True heroes don't inspire tragedy

Truly a sad story. the very bad thing about steroids is that they work. They will make you bigger and stronger. professional athletes using them is one thing but what motivates a young high school or even younger athlete to use them. Who or what has convinced him that this is what he must do? Who or what pressures them into doing this? A question that may defy logic but many times logic and common sense take a back seat.

Professional athletes ARE role models whether they want to be or not. Some never get it and set poor examples for kids to follow. Some do get it, accept it, and live their lives accordingly. Unfortunately in today's society we see and hear much more about the negative than the positive.

Will, "we" convinced him. Parents, coaches, scouts, showcases. You've read it right here: you've gotta be over 6' to play in college, let alone the major leagues; 170 lbs is too light. Ever hear of a player claiming to be shorter or lighter than they really are? Me, neither.

Of course there are exceptions (welcome to the Cards, Mr. Eckstein), but those comments often sound a lot like "there, there" to a teenage ballplayer on the smaller side.

Add in the easy 'fix-it' mentality in this country. People actually watch those extreme makeover-ugly duckling television shows. Not the commercial ideal? Not "good enough" the way you are? Go see your local plastic surgeon. Not built like Bonds-Sosa-McGwire-Giambi (as was)? Stick a needle in your backside.

Teenagers/young adults believe they are bulletproof. Ain't gonna happen to them....until it does.

What motivates? Think the glory of being a letterman-starter-college ballplayer-CWS participant-drafted-major league player making $10 million a year might be it?

And that is precisely why MLB should be throwing the book at Bonds and anybody else involved. Because they are role models to young athletes....who will emulate them because they bloody well got away with it while still being amply rewarded and admired.

Did the amnesty-for-testifying deal preclude Bonds being prosecuted for using controlled substances illegally? I mean, on the off-chance that MLB doesn't have the stones to do anything.

This is a sad story that was "publicized" on the local So Cal message boards a while back. When I read the whole story, I was saddened for the young man and his family ... and it is a shame that there is so much emphasis on "size" that young people can jeopardize their own lives to meet that "standard" that the athletic "gods" have established.

As an additional note about this particular story ... something that does not seem to have been brought out in this article ... the young man in question showed obvious signs that something physically and emotionally was out of whack while he was still at his 4 year school. His roommates attested to the fact that he was manifesting abnormal behavior, among other things. I personally believe that, altho he was the one who actually made the choice to take the steroids, there were people around him who bear some responsibillity for not acting when they realized things were amiss with him. Based on the original story that was posted on the USC boards, the changes that he went through were not unnoticed by several people, including teammates and family members. Perhaps he was "too far gone" by then for any intervention, but I just believe that he could have been saved if someone had stepped up. Again, IMO, this does not dismiss the personal responsibility of the player, but I believe that people who notice these kind of things need to take action to try and help.

JMHO ...

Orlando---

You hit it on the head...and didn't even need steroids to knock it out of the park. Sad but true.

A very sad story. He tried out for my Area Code Baseball Team about 9-10 years ago and he was just a slender little guy who played real hard and gave everything he had. When I heard what had happened, I wanted to kick myself, as I did not choose him for my team, and thought that if I had, it may have made a difference.

I have tried to avoid posting here but I have a problem anytime we refer to a professional ballplayer as a hero. Naturally, some deserve it because they do so much more than play ball. They give back to the community, do charity functions etc. However, just because they play a game, I don't believe that they are heroes. I know many of you will post that they are regardless of my opinion.

I hope that a child's heroes begin in the home. Their parents should be their first heroes. Teach you kids about yourself and your family. All of us have members of our family that are real heroes.

I look at our history and naturally, books are filled with the names of those that gave all. Also, those individuals that helped us reach this point in our country are heroes. For fun sometime, research Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain sometime.

Well, I guess I'm being very selective with the term. MY MOM AND DAD are my HEROES. They know that. I've made it a point to tell them often. Then, some of the kids that have survived my practices and a season with me are next in line. I hope they feel the same way in return. I apologize for hijacking this thread and so...

I agree with CoachB25--- I know the people in my family were my Idols and the ones I looked up to.

There is no need, IMO, for a kid to look at sports figures in the sense of them being heroes or idols.

I think Charles Barkley has it right when he says that it is not his job to be a role model--
thats for the parents to take care of


Happy New Year

Coach, I think that was Glove's point -- Bonds (as he was the person specifically referred to) isn't a "true hero".

I don't have any problem with young athletes thinking of professional athletes as role models, however, as I don't consider the words "role model" and "hero" to be completely synonomous. The work ethic, commitment, talent, choices, study, and all the other components that make up a successful professional athlete are the things our sons want to learn from and emulate. Obviously, we want them to choose a Mike Matheny or Cal Ripken over a Kobe Bryant or Darryl Strawberry .

I had more sympathy for Bob Gibson when he said it wasn't his job to be a role model for kids, and that that was the parents' job when he said it back in the 60's. It was a different time and he was a very private man. When somebody like Barkley, actively continuing to court his 'celebrity' status after his playing days adopts the phrase, it seems to me to be a copout: I'll behave however I want to, knowing there will be media coverage, because the young basketball superstar wannabes are supposed to be paying more attention to their parents than to me.

I heard the young man;s father interviewed on a local radio station and from what I gathered, he was showing signs of depression before he began steriod treatment. Young men who grow up bi-polar tend to show the first signs and symptoms in their late teens. The steriod use would only magnify this problem. This young man was troubled and awhole lot of people missed the signs. Unfortunately he isn't the first and won't be the last. We need to be vigalent when these young people come into our lifes, whether as parents, coaches or just friends.

Sorry but I felt the need to say this.

There’s nothing wrong with a young baseball player idolizing a Major League player. I bet most of us idolized a Major League player when we were young.

We often get caught up in talking about the bad ones and often forget the good ones. There are “many” Major League players who are great role models. There not all a bunch of SOBs.

Are they heros? No, but do you need to be a hero to be a great role model?

I don’t understand why people concentrate on all the bad stuff when there is so much good stuff available. I guess it’s just not as newsworthy.