University Network

In this steroid era, one would wonder if there is still a professional player that is not into performance enhancing drugs. Competition is tough, the pressure insurmountable it would come as a surprise if you find one pro sport icon who is not loaded with steroids. Perhaps you would just dismiss it with a shrug and say it happens. But not Albert Pujols. He is set apart from all the others. As a future Hall of Famer, he never compromised his values just to get ahead in the game. He knew what he was getting into the moment he made up his mind to make baseball a career. He knew all about the pressure and the stress. Apparently, he made the decision to work hard. He stayed away from the drugs knowing it could mess up his career. Cheating is not, and never, an option

From US News and World Report:

Pujols went on the cover of Sports Illustrated a few weeks ago with the headline: “Albert Pujols Has a Message: Don’t Be Afraid to Believe in Me.” You don’t have to be a Cardinals fan—or even a baseball fan at all—to read this article, because it’s such a great story that goes beyond baseball pretty quickly.

In it, the future Hall of Famer talks about the difficulty of being the guy Sports Illustrated calls “The Best Player in Baseball” in an era when everyone assumes he’s using steroids. He doesn’t drink, smoke, chew tobacco, or have tattoos, and he married wife Dee Dee when she was a single mom with a daughter who has Down syndrome. He regularly hits home runs at the request of kids with Down syndrome.

Alex Rodriguez and the rest of those who are involved in the steroids controversy should ponder on Pujols’ example. Accomplishments can be achieved without steroids. If one person can do it, it is not an impossibility that the whole MLB can do it. If the MLB and union officials get serious in cleaning up the Major League of steroids, they will be restoring America’s best-loved game back into its glory days.

Category: Anabolic Steroids | Tags: Albert Pujols, baseball, MLB, steroids