SLerolds ln Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc

MeLhod of Lscaplng overLy versus 8odlly LffecLs

acky !ones
LaLln Amerlcan PlsLory
lall 2011



1

1hroughouL Lhe pasL Lwo decades sLerold use ln professlonal aLhleLes and young Leens has
become an lncreaslng lssue ln Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc erformance enhanclng drugs are belng used by
uomlnlcan baseball players who belleve Lhe use of such subsLances wlll lmprove Lhelr level of gameplay
ln a socleLy ln whlch baseball ls belleved Lo be Lhe fuLure Lhe pressure prospecLs are puL under can
cause Lhem Lo use drugs ln such poor llvlng envlronmenLs as found ln ln a Lown such as La 8omana
baseball serves as an escape for many klds and Lhe sklll level of LaLln Amerlcans ls someLhlng LhaL
professlonal Leams conLlnue Lo use Lo Lhelr advanLage Powever because of Lhe rapld lncrease of
players and Lhelr ablllLles ln Lhe recenL years sLerolds have become an unforLunaLe facLor lL ls Lraglc
LhaL young LaLln Amerlcan baseball players especlally Lhose from Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc are puL under
such hlgh pressure slLuaLlons and alLhough mosL scholars flnd Lhem Lo harmful oLhers belleve sLerolds
are an accepLable meLhod of escaplng poverLy allowlng Lhls conLroversy Lo be someLhlng LhaL Lhe game
of baseball and scholars conLlnue Lo dlscuss
1he role LhaL sLerolds have played ln baseball ls an aspecL LhaL mosL people and especlally Lhose
wlLh auLhorlLy do noL LoleraLe lnlLlally sLerold usage was slmply a mlnor deLall AlLhough Lhe use of
Lhe drug was known people dld noL do anyLhlng Lo prevenL lL lL was lnferred LhaL lL was a very small
mlnorlLy LhaL were lnvolved and LhaL ln mosL cases a slmple flne would sufflce Powever lL was noL
unLll lnLo Lhe 21
sL
cenLury LhaL wldespread use became apparenL and Lhose who had Lhe ablllLy Lo
prevenL lL declded Lo use lL As young promlslng sLars from Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc and oLher parLs of
LaLln Amerlca conLlnued Lo flnd Lhelr way Lo Lhe mlnor and ma[or leagues lL became qulLe apparenL LhaL
Lhe use of performanceenhanclng drugs was becomlng a ma[or lssue AL flrsL league managers and
coaches sald Lhey suspecLed older players Lo use drugs ln an aLLempL Lo keep Lhem younger" and
blgger Powever when Leenage players from Lhe uomlnlcan were beglnnlng Lo LesL poslLlve on a
regular basls professlonals reallzed LhaL Lhey needed Lo crack down on an aLLempL Lo save Lhese klds'
llves and baseball fuLures


