» Steroids

Hey Tin Man, what are you looking at?

I think it is time for people to acknowledge how overrated Mr. Ripken is in the sense of humanity as well as athleticism.

Being a product of the commonly perceived pre-steroid era, Ripken’s performance has slipped under the radar while his impeccable durability ultimately suggests the assistance from PEDs.

Ripken is known for his reserved nature with the likelihood for skipping autograph sessions and now this?  http://bases.newsvine.com/_news/2009/05/15/2821077-cal-ripken-takes-the-money-and-runs?category=spor  Simply absurd.

The former Orioles slugger is pompous and self-righteous in his actions to write and sell a text referencing the human condition.  Maybe he should stick to a Johnny Damon-like novel/theme, such as ”Idiot”.

Case closed.

Hello All,

I just got an interesting email and I was discussing it over dinner with a good Yankee fan friend of mine.

Jerry from NJ Asked Me: “What are your thoughts on the A-Rod getting into the Hall Of Fame Argument” and he went on to ask “Tell me why you feel he should get in and NOT Pete Rose” WOW….my first reaction was…I hadn’t thought of this in that way before. I assume someone must have brought this up at some point, but I haven’t yet heard it so I want to answer it here. I also encourage all authors here to chime in, this can lead to some incredible debate and conversation.

Steroids In Baseball

Betting On Baseball

So here’s my take on it. I am not going to even bring numbers into this debate. Both players’ numbers speak for themselves. What they do have in common is that the each dishonored the game of baseball in some way.

Let’s look at each hall of fame worthy players mistake.

Pete Rose: An absolutely incredible player, a true testament to intensity, focus, and poise. He is considered one of the best hitters in the history of the game, and is not being admitted into the hall of fame because he bet on the game. He wagered on the game he played which goes against the “rules” as they say…

A-Rod of course is considered one of the best players ever to grace a baseball field, hands down, no arguments about it. A-Rod is a true marvel and up until this year I truly felt he was the last hope to reclaim Aaron’s record in a legit manner. Boy was I wrong…as were many. He is guilty of using performance enhancing drugs for “3″ years of his career…sure…3 Years. Regardless, it happened and now its time to face the music.

So let’s compare these two. One of them cheated the game he played to make more money…but then again…so did A-Rod. That’s right…A-Rod also cheated this game for the sake of money. Juicing up those numbers led to an even bigger payday that he could have ever dreamed of.  A-Rod’s cheating also enhanced his stats, in a big way…whereas Pete Rose’s actions could have in no way caused inflated numbers.

It is my opinion that it should be: Pete Rose In….A-Rod Never In. I am (was) a huge fan of A-Rod for years…but now I must admit I am a little deflated about the whole matter.

I know I can go on and on about this debate, but I want to leave the floor 100% open to all of you, our loyal visitors. I encourage everyone to chime in and let me know if you agree with me on this topic! Come on, let your voice be heard!

Hello All,

We have been receiving A LOT of interesting visitor inquiries as of late, and many of the questions (5 to be exact) have been on this very topic (or close to it).

So I will give my opinion to those who asked:
- Jim (Illinois)
- Gina (Chicago)
- Jason (New York)
- Bill (Connecticut)
- Susan (Washington DC)

* This post has drawn even more emails since it was posted (5 to be exact) and I will post some of that here as well! *

Ok, so the question went something like this: “Do You Feel MLB Should be testing EVERYONE in order to preserve the sanctity of the game from this point forward?”

First, I want to also say the floor is open to ALL visitors to give your opinion here as well.

I truly feel that this would be a wonderful first step for the MLB to take. I understand the players unions has some say in this, but let’s face it, if you throw away the random aspect of testing it will certainly make players think twice about these performance enhancers.

The only thing that should be random about this testing is the dates, EVERYONE should be tested, and EVERYONE should be unaware as to when. Let’s let the truth come out, if no one is taking them anymore than why should the have any issue with this? If everyone is so squeeky clean, then why should the union even have an issue…Let’s get real here, there are still a great deal of offenders in baseball..and I dread the day that list gets released…

So in conclusion, I feel YES they should test EVERYONE. If this rule started today, barring any undetectable substances, it would restore some purity to this wonderful sport we love so much. It would mark 2009 as the true re-initiation of official non tainted record keeping.

I want to open the floor to the other authors here to make some comments and critique what I have said here…also, visitors let me know your thoughts.

Its been a boring few days for Dodger fans, not much happening other than the Hudson signing, so I thought I would take this time to talk about a league-wide problem, the use of performance enhancing drugs.

