Bobby Valentine: PEDs are good for sports, will become mainstream

Former New York Mets manager Bobby Valentine was a guest on SI Now Friday, and told Maggie Gray that he thinks performance-enhancing drugs are good for sports.

Former New York Mets manager Bobby Valentine was a guest on SI Now on Friday, and told Maggie Gray that he thinks performance-enhancing drugs are good for sports.

“Probably, if you want to see the best out of your athlete,” Valentine said.

Major League Baseball implemented its current testing policy for PEDs in 2005. Since then, a total of 40 players have been suspended entering the 2015 season.

The NFL installed HGH testing for the first time in the 2014-15 season, and the NBA will begin testing for the substance this year. 

In the interview, Valentine said he thinks eventually these drugs will evolve to the point where there aren’t health risks. He compared the idea that PEDs are bad for baseball players to an “old wives' tale” that weightlifting would hinder your ability to play.

“I think it’s the same idea,” he said. “This idea that because it’s a drug, and you’re taking it from the outside, that’s bad. But there’s a lot of really good drugs out there that we do take that make us feel better and perform better, and I think these PEDs that people talk about, that are performance-enhancers, will eventually get into the mainstream.”

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- Kenny Ducey