Posted by The Taint on 9/12/2014 2:56:00 PM (view original):
I definitely agree though, it's not the same as taking steroids or HGH.

Posted by dahsdebater on 9/12/2014 4:05:00 PM (view original):
It's not that black and white and you know it.  An epileptic who stopped taking his anti-seizure meds would probably see a performance decline as well.  Does that make them PEDs?  They're certainly improving his performance.  Glasses/contacts are a massive performance improver, and an external substance.  It comes down to a question of where you draw the line for what is acceptable and what isn't.  There isn't a clear bright line.  From my perspective, the best thing you can do is say "if a licensed physican prescribes it, you probably should be able to use it."  ADD/ADHD is a very fluffy diagnosis.  That doesn't mean that some people don't really need Adderall to function properly.  So where do you draw the line?

Obviously I already said I think he took the Adderall because he thought it would improve his game.  The question is, does he really NEED the Adderall, or is it exclusively a baseball thing.  And even then, how do you decide what is and isn't "cheating" or "fair?"  Some guys play with glasses who don't need them to read or drive.  They're exclusively using them to improve their vision for hitting.  Is that "fair?"  I guess, because anybody can do it.  But you guys are arguing that anybody can get a prescription for Adderall, too, and then in most cases could get it cleared with MLB if they just went through the proper channels.  And that in particular is why I'm not going to condemn Chris Davis for cheating, but moreso for laziness and inattention to detail.  It is overwhelmingly likely that if he'd done the paperwork and waited a week, he would have been cleared to use his Adderall anyway.  So it's stupid.  But he's no more a cheater than the rest of the guys - close to 4 per team - using the same drug.

Of course, how many of those guys have been using it since they were kids?  Do they get more of a pass than the guys who picked it up as pros?  Again, Mike, you're the one who wants to paint this as a black and white issue.  "He was cheating and he knew it."  So tell me where the bright line is.

Posted by dahsdebater on 9/12/2014 4:05:00 PM (view original):
It's not that black and white and you know it.  An epileptic who stopped taking his anti-seizure meds would probably see a performance decline as well.  Does that make them PEDs?  They're certainly improving his performance.  Glasses/contacts are a massive performance improver, and an external substance.  It comes down to a question of where you draw the line for what is acceptable and what isn't.  There isn't a clear bright line.  From my perspective, the best thing you can do is say "if a licensed physican prescribes it, you probably should be able to use it."  ADD/ADHD is a very fluffy diagnosis.  That doesn't mean that some people don't really need Adderall to function properly.  So where do you draw the line?

Obviously I already said I think he took the Adderall because he thought it would improve his game.  The question is, does he really NEED the Adderall, or is it exclusively a baseball thing.  And even then, how do you decide what is and isn't "cheating" or "fair?"  Some guys play with glasses who don't need them to read or drive.  They're exclusively using them to improve their vision for hitting.  Is that "fair?"  I guess, because anybody can do it.  But you guys are arguing that anybody can get a prescription for Adderall, too, and then in most cases could get it cleared with MLB if they just went through the proper channels.  And that in particular is why I'm not going to condemn Chris Davis for cheating, but moreso for laziness and inattention to detail.  It is overwhelmingly likely that if he'd done the paperwork and waited a week, he would have been cleared to use his Adderall anyway.  So it's stupid.  But he's no more a cheater than the rest of the guys - close to 4 per team - using the same drug.

Of course, how many of those guys have been using it since they were kids?  Do they get more of a pass than the guys who picked it up as pros?  Again, Mike, you're the one who wants to paint this as a black and white issue.  "He was cheating and he knew it."  So tell me where the bright line is.

And I've already said that I respect the cheater who busts his *** in the gym to be better than the chump who swallows a pill to help him focus.

IOW, Davis is a step below A-Rod in my book.