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Dip and Chew: Julie Croteau on Tobacco Use
Baseball, Colorado Silver Bullets starter; first female player in Virginia Baseball League
I grew up on baseball, playing since I was five. For as long as I can remember, chewing and spitting tobacco was part of the game. It used to be part of the culture of baseball. That was before we found out how dangerous it was.
When I was 13 years old, I was the only girl still playing baseball in my town. All the girls I used to play with on Little League had left the game. It was a challenge to keep up with the boys. Part of that challenge was keeping up a tough, cool image.
I would see most of the older players chewing and spitting tobacco. I thought that it was really gross! So when the guys first started pressuring me to join in – I could easily say no.
By 16, it was harder to say no to the constant pressure to try chewing tobacco. At that age, there were only two of us left who hadn’t tried chewing tobacco. I was trying so hard to act tough and serious about baseball. I thought, “How bad could it be – all the other guys were doing it.” There must have been something special to it. We finally gave in.
It was disgusting. It tasted like tangy dirt! I felt dizzy. It sure didn’t make me feel good like I thought it would. But I put up a front. The other guy was not so lucky – he threw up. Then the whole team made fun of him – calling him a “loser.” I did not want to risk that harassment – I wanted to be “cool,” so I tried it a couple more times.
The last time I tried it before a game, I became dizzy, light-headed and felt uncoordinated. I also had a terrible game. I went 0 for 4. I was already at a disadvantage – many of the guys were bigger and stronger than me. I didn’t need another obstacle. So I told my teammates that my parents would kill me if they found out about the chewing tobacco.
But a couple of years later, I learned how really bad it could really be. A coach showed me the big hole in his lip from chewing tobacco. That was definitely not cool!
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