I’m actually not going to get deep into the details of the steroid problem in baseball, as thats really been beaten to death.  I was doing some research online to acutally back an arguement I was making on Yahoo Answers, and I found one of the best articles I’d ever seen written about steroids and PEDs.  In this article (linked at the end) an amateur cyclist decides to find out for himself how much PEDs really improve performance in athletes.  This guy actually goes to a doctor who puts him on a regimin of PEDs and he outlines exactly how much they really helped him.  It’s a rather amazing article to read and really gives you insight as to what these drugs actually do.  For example, I’ve heard many a times that steroids can’t help you hit a baseball, they only help you hit a baseball farther, but I never knew before that HGH (one of the major drugs in the BALCO scandal) actually improves eyesight in many, which could actually help you hit a baseball.

This is a fairly long read, but I think its something that most people really should read, as it really does give insight as to how easy it is (or was, as this was from 2003) to legally get PEDs and how much they actually help.  Enjoy.

http://outside.away.com/outside/bodywork/200311/200311_drug_test_1.html

Hello All, 

Today I received an email regarding the use of steroids in baseball. There are some interesting items in here, take a read, make sure to comment and let us know your thoughts on the topic.

Baseball needs to look at why and how this has gotten to this point.  Most of the stories that are coming out are from the past.  Is the ability to know if a player is on steroids so difficult as to allow so many players to be doing it for so long?  Do the players feel pressured into doing it to compete for the high salaries that are out there?  It’s either do it or lose out to the cheaters.  I’m not condoning this but I can surely see where their coming from.

 And while we’re at it lets revisit Pete Rose.  He seems to have achieved all of his stats without the use of steroids.  Oh, he was a bad boy so his stats don’t count. Please, murders don’t always get life sentences why is Pete getting one.   Put him in the Hall of Fame now.  Pete Rose was great. I know because I couldn’t stand him when he played (he was the competition).

If baseball was a little more prudent in their approach to this problem then the players wouldn’t get away with it.  Many players are just kids (big kids) and baseball and the owners should be more aware of what’s going on in their clubhouses.  All of these allegations are coming from disgruntled teammates or managers.  What we need to do is what President Nixon did with the countries traitors (draft dodgers).  We need to pardon them and get on with the game.

Let’s just make sure it stops here and now.  The alternative is to erase all baseball records and start over.  Who knows who has been cheating all these years to set the records.  Alcohol is a drug and most ball players indulged in this activity in the past.   My favorite player Mickey Mantle was a near alcohlic and I’m sure it numbed his pain so he could produce.   So lets pardon these guys, leave the records alone and lets fix the problem here an now.  No more steroids period.

After I read the email I found myself agreeing with many of the points in this message. Something HAS to be done right NOW regarding the future sanctity of the wonderful game of baseball. If we can at least be 90% sure that the players playing right now are not on steroids, we can still look forward to some serious records being broke (for real) in our lifetimes. 

So please comment, let us know what your thoughts are. This blog thrives on visitor and member input regarding topics like this.

Lee has no sympathy for steroid users

On a day where Alex Rodriguez met 200 reporters to pour his heart out on his past steroid use, every spring camp had steroid clouds floating about. Unless a Cubs player is highlighted in steroid allegations, this is the only post that i will make on steroids. It is a problem in baseball, and I’m sure everyone accepts that, (well maybe everyone apart from Marvin Miller, who gave a unconvincing interview on steroids not being a problem during the Michael Kay show on 1050ESPN last week) however I’m a baseball fan, and i love the game, so i would much rather talk about the on field events rather than chime out yet another story on steroids, that people are getting very bored of hearing about.

Derek Lee, one of the most loved Cubs was asked for his opinions not only on A-Rod but on steroid users in general, and here is his reply:

“There should be zero tolerance,” Lee said. “We’ve had plenty of warnings. There’s no excuses. You get caught now, there should be no sympathy and you do your time.”

“I think a year is — if you got banned, I wouldn’t feel sorry for a guy,” he said. “Maybe if some guy got caught and truly didn’t know what he was taking, in that instance [it'd be different]. But if you’re taking steroids, there should be no sympathy.”

A scathing review by Derek Lee, who has admitted that he has been asked the point blank question of whether he took steroids, and even if he denies it, who is to believe him? Palmeiro denied it, Alex Rodriguez denied it. Every player in this era will be tarred with the same brush, if this was ‘the culture’ like Alex Rodriguez suggested in his interview with ESPN’s Peter Gammons, then who can we believe? that is the saddest part of this whole predicament, we simply don’t know who’s records are tainted and who’s are not.

Derek Lee is not the first person to come out and ask for harsher punishments, David Ortiz said that the punishment should be harder, Ozzie Guillen, the man who always has something to say also commented on it. I heard a fan call into ESPN yesterday, and her simple statement was, shut these players up!, i could not disagree more with this comment, if there are going to be changes to the punishment for steroid users, the players union is going to have to accept them, what better way to encourage this to happen than speak out agains’t the users. This ‘fan’ was telling players to be quiet, I would like them to be louder and more vocal on the issue.

