Half-jokingly Trying to Identify Potential PED Users from the Early '90s with R

[Omar 382]

I figured I wanted to look at whose production increased the most in 1991 and beyond, the first year steroids were "banned" from MLB. In my code, I looked at players who played both from 1985-1990 (a good 6 season sample size) and then looking at any of any of those players who played in 1991 and/or beyond. I cut the PA size off to 1000 PA on both 1985-1990 and 1991-2006. I understand that the years I picked- 1985, 1991, and 2006 are all very arbitrary, but I figured that was my best estimate of baseball when steroid use was at a relative low, when steroid use became rampant, and when steroid use tapered off. I could be totally wrong in my estimates, but I took my best guess.

I then looked at the players' median WAR and wRC+ before and after '91, and then calculated which players had the largest positive difference. Here's my code in case anyone is following along at home.



Here's the top 43 players with the biggest differences in their median wRC+'s before and after '91

And lastly, here are all the player's whose median WAR changed by 1 win or more in '91 or later

What do you guys think of these lists? Again, not a very in-depth analysis, and there are lots of confounding factors and other dilemmas, but it's worth mentioning that 3 of the first 5 players in the wRC+ department all have been connected to steroids, as have 4 of the first 10 in the median WAR change (including Daulton). So what do we think- are Robin Ventura, Kevin Mitchell, and Griffey guilty of juicing?

Also, cocksuckers stay out. If you don't like this topic, go back to your gay pron

 

[kramer1]

I doubt JR. roided up. He was just a scrawny little kid when he started in 89.

 

[The Q]

Did you factor in age?

Because guys like JR were so young that they were bound to have some serious improvement coming going into the prime years.

 

[tducey]

I appreciate the effort put into this but I doubt very much Griffey ever did steroids.

 

[obxyankeefan]

I have asked it before,but why do guys likeJR, Thome,and Frank Thomas get passes for the Roid era?

 

[The Q]

I have asked it before,but why do guys likeJR, Thome,and Frank Thomas get passes for the Roid era?

the media liked them.

 

[JohnU]

I was fine with this topic despite its sprawl until I got to the final part about the cocksuckers and gay pron ... which suggests an immaturity that doesn't deserve much in the way of a discussion.

 

[ChiSoxFan]

I always knew Ventura was juicing.

 

[navamind]