As an athlete, I take great pride in my work ethic and the amount of time I put into my physical training.  I train in order to be stronger and tougher--to beat the competition.  Knowing that the athletes I face may be taking steroids makes me mad because I put a lot of work into training while they are off enhancing their bodies in an illegal way and having success.

Throughout the world of sports, high school athletes all the way up to the professionals use steroids.  Last year, the biggest story involving steroids was in Major League Baseball.  As a baseball player, I am disappointed to know that baseball is the sport in which steroids are used the most.  This disappoints me because I look up to those players.  The most recent scandal was with Barry Bonds.  Fans, including myself, looked up to Barry when he started hitting all those home runs.  But last year, after finding that he took steroids, fans began to jeer him because he cheated in order to have success.  I personally lost respect for him.  Last year, Bud Selig, the commissioner of Major League Baseball, as well as Congress, decided on a punishment.  If tested positive for steroid use once, the player would be suspended 50 games, caught a second time the player would be suspended 100 games, and if caught a third time the player would be banned from Major League Baseball for life.

In my lifetime of playing baseball, I have come across one or two players who supposedly use steroids as judged by their size and the strength and speed. I’ve wondered whether these players are on steroids as it crazy how hard far they can hit the ball. I’ve seen pitchers who can reach 94 mph on their fastballs. For high school, 94 mph is highly unusual. It makes me mad to think that these players might be throwing so hard due to steroids. Their ability to throw, catch, and hit with such power will give them a big advantage for being recruited to big well-known baseball colleges. To think that if I took steroids, which will never happen, I might be throwing in the mid-90’s or hitting the ball 400 feet and getting great offers from schools!

Athletes take steroids to enhance their physical ability, but why would you take them knowing that they are very unhealthy for your body?  Players who take steroids can have significant emotional problems.  They are easily angered, and most of all they are more prone to getting hurt than are other players.  A couple of years ago, a well-known major league baseball player, Ken Caminiti, 42 years of age, died because of steroids.  Under the effect of steroids, the heart begins to slow down.  He had a heart attack and died.  Knowing that, why would anyone want to risk his life at a young age in order to have success only for a few years in his career?

As a baseball player, I work everyday on my game and I play all year in order to improve and to make it to the next level of my career.  I know for a fact that in my later years of playing baseball I will be able to go farther in my years of playing than will the players who take steroids.  This is because they are likely to have health problems and injuries.  Even though I may not be the biggest or strongest athlete, I know that I worked hard to get where I am.  I know that physically I am where I am supposed to be.