2

1he conLroversy LhaL Lhe use of sLerolds has creaLed ls wheLher Lhe drug's effecLs on Lhe body
ouLwelgh Lhe aLhleLlc beneflLs 1he drug LesLlng lLself has noL become a problem as when lL sLarLed Lhe
league gave warnlng LhaL every player would be LesLed 1he SLerold ConLrol AcL passed ln 2004
promoLed Lhe regulaLlon of performance enhanclng drugs and supplemenLs ln baseball 1he acL sald
LhaL all players would be LesLed Lwlce LhroughouL Lhe regular season and lf more Lhan 3 of all players
LesLed poslLlve Lhere would be Lwo more random LesLs afLer LhaL Many players dld noL Lake Lhls new
acL llghLly and saw Lhls as an lnsulL Lo Lhelr lnLegrlLy as players ln 2004 over 7 of all professlonal
players LesLed poslLlve for sLerolds ln whlch 83 of Lhose who LesLed poslLlve were from Lhe uomlnlcan
8epubllc
1
uomlnlcans' abuse of sLerolds ls Lhe reason LhaL Lhe league was forced Lo LlghLen up on lLs
rules and consequences Powever ma[orlLy of players use sLerolds as an aLLempL Lo escape Lhelr
currenL llvlng condlLlons and Lhls baLLle beLween uomlnlcans and professlonal baseball remalns
underway
1yler M Slmpson a professor of law aL vanderbllL unlverslLy wrlLes abouL Lhe sLerold lssue ln
Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc Pe supporLs Lhe popular concepLlon LhaL such hablLs are harmful Lowards Lhe
body player and Lhe game as a whole Slmpson wrlLes of Lwo separaLe occaslons ln whlch sLerolds
causes Lhe deaLh of Lwo young prospecLs As Slmpson sald 1hese Lraglc sLorles underscore Lhe quleL
epldemlc LhaL ls plagulng Ma[or League 8aseball erformance Lnhanclng urug use"
2
Slmpson uses Lhe
sLory of Lwo uomlnlcan Leenagers ln order Lo prove hls polnL LhaL sLerold use ln Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc
needs Lo be reduced Llno CrLlz was a 19 year old prospecL form La 8omana uomlnlcan 8epubllc who
dled afLer ln[ecLlng hlmself wlLh whaL he LhoughL Lo be sLerolds Powever lL was an anlmal dleLary

1
SLerold use ln uomlnlcan 8epubllc uolly News Atcblve 2010 Web 14 nov 2011
hLLp//dr1com/arLlcles/sLeroldsshLml
2
Slmpson 1yler M 8alklng aL 8esponslblllLy 8aseballs erformanceLnhanclng urug roblem ln LaLln Amerlca
helnonllneorg 14 Law 8us 2008 Web 6 nov 2011
hLLp//helnonllneorg/PCL/Landlngage?collecLlon[ournalshandleheln[ournals/lbramrca14dlv23ldpag
e


3

supplemenL
3
A second Leenager Wllllam lellx also from Lhe La 8omana dled Lhree monLhs laLer afLer
anoLher falled ln[ecLlon Slmpson says Llke Llno lellx had hoped lL would geL hlm Lo Lhe blg leagues"
4

1hese Lwo sLorles are Lraglc ones and prove Lhe mosL severe lmpacL sLerolds can have Slmpson uses
Lhese boys Lo prove hls Lheory LhaL sLerolds do need Lo be monlLored
AnoLher source wlLh a slmllar ldea buL somewhaL dlfferenL approach Lo Lhe concepL of sLerolds
ls Charles L ?esalls ?esalls a professor of PealLh ollcy perLalnlng Lo SporL Sclence aL enn SLaLe
unlverslLy belleves LhaL performanceenhancemenL has goLLen ouL of conLrol and LhaL LaLln Amerlca ls
Lhe source from whlch lL needs Lo be cuL off 1he people's lnablllLy Lo acknowledge Lhe lssue ls Lhe
blggesL problem Pe says 8efore any efforL can be made Lo address Lhe lssue of doplng ln sporL lL ls
crlLlcal all of Lhe sLakeholders acknowledge a problem exlsLs"
3
Pe belleves LhaL sLerold use ln baseball
has become a domlnanL and unforLunaLe facLor and LhaL ln order Lo prevenL lL one musL flrsL admlL Lo
Lhe problem ?esalls also belleves however LhaL Lhe exposure of Lhese hablLs needs Lo be dlscreLe Pe
wrlLes Many people vlew compeLlLlve sporL Lo escape from Lhe problems of dally llfe and do noL wlsh
Lo be confronLed wlLh Lhe moral and eLhlcal aspecLs of doplng"
6
?esalls also blames Amerlcan socleLy
as a whole and Lhe way lL funcLlons for Lhe recenL boom ln drug use Pe says Curs ls a culLure LhaL
Lhrlves on compeLlLlon boLh ln buslness and ln sporL Powever we long ago reallzed LhaL compeLlLlon
of all Lypes musL exlsL wlLhln some boundarles"
7
1he Lheory wln aL all cosLs" ls bellefs LhaL socleLy has
landed on and ls a prlmary facLor ln Lhe reason Lhese players use such drugs

