Another star player, Dee Gordon, two-bagger for the Miami Marlins, has been suspended from Major League Baseball (MLB) for violations of the leagues rules against performance enhancing drugs (PED’s). This is clearly a big blow to the lackluster Marlins, but it’s a much bigger punch to the face of MLB itself.
Photo: Dee Gordon with the Marlins in 2015, miamiherald.com
The 28 year-old rising star, who is coming off of two all-star seasons in 2014 with the Los Angeles Dodgers and in 2015 with the Miami Marlins, is not your stereotypical PED suspect. He has virtually no power with only 8 career home runs in 1939 at-bats and a career slugging percent of only .368. Granted, he hit half of those homers last year (note that there is no evidence of having used PED’s last year), and had a career high slugging percent of .418. This year he has hit as many homeruns as I have (0), and has a slugging percentage lower than many players current batting averages at .340, with only 5 extra base hits.
So why would a player who relies purely on skill and speed risk his career and livelihood on PED’s that don’t really enhance the skill sets and talent that make him an MLB all-star caliber player? One can only speculate as to the reasons. Perhaps they provide a sense of confidence or there is a mental dependency on having them in your system. I suppose we would have to ask Dee Gordon that question, but in typical fashion of almost every player ever caught, Gordon has denied knowingly having taken any illegal substances (although it is worth noting that he currently does not plan to appeal the 80 game suspension).
While certainly not condoned for any player in any league of any sport, having taken PED’s and losing 80 games and $1.65 million in salary possibly makes less sense for Dee Gordon than of any other star player. In the case of a power pitcher or power hitter the benefits are obvious. In the case of an aging player or that guy in AAA who can’t seem to make the jump to the big leagues, the upside is again obvious. The risk:reward ratio is there and so hanging on for one more season, going from warning track power to hitting 40 bombs, or finally getting your chance in The Show can at least be rationalized.
I point this out not in approval of the use of any illegal drug but to show that its boundaries are not limited to the guy who gained 20 pounds of muscle in the offseason or who jumped from 10 long balls to 35 in one season. Even the skill players whose careers are built on superior hand to eye coordination and consistent contact can be lured by the siren song of having an advantage whether real or perceived. Dee Gordon not fitting the mold of the type of player for whom we tend to naturally associate with PED’s is the potentially bigger blow to MLB than the likes of superstars who have been linked to their use because he was the quiet neighbor next door who no one suspected and because of how we will look at every pro-athlete with a bit more cynicism.
thatbaseballer 