Editor,
I love baseball. It is a refuge, a place where I can go and forget about the cares of the day. Time slows down, and all that matters is my team winning. It's one of the greatest feelings in the world.
Manny Ramirez has been one of the best sluggers in baseball for the past several years. First with the Red Sox, now with the Dodgers. He has terrorized pitchers for quite some time in both leagues.
It came out recently that he has used performance-enhancing drugs. Injected into the body, these steroids can cause muscles to grow stronger, endure longer and perform better. However, it is considered cheating to use them, especially since greats like Babe Ruth set and broke records without the help of any such drugs.
Performance-enhancing drugs also can contain estrogen, exacerbating female attributes in males, and they have long-term health effects. They can raise cholesterol and damage the liver and the heart. And while it improves your skill for awhile, your body will ultimately break down.
Manny Ramirez was caught taking them and was suspended for 50 games. His suspension has not yet ended, but he is allowed to begin playing in the minor leagues so that he will be ready to join the Dodgers again in a few weeks. Manny played his first game Tuesday in Albuquerque, with the Albuquerque Isotopes.
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Because such a famous player was playing with the Isotopes, there was a sold-out crowd. People crowded along the railing to get his autograph. People waited expectantly when he came up to bat. People cheered loudly when he made an outfield catch. And I wonder. Am I the only one who can see the inconsistencies here? The man lied, cheated, took illegal performance-enhancing drugs, isn't a very good fielder, is arrogant and thinks only of himself. And because of him, more people than ever came to watch the Isotopes play. Little kids got baseballs signed by him. Smiling parents stood nearby, watching.
Begin to get the picture?
Tell me, honestly, is this the man you want as a role model for your kids? Is this the man you want to give accolade to? Do you honestly think he even deserves to play in the majors, now that you know he took drugs that gave him an unfair advantage over his baseball peers, those who play with honesty and integrity?
I do not understand why people want to see this man play, or how they could even think of cheering for him. I don't understand how anyone who does this could be allowed to continue to play in the majors. And I hate the shame people like Manny Ramirez bring to baseball. Baseball, the great American pastime. Baseball, the sport I love.
I am frankly confused by how people seem to be overlooking a point that is so obvious to me. You see, I've got this thing about playing the game square. Manny Ramirez didn't do that.
Laura Bracht
UNM student
