Baltimore Orioles: Minor league players suspended for PEDs

In the past few weeks, two Baltimore Orioles minor league players have been suspended for using PEDs.

It’s no secret that both the Major Leagues and the Minor Leagues conduct regular testing on players and these Baltimore Orioles minor leaguers made a stupid mistake.

The problem is not that they got caught, but that the tried to get away with it in the first place.

Being a professional athlete is not easy. The physical demands on the body are tough, but the solution for athletes is not to turn to banned substances. Unfortunately, Steve Wilkerson and Tucker Baca made bad choices and professional baseball delivers swift and harsh consequences.

What Wilkerson tested positively for

In December 2017, Wilkerson was found to have used an amphetamine and was punished with a 50-game suspension. He will not play for about two full months. This could not have come at a worse time for Wilkerson, as he was set to compete for a spot on the Orioles. This information came from an article by Eduardo A. Encina with the Baltimore Sun.

Amphetamines are not the same type of drug as steroids or the typical PED. However, amphetamines can affect the way that a baseball player plays. According to an article on ESPN by Mark Kreidler, “[A]mphetamines are classified by the federal government as a controlled substance, it has been a federal crime since 1970 to use them without a prescription, and people in and around baseball have been trying — almost routinely without success — to drag their use out into the light of day for years and years.”

Amphetamines are stimulants and they can be deadly. According to the DEA.gov, this drug can create “Increased blood pressure and pulse rates, insomnia, loss of appetite, and physical exhaustion.” This is a drug that can be deadly and amphetamines are in the same drug category as cocaine and meth, but some amphetamines, like Adderall and Ritalin, are used to treat ADHD.

Baca’s big mistake

Baca was suspended for 60 games for testing positive for Dehydrochlormethyltestosterone, according to Encina with the Baltimore Sun. Baca has only been with the organization since June 2017 as he was drafted in the 12th round. Because he is in the rookie Gulf Coast League, his suspension will not start until June.

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According to Wikipedia, the drug that Baca took was an anabolic steroid commonly known as Oral Turinabol. This drug was first used in East Germany and the Soviet Block, according to an article in The New York Times by Ken Belson and Jere Longman. In the article, the authors share that Oral Turinabol is easy to detect and that people who use it are “dumber than dumb.” No pharmacy actually manufactures this steroid anymore, which shows how dangerous it is. The steroid can cause balding, liver damage, and acne, but it can increase body hair. This steroid is extremely dangerous for women to take.

Other Orioles who tempted fate

Three other Orioles minor league players were suspended during the 2017 season according to Encina. One was Robert Andino in Triple-A Norfolk; he was suspended for 50 games for amphetamines. In the Dominican Summer League, Johnny Dixon received a 72-game suspension for Stanozolol, a PED. And, Markel Jones received a 50-game suspension for a drug of abuse while playing in Short-A.

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It is no secret that the MLB and its affiliates have banned PEDs. The suspensions are harsh and they should be. For players like Wilkerson, he might not ever get another chance like the one he blew by taking amphetamines. It is plain-old stupid for these young athletes to tempt fate with these dangerous substances.