its monumental impact became an afterthought just a few years later. Shortly after 1998, both McGwire and Sosa became linked to performance-enhancing drugs, as well as several other players who shined during that season. According to Greg Bishop, eight of the thirteen players who hit forty or more home runs during the 1998 season now have their names connected to PED use, including Sosa, McGwire, Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Palmeiro, and Manny Ramirez. Neither Sosa nor McGwire have been elected into the Hall of Fame, but Sosa is still eligible. His eligibility will last for a few more years to come, but whether or not voters will choose to have him enshrined in the Hall of Fame has yet to be determined, so only time will tell for his case as well as other players in similar situations.

While not every professional baseball player uses steroids to increase their production, many players do despite the fact that they will be reprimanded extensively when caught. In a recent video from the Associated Press, former U.S. Senator George Mitchell announced the results of a study conducted on Major League Baseball players. Of all the players that were drug-tested for the study, 5 to 7 percent tested positive for steroids, but some negative tests may have been misleading. The results prove that performance-enhancing drugs are still prevalent in baseball and are a major issue in MLB. According to an ESPN article, there were ten players between 1998 and 2009 that surpassed the 500-career home run milestone, one that is one of the most renowned marks in professional baseball. Of those ten players, six now have their names linked to steroid use. One of the six players is Barry Bonds, who passed all-time great Hank Aaron for sole possession of the record for most career home runs in August of 2007. Bonds finished with 762 home runs, seven more than Aaron’s 755, which no one ever thought could be matched. Because he became known for using performance-enhancing drugs as much as he did, many people began to question whether or not he should be considered the greatest home run hitter of all time and even have some of his home runs revoked for cheating his way to the top of the list. His use of performance-enhancing drugs has been the primary reason why he has yet to be elected into the Hall of Fame. He has been on the voting ballot since 2013 and will be for a few more years.

Those who support the election of steroid users centralize their beliefs around the idea that the players’ numbers should speak for themselves and should be seen as they are printed on the spreadsheet. They stand behind the claim that these players should be acknowledged for how well they performed on the field and that the voting committee for the Hall of Fame should look past the fact that they took steroids and look at the statistics. USA Today writer Bob Nightengale supports this idea, saying that with his vote, he will “vote for players who had Hall of Fame careers, regardless of their connections to steroids and performance-enhancing drugs.” If a voter was given a list of statistics without the names of the players they belong to or any information that could influence the voter’s decision, they would pick those who had the best career performance. For example, if a voter was handed a spreadsheet for Sammy Sosa’s career and did not see his name, he or she would most likely vote for Sosa. But, do the same and put Sammy Sosa’s name and/or his connection to PEDs on the sheet, and that potential vote is gone because they would see that he used illegal substances. As USA Today journalist Ted Berg said, “[…] the Hall of Fame should be about only one thing… celebrating great players.” If voters focused their decision solely on numbers and on-field presence, some players who have been denied entry for years could very well be in Cooperstown.

Another claim made by those in favor of electing these players is that previous voting committees have voted in players who did other wrongful things, so they should consider steroid users. There is truth behind this claim, as players who have done things such as using amphetamines, abusing alcohol, and other illegal things, have been elected into the Hall of Fame. In an article that focused on this subject, Bob Nightengale stated, “Come on, this isn’t the Sistine Chapel. We’ve let murderers, racists, and abusers into the Hall of Fame. […] Check out the number of writers who adamantly won’t vote for Bonds or Clemens, but will vote for Tim Raines, the same guy who admitted to cocaine use during his career, even snorting it during games.” While steroid use is frowned upon and acts essentially as a repellant to voters who base their voting choices more on morals and ethics than numbers alone, the fact that they would not be the only wrongdoers to be enshrined in Cooperstown does help their case and sometimes eases the tension.

