Not just a drug issue

Published 5:46 pm Monday, November 24, 2008

Children are impressionable. They learn from everything and everyone around them. Kids who are involved with sports usually idolize professional athletes who they perceive as the best in their field.

Steroids in professional sports, especially baseball, has had a tremendous affect on children. My biggest concern is how kids view the penalties for cheating, whether it’s for illegal drug use or a pitcher doctoring a baseball or a coach knowingly play an academically ineligible player. Cheaters must be punished, not only to bring justice but to let other athletes know that it is wrong.

Major League Baseball’s 10-day suspension for steroid use, such as the suspensions for the Seattle Mariners’ pitcher Ryan Franklin and Orioles first baseman Rafael Palmeiro, is a slap on the wrist. The suspension is ludicrous for a pitcher, who misses three starts at most, while a position player may miss nine games.

Palmeiro’s suspension was the most concerning since he pointed his finger at Congress while testifying and said he has never taken steroids. The publicity and the outrage around his suspension was enormous, but Palmeiro returned to the lineup in less time than most kids’ spring breaks.

The reaction from every player who tested positive for steroids, including Palmeiro and Franklin, has been the same: “I don’t know it got there.” There needs to be a federal law against performance-enhancing drugs in any sport at any level, not just in baseball or professional sports. We are teaching children that they’ll only get a slap on the wrist if they are caught cheating and will be back in the game in no time.

In reality, with steroids, the penalties for some kids has been death. The impact of steroids on young kids is horrible and will affect many that are not informed or just looking for an advantage at any cost.

The problem of professional athletes setting a bad example for children is not limited to drugs.

After only a year with the Philadelphia Eagles, wide receiver Terrell Owens wants to renegotiate his seven-year, $49 million contract. Contracts are binding legal documents that are supposed to be fulfilled by both parties for fear of legal recourse. Owens gives the example that one player can be more important than a team or even a whole sport.

I was happy to see the Seahawks release troubled wide receiver Koren Robinson this summer. It was a tough decision for Seahawks head coach and Mercer Island resident Mike Holmgren. Robinson has a lot of potential and should have been the franchise’s best player by now, but drugs and alcohol interrupted his progress.

The move also shows that off-the-field mistakes and bad judgment can cost you playing time, respect and money. Robinson was a big role model to a lot of Seattle area and Island kids. I have seen his jersey on numerous occasions over the years at Mercer Island sporting events.

The idea of role models in sports is nothing new. Anyone older than 25 years old remembers former basketball player Charles Barkley’s famous quote, “I am not a role model.” No one chooses to be a role model but everyone chooses to either do the right thing or the selfish thing.