Is there some possible truth to the rumors about 1987?
Quite a few people have passed around the idea that in the 1987 season the steroids were rampant in MLB. I checked the stats and of the 25 players who had more than 30 homers that year, 16 had posted their career high that season. Some by only a few, but 9 of the 16 had 25% or more higher than their next best season. Biggest standouts:
Andre Dawson 49 (next highest 32)
George Bell 47 (next 31)
Wally Joyner 34 (next 22)
Brook Jacoby 32 (next 20)
Larry Sheets 31 (next 18)
And some of the under 30 homer standouts:
Juan Samuel 28 (next 19)
Ivan Calderon 28 (next 19)
Keith Moreland 27 (next 16)
Ozzie Virgil 27 (next 19)
Dale Sveum 25 (next 12)
Wade Boggs 24 (next 11)
John Shelby 21 (next 11)
So why does it seem so many found their big swing that year? Or is this all still a wild conspiracy?
1987 was the year of the "Super Ball". Early in the season, it became clear that the baseballs were much much livelier than they had been the previous season. Line drive hitters like Boggs, Jacoby and Joyner all had career years in the power department. MLB claimed that the balls were exactly the same, but no one believed it. The theories suggested that the ball was wound more tightly or that the core of the ball had been replaced with a substance that would give the ball more jump off the bat.
As far as the steroid angle goes, I think 1987 was still a bit too early. The steroid era didn't really become rampant until the 90s, in my opinion.
Furthermore, if all these players had garned success from taking steroids, wouldn't it make sense at least some of them would have maintained those power numbers for the next few seasons? Why would they stop taking them if they improved their performance so much. MLB didn't institute any more stringent testing policies in 1988. It would only follow that at least some of them would keep hitting HRs at the 1987 pace. But that is not the case. Therefore, you have to assume that it was something specific to the 1987 season, not the players.
The statistical anomaly that was the 1987 season was because the league doctored the balls.
Jabarie Hinds #5 makes a Rice High School player a victim at SNY Invitational w/ 32 points
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