The main reasoning behind the argument that steroid users should not be in the professional baseball Hall of Fame is that their accomplishments were the result of their cheating and that someone who broke the rules intentionally does not deserve to be recognized alongside players who achieved similar things without using drugs. When someone visits the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, they see plaques commemorating the careers of some of the greatest ever to play the game, such as Mickey Mantle, Cy Young, Jackie Robinson, and Stan Musial. The reason that they have been enshrined in Cooperstown is because they earned their way to fame. When looking at the careers of Barry Bonds, Jose Canseco, and other players who excelled that took performance-enhancing drugs, the numbers to make their case as elite players are there without question. But, when the factor of steroid use comes into play, those numbers’ values suddenly become almost dismal compared to when initially analyzed because these eye-opening statistics were the effect of using drugs to build muscular strength. Take “Babe” Ruth, Nolan Ryan, and Ty Cobb, three of the greatest players of all time, for example. “Babe” Ruth did not use steroids to hit 714 home runs. Nolan Ryan did not use steroids to strike out 5,714 batters. Ty Cobb did not use them to accumulate a .366 batting average. Each of these players are in the top three or better in their respective categories, and none of them used performance-enhancing drugs. They all earned their way to the top and into Cooperstown. In a 2017 video interview from ESPN, Hall of Fame voter Murray Chass explained why he decided to turn in a blank ballot. He said, “I decided some time ago that I would not vote for those players [PED users], whether they were known to have used or were strongly suspected [of using steroids]. […] Again, each writer has to decide for himself what the standards are.” The fact that some star players who are on the ballot used PEDs is a factor that prevents voters like Chass from siding with them and giving them their vote.

Playing the game of baseball fairly and the way it should be is what can secure a spot in Cooperstown if a player has the numbers to state their case as a legend. Many voters and fans alike would rather see someone who is in the top forty in a couple statistical categories and avoided trouble make it into the Hall of Fame than a player like Barry Bonds or Mark McGwire who broke a record or two and decided to overlook the rules of fair play. For example, New York Times journalist Tyler Kepner stated, “Those three words – integrity, sportsmanship, character – are critical to some voters.” To the voters and fans, their use of performance-enhancing drugs broke not only the rules set by Major League Baseball that banned the substance, but also the basic moral code of sports because cheating is frowned upon on all levels of all sports. They see the situation as nothing short of negligence in its simplest form and a detriment to the image of the game in its entirety. To see a player who intentionally ignored the rules and prioritized their personal gain of advantage over fair play be chosen to have their face on a plaque in Cooperstown is seen as unfair. 

The debate surrounding PED users and their Hall of Fame eligibility has continued to grow for several years, but the presence of their name on the ballots has only made it thicken. The balance that voters take into account between fairness and on-field productivity tends to lean one way or the other, depending on the voter. In the event that a player who used steroids but had career statistics to prove they had a career that was nothing short of phenomenal on paper were to become eligible for induction and have their name on the ballot, the decision regarding whether to emphasize morals over productivity or vice versa becomes the heaviest influence on their decision. While numbers alone would be sufficient if they were the only thing that impacted a player’s induction into Cooperstown, their worth diminishes exponentially once the player’s name becomes associated with drug use. In life, people generally tend to side with the “good guys” because they normally build a good reputation for themselves by choosing to do what is right, and they get commended for doing so. This idea applies to professional baseball and all other sports in that people admire and become fans of players who are great at what they do and become perceived as role models by playing fairly and displaying a superior level of sportsmanship. For example, one of today’s standout players in Major League Baseball is Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout, who has been in contention for the Most Valuable Player (MVP)  award in every season of his young career. He is seen as a star on the field, but he is also one of the most likeable players off the field as well, as he is a fan favorite among all age groups. He is not a PED user, which adds to his popularity in the baseball world. He most likely will be a first-ballot Cooperstown inductee if he plays like he has, but that may not exactly be the case for someone with similar numbers who is connected to PEDs. A player who uses steroids should not be in Cooperstown and be among all-time greats who played the game as it should be, which is without unfair advantages caused by drug use.  
