On January 18, 2016, Miami Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon signed a $50 million contract extension to play for the Marlins for the next five years. Just a few months later, Major League Baseball (MLB) announced that Gordon had tested positive for two anabolic steroids – testosterone and clostebol – on April 28, 2016. And all of a sudden, it made so much sense to so many people. Gordon had 50 million reasons to use anabolic steroids.
The use of anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) is one of the most rational choices available to professional athletes in sports. Baseball sports writer Bob Nightengale laid out the incentives for using steroids when he anonymously quoted an alleged close friend of Gordon’s in an article titled, “Why did Dee Gordon take steroids? Better question: Why wouldn’t he?”
“Why wouldn’t he do it?’ Think about it, why wouldn’t Dee take that chance? Why wouldn’t anyone?
“So he got caught. So what? It was better than spending his career in the minors. His image may be shot, but he’s still has got his $50 million in the bank and can take care of his family for the rest of his life.
“So really, when you think about it, it’s worth it.’’
And there you have it – the reason the big sports will always have a steroid problem. The truth is that steroids are not really a “problem” in sports. Steroids and PEDs are essentially to the business of baseball. Few people in baseball will admit it but PEDs are making everyone rich. By enhancing the performances in elite athletes expected to perform at superhuman levels for 162 in a six-month period, PEDs improve the baseball experience for everyone.
This doesn’t prove that Gordon really used steroids. He said he never knowingly used steroids in a statement released via the MLB Players Association.
“Though I did not do so knowingly, I have been informed that test results showed I ingested something that contained prohibited substances. The hardest part about this is feeling that I have let down my teammates, the organization and the fans. I have been careful to avoid products that could contain something banned by MLB and the 20+ tests that I have taken and passed throughout my career prove this. I made a mistake, and I accept the consequences.”
Maybe he is telling the truth. But with 50 million reasons to use steroids, there are at least a few reasons to lie about using steroids as well. Why wouldn’t anyone be skeptical.
Fans are now also skeptical about his meteoric rise from a mediocre player who languished in the Minor Leagues for 3 years before being promoted to the Majors only to be paid the league minimum wage for the first 4 years of his MLB career. Then the magic started. He became an All-Star with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2014 and the Marlins in 2015. He won the National League batting title with a .333 average and won a Golden Glove with 58 stolen bases in 2015.
Gordon’s incredible improvement also happened to coincide with the a 30 pound increase in muscle mass. The 5-feet, 11-inch Gordon reportedly weight 144 pounds during his rookie season in 2011. He weight as much as 173 pounds in 2014 although he is currently listed at 160 pounds.
Gordon’s improvement could very well be due to hard work and extra time hitting the weights in the gym. Gordon’s talent isn’t really that surprising given that his father had a 21-year MLB career himself. Unfortunately, with all the incentives to use steroids in MLB, fans will quickly overlook all the hard work and talent involved. The fact that the Marlins controversially hired Barry Bonds as the team’s hitting coach this year doesn’t make Gordon’s steroid denial any more plausible.
It doesn’t really matter much to Gordon whether or not the fans believe him. Gordon earned about $4.5 million in his first 5 seasons in Major League Baseball. He will forfeit $1.3 million of his $3 million contract for 2016. However, his $1.5 million signing bonus and his $50 million salary for 2017 through 2021 remain intact.
David Samson, the president of the Marlins organizations, expressed the team’s full support of Gordon and can’t wait to have him back “for many years to come”.
“Dee Gordon is a very important part of our team, and we all love him, and we support him,” Marlins president David Samson said after the suspension was announced. “That said, I do not like, or condone, what he did. He’s an important member of this organization and will be for many years to come. It’s a huge, huge disappointment.”
When your bosses love you and support you and remain happy to pay you the big bucks, what’s the problem?
Steroids anyone?