With the Barry Bonds trial just around the corner, I’m afraid the steroid stories in the national and international media have only just begun.

Earlier this week, the Commissioner’s Office contacted the Major League Baseball Players Association due to concerns about specific allegations that union executive Gene Orza tipped off a player before the latter was scheduled to be tested for performance enhancing drugs last 2004, all these under The New York Times Friday edition report.

It was said that the contact was made in line to the allegations that was revealed in the Sports Illustrated cover story that was published this week about Alex Rodriguez, in which the Yankee infielder admitted that he honestly took performance enhancing drugs during his three year stint with the Rangers.
In accordance to The Times, the Commissioner’s Office contacted the union in line to that exact incident that was cited in Sports Illustrated saying that the union’s chief operating officer (Orza) warned an anonymous player last September 2004 that he would be tested on the 24th, also stating to the player that “there should be nothing in your system”. In addition, SI said that Orza also warned ARod that there would still be an upcoming test that same month.
The League’s executive vice president Rob Manfred Told The Times that he already raised the issue to the union officials.

“I have discussed with the Major League Baseball Players Association the more detailed allegation about advance notice given to a player of a test on Sept. 24, 2004,” Manfred said. “The union has been unable to provide any additional information and stands by its previously issued denial that any tipping occurred.”

Greg Bouris, the union’s spokesman confirmed to The Times that Manfred spoke to a union official, saying that they (the union) did not give nor told anyone in advance that they are instituting a test in 2004.
“We have done nothing improper,” Bouris said.

Earlier this week, Orza denied all the magazine’s charges against him. “It makes juicier stuff to suggest there were tip-offs,” Orza said on Monday. “But there weren’t. I don’t care about the press coverage. It’s irrelevant.”

In an announcement released Saturday, the union said that “there was no improper tipping of players in 2004 about the timing of the drug tests.” In that same statement, MLBPA executive director Don Fehr said that he gave out a 10-page letter, clarifying that to Representative Henry Waxman, Chairman of the House Government Reform Committee, following that of the Mitchell Report.

Astros shortstop Miguel Tejada was charged Tuesday on lying to investigators on the use of performance-enhancing drugs in baseball, reports said.
The Washington Post had reported that the Astros shortsop allegedly made some misrepresentations to some congressional staffers in an interview in a Baltimore hotel room on the subject of steroids in baseball. reported.

Tejada will be expected to appear on Wednesday, 11 am ET in US District Court in Washington. Charges against him were outlined and were filed in Washington Federal Court last Tuesday; indicating that a plea agreement has been reached with Tejada, and is expected to plead guilty, according to an ESPN report. The Astros have scheduled a 4 p.m. CT news conference for Wednesday at Minute Maid Park.

The conference will be aired live on MLB.com and will be attended by Tejada, his lawyer, Mark Tuohey; and agent Diego Bentz.
Tejada was accused by prosecutors of giving false statements in a conversation with former Athletics teammate Adam Pitt about steroids and human growth hormones. No other accusations were made.

Tejada can face a maximum penalty of one year in jail, but advisory sentencing guidelines call for a sentence of probation to six months behind bars, according to the Post report

The charges against Tejada came a little over a year after the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform asked the U.S. Department of Justice to open an investigation into whether Tejada really told false statements to members of the same committee in 2005 about his use of performance-enhancing drugs.

The allegations go back to 2005 when Tejada’s former temmate Rafael Palmeiro, tested positive in a steroid test on a vitamin B-12 injection allegedly given to him by Tejada.

Palmeiro gave the testimony while under investigation by the House Committee for possibly lying on the usage of performance-enhancing drugs.
Charges against Palmeiro was dropped since the Committee has no concrete evidence, although Tejada admitted during the investigation that he provided Palmiero and two other undisclosed Orioles players with B-12, also known as a steroid .

Tejada denied the use of performance enhancing drugs August of the same year, stating that he is not aware of the substance use by other players.
But the Mitchell Report released last December 2007 suggested something different. Former Sen. George Mitchell said that Tejada’s teammate Piatt, remembered that the he provided Tejada with steroids, testosterone and HGH in 2003.

Piatt gave Mitchell cancelled checks from his transactions with Tejada which amounted to $6,300. One $3,200 check coming from Tejada to Piatt was dated March 21, 2003.

Here we go again…A-Roid is stirring up trouble and controversy in the Yanks clubhouse. This really makes me wonder how the new guys are handling this situation… Sabathia, Texeira…Should they be worried too? I suppose time will tell.

After hearing Alex’s Rodriguez’s explanation after testing positive of using performance enhancing drugs, the Yankees are all but eager to help A-Rod move forward.

