Ueberroth's plutocracy

National Review, March 28, 1986

Ueberroth's Plutocracy

BASEBALL COMMISSIONER Peter Ueberroth, sometimes mentioned as a senatorial or even presidential possibility, has been trying to thread his way through the byzantine maze of baseball drug use. The fact is that drugs, most importantly amphetamines, are pervasive in modern high-pressure athletics. Right now, however, Ueberroth is concerned with cocaine, and has suspended 11 players for the entire season for having used it in the past.

The penalty is not really that severe. The men can play if they agree to surprise drug tests, donate 10 per cent of their salary to rehabilitatin programs, perform community service, and so forth. Most will, though the players' union has so far not spoken on the matter and could veto the whole deal.

What's going on? If a player uses cocaine on occasion, but still performs well on the field, isn't that the district attorney's worry and not Ueberroth's? Well, maybe not. A soft argument asserts that ball-players are role models for the young. Both Babe Ruth and Joe diMaggio were warned along those lines by New York mayors, Ruth for general rowdiness, DiMaggio for questionable associates around Broadway. But Bruce Springsteen is probably a more potent role model today than Keith Hernandez or Dale Berra.

As usual, the bottom line is no doubt money. Seatbelts are now required not to protect you, but to protect the insurance companies. It doesn't matter whether you like them or not. And the ballplayers are being sanitized to protect the owners' large investment in them. Millions of dollars are involved if the DA sends a star on the slammer. When the seatbelt legislator talks about "safety," when the owners and publicists talk about morality and role models, remember: Cherchez le cash.