3
Slmpson
4
lbld Slmpson
3
?esalls Charles L and Mlchael S 8ahrke SCClL1AL AL1L8nA1lvLS 1C L8lC8MAnCLLnPAnClnC u8uC Anu
SuLLMLn1 uSL ln SC81 energycommercehousegov ennsylvanla SLaLe unlverslLy 10 CcLober 2003 Web
6 nov 2011 hLLp//energycommercehousegov/108/Pearlngs/03102003hearlng1432/?esallspdf rlnL g 3
6
?esalls g 3
7
lbld g 10


4

uomlnlcan 8epubllc klds especlally experlence an unnaLural level of compeLlLlon as Lhey Lry Lo
escape Lhelr currenL surroundlngs ?esalls sLaLes LhaL Loo many aLhleLes have forgoLLen LhaL sporLs ls
much more Lhan wlnnlng and LhaL Lhe facL LhaL some have sLooped Lo Lhe level of sLerolds ls a sad LruLh
LhaL musL face acLlon
8
ro fooLball coach vlnce Lombardl once sald Wlnnlng lsn'L everyLhlng lL's Lhe
only Lhlng"
9
lL ls words such as Lhese LhaL ?esalls uses Lo porLray Lhe sad buL real LruLh LhaL sLerold use
ln baseball has become more promlnenL due Lo Lhe pressure puL on lLs players lL ls unforLunaLe LhaL
socleLy has caused players from Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc Lo feel Lhe need Lo use drugs ln order Lo
compeLe and ls someLhlng LhaL musL be lmproved
orflrlo veras Lhe commlssloner of uomlnlcan baseball successfully proves hls LhoughLs Lo be
slmllar Lo LhaL of ?esalls by saylng 1hey puL our counLry ln a bad llghL because people geL Lhe
lmpresslon Lhe counLry ls lnvolved ln Lhose klnds of deallngs even Lhough lLs only lndlvlduals"
10
veras
who ls appolnLed by Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc resldenL hlmself represenLs Lhe counLry and Lhelr
naLlonal prlde Pls quoLaLlon exempllfles how much baseball Lruly means Lo hls counLry and LhaL lL ls a
sad LruLh LhaL has become renowned for Lhelr sLerold usage orflrlo descrlbes how Lhe use of sLerolds
has become so profound ln Lhe u8 because Lhe drugs are over Lhe counLer 1hey are easy Lo access and
Lherefore many players seek Lhem ouL CLher players however Lake Lhem accldenLally and are Lhen
surprlsed when LesLlng poslLlve ln Lhe uomlnlcan players are ofLen glven supplemenLs by buscones or
even ln local sLores whlle belng Lold Lhey are proLeln shakes or oLher Lhlngs LhaL wlll make Lhem play
beLLer ln such an lnLense aLmosphere players are exclLed Lo have an edge and Lherefor Lake sLerolds
unknowlngly

8
Slmpson
9
lbld
10
CrLlz !orge LxplolLaLlon SLerolds hlLLlng home ln Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc uSA 1oday uSA 1oday
29/03/2009 Web 17 nov 2011 hLLp//wwwusaLodaycom/sporLs/baseball/20090326domlnlcanrepubllc
cover_nhLm


