Drugs In Baseball Vs. Tennis: A Contrast In Substance

When Long John suggested the idea for this story, I jumped at the chance because I'm sick and you're tired of reading the same old Major League Baseball steroid schlock.  At this point, it's no longer "news" when one of our beloved game's stars emerges from the depths in the new, more vigilant net.

But performance-enhancing drugs are still very much an important topic and deserve to be discussed in an open forum.

The problem is, as the aforementioned glitterati entered the fray, PEDs also became a sensational topic.  Alex Rodriguez or Manny Ramirez or Barry Bonds in the headline meant that baby had an audience—didn't really matter what the content was.

Once that happened, it became incumbent on the writer to start pushing into new areas of the issue because fresh angles were no longer necessary to sell ink (or cyber-ad space).

And—I'll chuck myself under the bus here—I can't say I was succeeding magnificently in that regard.  However, LJS has invited me to tag along while he heads into new territory so I'm still gonna get there.

Pops always says that, "sometimes, it's better to be lucky than good."

On with it.

As one of the big dawgs over in Bleacher Report's tennis domain, Long's idea was to compare and contrast the International Tennis Federation's banned substance policy with that of MLB.  The method to his madness not being to imply what would work in one sport would be feasible in the other, but simply to use a recent ITF episode as a mechanism to thresh out and focus on the differences between the two.

I'll defer you to the expert for a more detailed explanation, but the upshot is a young French ace named Richard Gasquet tested positive for cocaine and received a two-year suspension from the organizing body.

The mandatory vacation was subsequently reduced to time served when the ITF accepted Gasquet's affirmative defense—yes, the 'caine was in his system, but it was courtesy of a wet one planted on him by some bitty at a club.  It bears mentioning the "time served" included missing the biggest tennis event on his native soil, the French Open.

My reaction to all of this was, "What in the name of Darryl Strawberry is going on in that loony joint?"

Upon calmer inspection, the ridiculous explanation seems to make cold sense—monsieur Gasquet had 1.46 micrograms in his urine sample.

Now, I have no idea how much that is or any of the science behind coke and its use.  What I do know is a sanctioning body that throws down a two-year suspension for a first offense accepted the tale.

I tend to believe that means 1.46 micrograms is exactly what it sounds like—a tiny amount that could plausibly be passed by one human after ingestion to another via saliva.  But whether I've got all that correct is really beside the point.

The forest here is the ITF body-slams its offenders.

Just annihilates them—in Long John's piece you did, will, or would read about Martina Hingis' retirement from the yellow ball.  About how she chose to hang up the pro racket rather than deal with similar Florida snow charges and their repercussions.

That would be the you-know-her-I-know-her Swiss Miss, a radiant talent who was once the world's top-ranked female tennis player.

In other words, they're NOT playing favorites over on the grass, clay, or hardcourt.

Compare to the Majors.

Manny Ramirez just got caught helping the bogeyman steal cookies.  His was not a recreational offense and it couldn't possibly be explained away by casual interaction with an adoring fan—Manny was trying to game the system.  He was trying to cheat.

Consciously and with premeditation.

And he got 50 games.  Five zero.  That amounts to roughly two months.

For breaking an explicit and newly "Draconian" PED policy at a time when all hypocritical steroid barrels are pointed directly at professional baseball.

With all the scrutiny and bile being heaped upon Major League Baseball for its bungling of the Steroid Era, one of its biggest stars and best hitters threw a whole bucket of chum to the sharks.

This is like coming to California at the height of its dry season, finding a sprawling meadow, and shooting off an entire stand of fireworks.  Right after one of our enormous wildfires has run its course.

And Man-Ram got shooed away for TWO MONTHS.

Gasquet missed more that plus one of his sports grandest events for kissing a coke queen.  For kissing her.

Yet, Bud Selig and his henchmen are telling us the policy is to be congratulated.  That they're doing everything they can and should to stamp out the use of banned substances in the game.  My personal favorite is when Bud Lite stammers on about how he wouldn't have done anything differently from Day One of the era if given the chance.

Uh huh, uh huh, sure Buddy boy.

Look, I'm not particularly bothered by PEDs or banned substances.  I believe they give all athletes an edge—if not physically, then mentally—but I think some unjust derivative has always been there playing the role.

What I loathe is this nonsense that we're supposed to be lapping up.  That the suits are sincerely trying to stamp out such things.

They're not.  They are not.

They are merely trying to clean up baseball's image.  Not the game itself.  That's cool except they're claiming differently and self-righteously shifting blame for a problem they're exacerbating.

The International Tennis Federation might be going overboard if they're ready to give anyone and everyone the boot for such low levels of toxicity.  Then again, this Gasquet fellow made his French Open debut at the pubescent age of 16 (or just shy thereof).

At such a stage in human development, the stakes are raised when you introduce foreign chemicals.  Maybe it's appropriate for the punishments to be so severe.

Maybe not.

Regardless, you can say one thing for sure about the ITF—it is dead-serious about eradicating the use of cocaine amongst its athletes.  That is incontrovertible.

If Major League Baseball wants to do the same with steroids and other performance-enhancers, it should be taking notes.

Or changing tunes.

**www.pva.org**