What do Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Alex Rodriguez have in common?

A. They are all baseball players

B. They are all suspected steroid users.

C. They are all fathers.

D. All of the above.

If you answered "D," you are correct. While the media focuses on the Hall-of-Fame-caliber statistics these athletes post and endlessly searches for evidence of steroid use as if trying to win a game of Clue, not much is usually said about these men as parents.

Anybody who has ever gotten a speeding ticket with a child in the car knows that it is difficult to save face in front of those wide little eyes after being scolded by the authorities. We might be tempted to say we didn't do it. We might argue that the officer isn't being fair. We might plead that we were unaware of the speed limit.

Hopefully, we do the right thing: admit our wrongdoing, accept the consequence, and learn from our mistake. Isn't that sequence what we encourage our children to follow when they mess up? Isn't it time all athletes who have used steroids during their career do the same?

A few years ago, Alex Rodriguez wrote a children's book called Out of the Ballpark. The story tells of a boy who uses hard work and determination to overcome obstacles and become a great ballplayer. At the time, he called the book "90 percent true." People assumed that he meant he added a thing here or there for dramatic effect. Perhaps he meant that he left out the part about doing something to gain an unfair advantage.

I have no doubt that the world of professional baseball is tough to get into and equally hard to remain in. Rodriguez, commonly known in the media as A-Rod, has spoken about the pressures of living up to expectations after signing the most lucrative contract in the sport's history. Instead of having faith in the ability that earned him that contract, however, he admits he turned to banned substances.

Fast-forward 15 years. Imagine his daughter Natasha Rodriguez is now a teenager, applying to college. Would he encourage her to cheat on the SAT to get into a prestigious university? What would you be doing to your child's sense of self-worth if you implied that the only way she could succeed was by being dishonest?

And don't try to tell me that ballplayers "have" to use steroids to level the playing field because "everyone else is." (Didn't your mother ever use that classic line, "If everybody else was jumping off a bridge, would you do it too?")

"Jumping off a bridge" might not be a far-fetched analogy. Steroids stir the public's wrath because they go against the American mantra of "you can succeed if you just work hard enough." But getting those bulging biceps from hormonal supplements rather than extra time in the gym isn't just unfair, it is dangerous. Anabolic steroids can cause liver tumors, jaundice, high blood pressure, fertility problems and heart disease. Steroid users may also suffer excessive irritability, delusions and extreme mood swings.

For those who argue that these are grown men who can take chances with their own bodies if they so choose, let's consider a few things:

1. Roger Clemens is almost as famous for his temper as for his ability to strike out batters, and routinely plunked opponents with the ball. During the 2000 World Series, he went so far as to throw a piece of broken bat at a member of the other team. "Roid" rage? That's for the courts to decide. All I know is that many of those men he hit are fellow dads. Would you want to look a man's kid in the eye if you put his dad in the hospital?

2. Young athletes worship professionals. An estimated 500,000 to 1 million student athletes take performance-enhancing drugs. The effects of steroids on a developing body are suspected to be even more harmful than on an adult. Likewise, kids often get their supplies from peers or the Internet, making it unlikely that anyone is regulating the quantity or quality of what they are taking. If you are fortunate enough to be among the small percentage of men who ever get to don a Major League uniform, you are a role model whether you like it or not. My kid's baseball cards, official hat and game ticket are feeding your family. You owe it to him to respect his health.

(On a side note, Clemens has four sons, one of which I know is on the verge of making it to the Big Leagues. I'm curious how Clemens, the father, has addressed the issue of performance-enhancing drugs. Many of us parents drag our kids to the doctors at the slightest bit of a cough but fail to go in ourselves for potentially life-saving tests such as cancer screenings and blood-pressure checks. Does Clemens worry about his son's health in a way that he doesn't seem to care about his own, or does he encourage a "whatever it takes to make it" attitude?)

3. While these suspected steroid users may appear to not have any life-threatening side effects at the moment, nobody can predict the future. I've got news for Barry Bonds: That handsome young man you were so eager to hug after hitting your record-breaking home run will not cherish that milestone one iota if his father drops dead tomorrow because the substances that helped him get superpowers also weakened his heart.

It is hard for regular parents to keep promoting the "Say No to Drugs" message when kids see their sports heroes involved with steroids and not being punished. Until the day comes when confirmed steroid users are banned from the game, stripped of records and put in jail if they lied under oath, good luck convincing a 10-year-old that these athletes did anything wrong.

Not that Bonds, Clemens or Rodriguez are out to hurt kids. All three of them, in fact, have foundations that do remarkable charity work with children and families. But to truly be the role models our children (and theirs) deserve, they need to not just give with their wallet but also with their conscience.

That is why I was very happy to learn that A-Rod is joining forces with the Taylor Hooton Foundation to help fight youth steroid and other performance enhancing drug use. Taylor Hooton was a high school athlete who took his own life due the depression he experienced as a result of taking anabolic steroids. (The foundation's website, has great information for parents concerned about their own children.)

While Taylor's family knows it cannot do anything to bring him back, they are using the tragedy to try to help others from experiencing the pain they went through. Likewise, A-Rod cannot undo the period of his life when he claims he was "young, stupid and naïve," but he can help others from making the same mistake.

Personally, I think it takes a bigger man to admit an error and right a wrong than it does to be a superstar slugger. It is only a matter of time before the sports record that an athlete holds today (with or without an asterisk) will be broken. Wouldn't it be better to leave a good name? And wouldn't your children rather know that you cared more about being honest and healthy than you did about a stupid number?