3

Alvlro ArlsLy's a naLlve of Lhe u8 who had a $1 mllllon dollar slgnlng bonus wlLh Lhe San ulego
adres ls servlng a 30 game suspenslon for poslLlve LesLlng When perLalnlng Lo ArlsLy veras sald We
have Lo keep worklng on Lhe educaLlon aspecL because lL ls fundamenLal Lo have a prevenLlon campalgn
so players wonL feel compelled Lo geL lnvolved ln someLhlng lllegal"
11
veras belleves LhaL ln order Lo
prevenL fuLure sLerold use Lhese players musL know Lhe effecLs of Lhe drugs Lhey are uslng 1he San
ulego adres for example regularly meeL wlLh players Lo dlscuss banned subsLances and each player
and Lhe Leam as a whole
12
8andy SmlLh Lhe Leams lnLernaLlonal recrulLlng ulrecLor agrees wlLh veras
and says as perLalnlng Lo ArlsLy Pe goL some bad advlce We belleve hls case was accldenLal Pe was
shocked when he found ouL"
13
1he facL LhaL so many of Lhese cases are accldenLal does noL change Lhe
facL LhaL lL was sLlll poslLlve LesLlng 1he consequences remaln Lhe same and lL ls because of Lhls LhaL
uomlnlcan offlclals and ML8 offlclals are aLLempLlng Lo educaLe Leenagers on sLerolds LducaLlon ls Lhe
flrsL sLep Lo prevenLlon whlch opens up Lhelr baseball fuLures
Whlle Lhe ma[orlLy of people flnd sLerolds Lo be harmful Lo players and Lhe game Lhere are
some LhaL have a dlfferenL sLandpolnL !ulla Alvarez an experL on Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc who grew up
ln Lhe uomlnlcan and ls now a wellknown auLhor whose renowned book tbe 1lme of tbe 8ottetflles
reflecLs on her lasL few weeks ln Lhe uomlnlcan and Lhe murder of her slsLers aL Lhe hand of dlcLaLor
1rylllo ln her essay My lltst ltee 5ommet she Lalks of her bellef LhaL sLerolds are noL all bad and LhaL
Lhey help Lhe players escape Lhelr poor envlronmenLs Alvarez alLhough born ln new ?ork wrlLes of Lhe
hardshlps uomlnlcan Leenagers are forced Lo endure and Lhe paln and sufferlng lL causes Lhem She
says LhaL baseball was everyLhlng Lo Lhe people and Lo Lhe counLry Alvarez belleves LhaL lf Lhe use of

11
AnLonen Mel uomlnlcan Summer League hoLbed for sLerolds may be geLLlng cleaner uSA 1oday uSA
1oday 06/08/2009 Web 19 nov 2011 hLLp//wwwusaLodaycom/sporLs/baseball/mlnors/20090806
uomlnlcan_nhLm
12
AnLonen Mel uomlnlcan Summer League hoLbed for sLerolds may be geLLlng cleaner uSA 1oday uSA
1oday 06/08/2009 Web 19 nov 2011 hLLp//wwwusaLodaycom/sporLs/baseball/mlnors/20090806
uomlnlcan_nhLm
13
AnLonen


6

sLerolds can help boys reach Lhelr dreams and geL Lhem ouL of Lhe counLry Lhen lL ls accepLable
Powever she also clLes LhaL sLerolds are only helpful whlle Lrylng Lo escape and LhaL once LhaL goal has
been reached use of Lhe drug ls no longer accepLable
14
Alvarez's LhoughLs on sLerolds alLhough less
popular provlde anoLher lnslghL LhaL people can belleve 1he facL LhaL sLerolds help Lhese Leens escape
Lhelr raLher dlm fuLures ls someLhlng wlLh whlch many people can sympaLhlze and leaves people Lo also
hope LhaL sLerold use can decrease once LhaL goal has been reached
Award wlnnlng columnlsL !eff assan who graduaLed from Syracuse unlverslLy wlLh a [ournallsm
ma[or and has been wrlLlng abouL baseball slnce 2004 has recenLly focused on sLerold lssues ln Lhe
uomlnlcan 8epubllc assans' research shows LhaL many uomlnlcan naLlves llke Alvarez belleve LhaL
Lhese Leenagers cannoL be blamed for uslng drugs Powever unllke Alvarez assan supporLs hls
oplnlon by clalmlng LhaL many aLhleLes Lake Lhese lnvolunLarlly and are coerced lnLo uslng Lhem A
buscone ls a uomlnlcan Lerm for a person who helps players slgn wlLh professlonal Leams and recelves a
porLlon of Lhelr players' conLracL Slmllar Lo managers buscones are ln charge of Lhe players' career
unLll Lhey enLer Lhe ma[ors assan says All of Lhem wanL a crack aL Lhe Lreasure chesL lf LhaL means
glvlng llllclL drugs Lo a kld lgnoranL of sLerold use's repercusslons or ln many cases lylng Lo hlm abouL
whaL Lhe drugs really are so be lL 1he buscones geL Lhelr cuL of a slgnlng bonus wheLher a kld ls clean
or dlrLy"
13
1hls quoLaLlon proves LhaL buscones are selflsh men who seek noLhlng buL money and flnd
LhaL glvlng Lhelr players' sLerolds ls an easy way Lo money assan clLes buscone Ldgar Mercedes player
8onny Cedeno and Chlcago WhlLe Sox manager Czzle Culllen who all agree LhaL sLerolds do end up
helplng uomlnlcan Leens escape Lhelr condlLlons buL also says LhaL ln many cases players are unaware
Lhey are Laklng Lhem


