Argument 2

For my second argument I am arguing that there have been many cases in the past where players have either blatantly cheated or have taken PEDs, yet their records and status have been left intact.

The most surprising case for me at least was finding out Willie Mays always had a red juice in his locker. He is considered one of the greats of baseball. It is known during his time that the "red juice" was mixture of juice and amphetamines. He was also mentioned as a cocaine user in trials held in Pittsburgh in 1985. He is now a member of the Hall of Fame as well as many of baseball honorary clubs for accomplishments such as the 500 club (for hitting 500 home runs).

Groundskeeper for the Phillies in the 1950s would alter the baselines for a future hall of fame player. They would change the third baseline so Richie Ashbum could hit his perfect bunts, known as dying bunts and they wouldn't go out of bounds.

It is still debated as to if corked bats make a difference, but they are illegal, so using them is still cheating. Although this player would never be inducted to the Hall of Fame. He led the AL in batting with a .361 average and 41 homeruns. Something he was never close to again in his career. He later admitted using a corked bat, and he is one of the most infamous players to do so. But his title was never taken away.

One of the most famous cases of cheating is the 1951 NY Giants. They were down 13 1/2 games in August which is a huge amount to overcome in August. They would come back and win the pennant from the Dodgers. Most people on the team recently admitted that they did steal signs in order to make their miracle comeback. Stealing sings is allowed in honest situations such as standing at 2nd base, or in the dugout. But the Giants cheated, their coach would sit in the clubhouse (behind center field) see the pitch sign then use a bell and buzzer system with the dugout and relay it to the hitter.

There are many cases of pitchers doctoring the ball (altering it such as adding mud or scratching it). I won't name them all here but just a few who are well known. Joe Nierkro was caught and suspended for ten games when using a file to alter the balls. He is the modern day ball doctorer. Although he was punished none of his records were ever taken away. Gaylor Perry is even more famous than Joe Nierkro. He would later be admitted into the Hall of Fame. He would put Vaseline on almost every ball, or sometimes pretend to in order to fake hitters out. Perry's catcher even admitted once that they were so slippery he couldn't throw them back to the mound. Whitey Ford is also famous for doctoring balls. He would have his catcher rub balls in special areas that were watered down to add mud. His catcher would scratch them against his shin guards. Whitey also scratched the ball against his wedding ring. HE would be admitted into the Hall of Fame. Another Hall of Famer to doctor the ball was Don Sutton. He would scuff the ball, once he was caught but then let off. He and Gaylord Perry would often joke about altering the ball.

Mark McGwire is one of the most interesting people of the steroid era right now. This year he just became eligible for the HOF ballet. He was not admitted in but most people are not on their first ballot. It took Goose Gossage, a great Yankee player, nine years (he was just voted in this year). He admitted using androstenedione in 1998. At this time it was not banned, so its use was perfectly legal. 1998 is significant because it is the year he broke the single season home run record. His record was upheld. But it was latter broken by Barry Bonds in 2001. The homerun chase in 1998 between him and Sammy Sosa are credited with bringing fans back to the game after the strike in the mid 1990s.

Sammy Sosa who is a member of many of baseballs honorary clubs such as the 500 club admitted using creatine which builds muscle during the 1998 season. He is not eligible for the HOF because he is still an active player. He had one of his best seasons last year.

Another instance of pitchers cheating is using the infamous spit ball. Preacher Roe was one of the most famous cases. He used this call in the World Series to help the Yankees win games. Nothing was ever done to stop him. He led the National League in 1945.

Joe McGraw is known as one of the meanest and dirtiest players to play. He would blatantly hold runners by their uniform. He would also block them, trip them, and spike them. He would also verbally abuse opposing team members. He would later be admitted into the Hall of Fame.

The list of cheaters and previous PED users are endless in baseball. But all these players were allowed to keep their records and most of them would continue on to become Hall of Famers. The use of most PEDs, when they were taken was not illegal, so if blatant cheaters and other users were allowed to stay, so should PED users from today (before the ban).The controversy is roaring right now what to do with steroid era players now up for the ballot, but the precedent is seen in these cases.