Let's Blame the Union!

8 Thoughts on Steroids in Baseball for 2/11/2009 #7

There are few unions in America that are more hated than the Major League Baseball Player's Association. However anyone who has studied the history of MLB's labor relations knows that much of this hatred is based on ignorance. Sort of like the union movement as a whole.

Anyway, it is beyond the scope of this blog to go into the history of MLB vs. the MLBPA, but there is a reaction among many fans that I find revolting. They are blaming the drug problem in baseball, or more specifically the failure of the league to deal with the problem, on the union. As usual, the more conservative elements of baseball fandom (such as sports talk radio which often makes right wing political talk radio seem intelligent) look for the simplistic answer to a problem. Is there any problem you can find in America to which a conservative cannot find a way to place the blame on the unions?

With the problem of steroids in baseball, there is certainly blame that can be placed on the shoulders of the MLBPA. They have never fully acknowledged the seriousness of the issue and they have fought the tough enforcement needed to root steroids out of baseball. Still, they are simply the group representing the employees. Is it the fault of the MLBPA that the commissioner and the owners raked in money with glee when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa chased Roger Maris's home run record? Is it the fault of the MLBPA that the owners lived in denial about the steroid problem despite every serious fan realizing that something was up? Is it the MLBPA's fault that the owners were dishing out their biggest contracts for home run hitters? Is it the MLBPA's responsibility to control the actions of every major league ballplayer? Of course not.

Look, steroids are problem in baseball and they are a problem that threaten the long term viability of the sport. The mere fact that so many fans care, and care passionately, about the drug use means that it has to be taken seriously. If the union wants their members to continue receiving their high dollar contracts then they need to consider that if the fans are unhappy, the money will not continue to roll into the sport. They need to ask their members to accept more testing and stricter penalties. Additionally, MLB needs to stop demagoging the issue and pretending that the only thing that stands in the way of solving this issue is the union. There needs to be less focus on who did what and when and more focus on getting the rugs out of the sport.

Ultimately, there needs to be a revelation with the fans, the union and the league that the people most responsible for cheating are those players that cheat. Yes, the systemic problems can be addressed, but as long as the players are normal human beings, there will be those who look for an edge. It's a simple reality in a complex problem.