13
assan !eff Slowlng SLerold use ln LaLln Amerlcan naLlons ls daunLlng ?ahoo SporLs ?ahoo 26/09/2008
Web 30 nov 2011 hLLp//sporLsyahoocom/mlb/news?slug[plaLlnosLerolds092308


7

A ma[or lssue regardlng sLerolds ls LhaL ln Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc sLerolds are avallable aL Lhe
local drug sLore no prescrlpLlon ls requlred
16
1he easy access Lo sLerolds and llLLle educaLlon allow
players' buscones Lo easlly lnfluence Lhem lnLo uslng Lhe drugs and Lherefore helplng Lhem slgn wlLh a
ma[or league Leam assan does noL agree wlLh Lhe way Lhe players are unknowlngly Laklng sLerolds
buL does Lhlnk LhaL lf such use geLs Lhem away from home Lhan LhaL ls a polnL LhaL should be sLressed
uomlnlcan 8epubllc buscone Ldgar Mercedes supporLs assan's LhoughLs by saylng ln Lhe uS lf hlgh
school players don'L llke Lhe money Lhey have Lhe opLlon of golng Lo college uown here Lhere ls no
such opLlon lL ls elLher baseball or deaLh"
17
1hls quoLaLlon puLs lnLo perspecLlve how lmporLanL lL ls
LhaL klds who have Lhe opLlon of leavlng are able Lo do so and lf sLerolds help Lhem geL Lhere Lhen so
be lL assan wrlLes LhaL mosL aLhleLes and offlclals do noL belleve LhaL sLerolds are good for Lhe game
as a whole and llke Alvarez belleves LhaL once havlng lefL Lhe lsland prevenLlon should be encouraged
SLerold use among Leenagers ln Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc has been a recurrlng problem
LhroughouL Lhe lasL Lwo decades and alLhough lL conLlnues Lo decrease Lhere are sLlll many users ln
2004 107 of ML8 players were from Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc and of Lhe players LesLlng poslLlve for
performanceenhanclng drugs 37 of Lhem are from Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc
18
1hls evldence has
creaLed Lhe conLroversy of wheLher lL ls accepLable for players Lo use easy access drugs Lo ald Lhem ln
escaplng Lhelr llvlng condlLlons Some scholars Lhlnk LhaL noL only ls lL an unfalr advanLage buL lL ls
lllegal and harmful Lo Lhe body CLhers mosLly uomlnlcan naLlves do noL dlrecLly supporL sLerolds buL
do belleve LhaL due Lo Lhe players' dlm fuLures sLerold use ls accepLable Lo help Lhem ln creaLlng a
beLLer llfe lL ls hard Lo say whlch one ls correcL as Lhose who Lhlnk lL ls a bad Lhlng mosL llkely have noL
seen whaL uomlnlcan llfe ls llke and Lhose llvlng ln Lhe uomlnlcan do noL fully undersLand Lhe effecLs

16
assan g 1
17
lbld
18
ur1com g 1


8

sLerolds have LlLher way Lhls ls a problem LhaL wlll conLlnue showlng up ln baseball unLll hopefully ln
Lhe near fuLure Lhey can be conLrolled


















9