Imagine being one of the biggest baseball players in the world, yet getting suspended for testing positive for a drug you never even knew you took.
This is exactly what happened to San Diego Padres superstar and Major League Baseball (MLB) poster boy Fernando Tatis Jr. Tatis tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug (PED) known as Clostebol and subsequently received a suspension of 80 games on Jun.25 Although jarring, the unfortunate truth is that this type of suspension is pretty common. There have been over 250 total suspensions across the four major American sports since 2001.
With that being said, it is common for players to take some kind of medication to help with any true medical problems that they may experience, after all, they are athletes. If it ends up containing any form of performance-enhancing drugs, the player would still get suspended for abusing the substance, whether they used it inadvertently or not. This is similar to what Tatis stated in his response to the suspension. “It turns out that I inadvertently took medication to treat a ringworm that contained Clostebol,” Tatis claimed.
If Tatis’ statements are true, then the suspension is undoubtedly unfair, considering that the “drug” was included in medication for a personal health problem. Does the MLB not want their players seeking the adequate help needed in order to get better? Instead of immediately suspending a player if they tested positive for PEDs, they should instead investigate deeper into the problem.
Issues with the MLB aside, however, some fans have argued that Tatis is lying about the medication in order to avoid harsh judgment. Padres pitcher and teammate of Tatis Mike Clevinger weighed in on the suspension. “It is the second time we have been disappointed with him. You hope he grows up and learns from this and learns that it is about more than just him right now,” suggesting that this is not the first time that something like this has happened to Tatis. Furthermore, infield co-star Manny Machado seems like he has already given up on the 23-year old., “We have gotten to this point without him, we do not really need him.”
Whether the Padres believe that they “need’ Tatis or not, his recent $340 million contract extension seems to suggest that he should have at least touched the field once during the 2022 season.
With all of this being said, one might have questions regarding Tatis’ track record. If we look back at all the other drug tests that he has taken since joining the MLB, Tatis has never once failed until now. Even so, Tatis still admits that this was his mistake. “I should have used the resources available to me in order to ensure that no banned substances were in what I took. I failed to do so. I would never do anything to cheat or disrespect this game that I love.” MLB legend Pedro Martinez then offered his own perspective on the situation. “Since he got hurt, San Diego has been on top of him. And this is where I have to give him a pass because San Diego should have known what this kid is putting on his body.”
To conclude, although the suspension is already in effect, it is not too late for the MLB to conduct a thorough investigation into the case. Tatis is not completely fault-free but the thought of him not touching the field for the rest of 2022 should be enough to make things right.
