By Angela O.
The pitch… The swing… CRACK! The ball flies out of the park and the fans roar in awe and excitement. The hitter rounds the bases as hundreds of small boys go crazy with exuberance in the stands; for that moment, he’s their hero. Many of them jump up and down exclaiming, “Did you see that?!” And of course the ultimate thrill would be to catch one of those high fliers or to find it in the parking lot after the game to bring home and cherish.
New York Yankees posters, pictures, baseball cards and balls caught at games fill the walls of my ten-year-old brother’s room. The talent and skill my brother possesses in baseball is like no other young child that I’ve seen. My brother is baseball’s answer to Tiger Woods. Young boys like my brother look up to “A-Rod,” Yankees superstar Alex Rodriguez.
On February 9, 2009, Rodriguez’s cover was blown by Sports Illustrated magazine. It came out in the wash that he used “performance-enhancing drugs” while he played for the Texas Rangers from 2001-2003.
Rodriguez’s recent admission to using those steroids a few years back has shocked baseball fans everywhere, and has broken the hearts of hundreds, if not thousands of boys who look up to him and aspire deep in their heart to be just like him one day.
I believe that this ties in with false personality and body image. Rodriguez admitted to feelings of having to be the best in the beginning of his MLB career, which is when he used.
The influence that Rodriguez now has on young children is like that of Brittany Spears or Paris Hilton: negative. Rodriguez has shown kids that if they don’t think they are good enough, they can just use substances to cure their insecurities.
In recent interviews Rodriguez simply considered his past mistakes a result of his being “young, naïve and stupid.” Certainly taking responsibility rather than denying this kind of betrayal is good, but some things when torn, stay torn. Especially since the admission included lying in the past about using these drugs. He hasn’t used any steroids since being traded to the Yankees, and he has said how “very sorry” and “deeply regretful he is,” but sometimes sorry just doesn’t cut it.
An article written by Times Herald Record reporter Kevin Gleason said, “We must remind our kids, kids who might face the same temptation one day, what performance enhancing drugs have given players on top of bulging muscles and bloated statistics, national disgrace. All will be remembered as cheats first and superstars second.”
I don’t have kids yet, and others reading this may not have kids yet, but don’t hold back from telling the young ones in your life about this. Tell those you love the danger behind the appeal of steroids. There is no such thing as perfect; help them realize that. Be careful what and in whom you believe.
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