The Yankees broke media silence on A-Rod’s predicament just hours after the latter talked in an interview with ESPN’s Peter Gammons.
The statement reads: “We strongly believe there is no place in baseball for performance enhancing drugs of any type, and we support the efforts of the Commissioner to continually improve the testing process,”

“We urged Alex to be completely open, honest and forthcoming in addressing his use of performance-enhancing drugs.  We take him at his word that he was.  Although we are disappointed in the mistake he spoke to today, we realize that Alex — like all of us — is a human being not immune to fault.

“We speak often about the members of this organization being part of a family, and that is never truer than in times of adversity.  Alex took a big step by admitting his mistake, and while there is no condoning the use of performance enhancing drugs, we respect his decision to take accountability for his actions.  We support Alex, and we will do everything we can to help him deal with this challenge and prepare for the upcoming season.”

Rodriguez stated that he had been in constant communication with Yankees officials and also with teammate Andy Pettitte, who also confessed of using human growth hormone almost one year ago.

Before Rodriguez’s interview was televised, shortstop Derek Jeter and catcher Jorge Posada told reporters from the club’s Himes Avenue Minor League complex in Tampa, Fla. Both said that they support Alex.

“Alex is my teammate and Alex is going to be my friend forever,” Posada said. “I’m going to support him any way I can.”
Jeter uttered his concern that the results of the 2003 testing, which was supposed to be unspecified, gauged to see if a test was to be repeated the following year.

“They said when the Mitchell Report came out, ‘This is the end of it, everyone will move on,’” Jeter said. “Now we have this. What if something else happens? … The thing about the list that you’re supposedly concerned with is the fact that it was supposed to be anonymous.”
Both Jeter and Posada were asked if they were bothered that they might be included on the similar testing as Rodriguez’s, both Yankee player said they weren’t. “Why would I worry about me being on the list?” Jeter said. “I think that I’ve done things right,” said Posada, “and I don’t think I put anything on my body that could be positive on one of those tests.”

This season will surely be the time for A-Rod to face. In his interview still with Gammons, he spoke of the Yankees’ chances this 2009 season and is excited to play with new teammates CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixeira. A-Rod also was relieved since he spoke about the three stained seasons with the Rangers.

“The most important thing for me in my career is to be honest and forthright, to go into my ‘09 season as part of the greatest organization in the world, as one of the guys to go out and try to reach our goal,” Rodriguez said. “And when you have that monkey on your back, it’s really hard to be the person that you know you can be. It’s hard to fulfill your potential that way.”

Issues concerning Alex Rodriguez would always be on a constant shadow for the league, whether it may be good, bad, or otherwise.

“The Yankee Years”, a 447 page book by Joe Torre and Tom Verducci should’ve sparked the not so entertaining days of Spring Training even if the CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixeira controversies weren’t interesting enough.

All of a sudden, no one is that interested in what was noted in the book: people in the clubhouse calling him “A-Fraud,” rumors of him opposing with Derek Jeter and the ever so popular peanut butter and jelly sandwich agenda

With Sports Illustrated’s shocking story last Saturday that ARod had tested positive for two anabolic steroids during his AL MVP season last 2003, current terms such as testosterone and Primobolan, is twisting the tale to another direction.

Although there were no penalties for testing positive during the 2003 survey, it is safe to say that Rodriguez is in no danger of a suspension that would deteriorate his 2009 season.

Rodriguez’s wealth is on the safe side as well: Sources told Sports Illustrated that the 10 year, $275 million contract is still on the go, since there is no word about the steroids news that would put Rodriguez on the line.

Is it safe to say that A-Rod is the complete package: All his potential as well as the shadows of controversies all molded into one person?

“No,” A-Rod said then. Sunbathing topless in Central Park, and scoring Madonna’s cell number can be one way to put it.

Torre praised Rodriguez for his work ethic, but at the same time commented on the latter for gaining too much attention in the clubhouse.

He also made it a point to note Rodriguez’s measures, although it is not always true. One thing is on the honest point though; A-Rod was indeed a steroid user.

A number of writers have already promised in print that they will not vote for Rodriguez as a Hall of Famer, according to a Sports Illustrated article. But with his contract not expiring until the end of 2017, decisions could very well be changed overnight, considering Rodriguez’s name should appear on the 2002 ballots.

With 553 home runs under his belt, Rodriguez only needs 210 more to surpass the record held by Barry Bonds, a likely feat that would soon be accomplished in the near future.

Instilled with his provocative actions is the media, wherein flocks of reporters, writers and not to mention critics going where the Yankees go, those responses is short lived since Alex Rodriguez is rumored to be in the Bahamas.

It was on a lone summer that Any Pettitte stole the limelight away from A-Rod. Before his teammates and the media, Pettitte apologized for his actions, which he described to be “stupid and desperate”.