Why Would A Pitcher Take Steroids?

Amy Shipley wrote an interesting article that appeared in Sunday's edition of the Washington Post about steroid use among pitchers in baseball ("Do Steroids Give A Shot in the Arm?"). Most medical experts are generally in agreement that steroid use (1) is not going to increase velocity, (2) restricts range of motion, and (3) weakens ligaments, tendons and connective tissue. Shipley quotes one veteran baseball trainer who summed up fairly well the likely impact that steroid use has on pitchers:

"One of the things steroids do is build mass," said Larry Starr, a baseball trainer for 30 years for the Reds and Florida Marlins who has been credited for the rise in strength training in baseball during his years in Cincinnati in the 1970s. "The second thing they do is help you recover quicker. The third thing they do is give you a feeling and ability to go back into the weight room and lift more. The question is, are those criteria important to making a pitcher better?

So why do pitchers take steroids if there are no benefits to taking them?

First, I believe that ballplayers want to bulk up because they think they have to do so in order to compete and succeed. An analogy can be drawn to the superstitiousness of athletes (especially baseball players). They will do whatever it takes to succeed, even if it defies logic. In the movie Bull Durham, the pitcher (played by Tim Robbins) was told by Susan Sarandon that he would pitch better if he wore her garter, so he started wearing it under his uniform when he pitched. Later in the movie, Kevin Costner ("Crash") tries to explain to Sarandon the mindset of a ballplayer: "If you think you're playing well because....you wear women's underwear, then you are!" In the minors, I never wore any women's underwear, but I did eat at the same Arby's restaurant for lunch 4 days in a row when I was on a 4-game home run streak.

Secondly, some dietary supplements contain banned substances, including steroids, that can easily be purchased over-the-counter at nutrition stores or on-line. One minor league player interviewed by Shipley stated that he unwittingly took a banned dietary supplement that he was able to purchase on-line at the recommendation of friends. Perhaps there's a sentiment or belief among players that if you can legally buy it in a store or on-line, then it's not, or at least shouldn't be, a banned substance.

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