Selig Denies Steroid Cover-Up

Steroids

Wallace Matthews/Newsday:

In a lengthy telephone interview Monday, the commissioner of baseball strongly disputed the widely held perception that he was in any way complicit in the proliferation of steroids in major-league baseball during the past 15 years.

"I don't want to hear the commissioner turned a blind eye to this or he didn't care about it,'' Selig said. "That annoys the you-know-what out of me. You bet I'm sensitive to the criticism. The reason I'm so frustrated is, if you look at our whole body of work, I think we've come farther than anyone ever dreamed possible.'

He also defended his efforts to stop the use of performance-enhancing drugs as far back as 1999, the year after Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, two now-suspected steroid cheats, staged a seasonlong home run derby that helped pull baseball out of the tailspin it went into after the work stoppage of 1994.

"I'm not sure I would have done anything differently,'' Selig said. "A lot of people say we should have done this or that, and I understand that. They ask me, 'How could you not know?' and I guess in the retrospect of history, that's not an unfair question. But we learned and we've done something about it. When I look back at where we were in '98 and where we are today, I'm proud of the progress we've made.''

Selig said he pushed for a more stringent drug policy during the labor negotiations of 2002 but ultimately settled for a watered-down version out of fear that the players association would force another work stoppage.

"Starting in 1995, I tried to institute a steroid policy,'' Selig said. "Needless to say, it was met with strong resistance. We were fought by the union every step of the way."

As bodies expanded and home run totals ballooned in the late 1990s, Selig said he consulted with baseball men he knew and trusted, such as Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin (then a coach with the Milwaukee Brewers), Braves president John Schuerholz and Yankees general manager Brian Cashman to gauge the extent of the problem.

"They all told me none of them ever saw it in the clubhouses and that their players never spoke about it,'' Selig said. (Padres CEO) Sandy Alderson, as good a baseball man as you'll find, was convinced it was the bat. Others were convinced it was the ball. So a lot of people didn't know.''

Selig said that although only eight major-leaguers have tested positive for steroids in the past three years, he continues to be concerned about the possible use of human growth hormone, for which baseball has no approved test.

"On HGH, I'm as frustrated as anyone,'' he said. "Right now, we're funding a program at UCLA with Dr. Don Catlin to come up with a test, any test, that's reliable.''

Selig also downplayed a story last week in which it was suggested he was considering suspending Alex Rodriguez - whose name was revealed to be on a confidential list of 104 major-leaguers who tested positive for steroids and other PEDs during the 2003 survey testing upon which baseball's current drug policy is based - and returning Hank Aaron to his former position as the all-time major-league home run leader.

"I'm not going to comment on changing the records except to say that I never flatly deny anything,'' Selig said. "I've always said I'd consider everything. But the record situation, if you go back to what Ford Frick did [with Roger Maris in 1961], is a very slippery slope. Changing records is a very difficult process.''

Selig refused to comment on whether he is considering punishment for Rodriguez, who will hold a news conference Tuesday in Tampa to address questions concerning his positive test result.

"Let's just say I'm going to monitor that situation closely,'' he said. "I honestly don't know how anyone could have done more than we've already done."

The A-Rod/Gammons Interview: The Day Baseball Changed Forever

Steroids

Some Thoughts On The Steroid Era

Steroids

I have been waiting to comment on this whole A-Roid thing until I heard it directly from A-Rod. I do have to say, it was at least a classy move to man-up and be honest by admitting he used.

But, it's still pretty sad to say the least. I mean...Et Tu, A-Rod??? Wow.

But my problem isn't with the players anymore...in fact...I blame Major League Baseball.

Bud Selig and the rest of baseball's fat cats sat back and watched baseball grow on the video game like swings of guys like Mark Mcgwire, Jose Canseco, Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, and even Alex Rodriguez after the strike in 1994 and they did nothing to find out why all of a sudden these guys looked like bodybuilders and could hit the ball 9,000 feet into the air. They didn't question anything.

Why would they? Slowly, more and more fans started showing up to games to see this new breed of "power hitters". We, "the dumb unsuspecting fans", simply thought baseball was shifting from a game of pure talent and athleticism to a game of pure strength and athleticism. These new "power hitters" quickly gained the admiration of us fans and the multi-million dollar contracts immediately started ballooning to the now comical levels.

But Bud Selig knew what the deal was. Major League Baseball knew what the deal was. For them to sit there and act like an innocent party in all of this is repulsing. If the drugs were obviously as rampant as they apparently were, none of those parties can honestly say that they didn't raise an eyebrow when two bulging roid heads battled to set the single season homerun record in 1998?

Come on!!! Wasn't it at least a little suspicious to you, Bud?! A man who supposedly knows so much about baseball he is the commissioner of the entire league! And he never heard a trainer, or a coach, or even a ball boy say anything like, "Wow. That guy looks almost superhuman!"??? I don't buy it for a minute.

When baseball decided it was good business to turn a blind eye to this scandal, THEY destroyed the integrity of the game. Not the players. And now that Major League Baseball has rebuilt their fan base, they are going to go back and single handedly destroy the legacies of each player who helped rebuild the game from an absolute laughing stock in 1994, to what it has become today.

One day, history will look back at this and realize it wasn't just the players who stripped the innocence of Major League Baseball during the Steroid Era, it was also Bud Selig and any other person involved with Major League Baseball who knowingly turned a blind eye to a problem that at the time, was very, very good for business.

In my opinion, we're all to blame. And that is very, very sad.

A-Rod: "I Was Young, I Was Stupid, I Was Naïve"

Steroids

ESPN.Com (full interview scheduled for 6pm on SportsCenter):

His voice shaking at times, Alex Rodriguez met head-on allegations that he tested positive for steroids six years ago, telling ESPN on Monday that he did take performance-enhancing drugs while playing for the Texas Rangers during a three-year period beginning in 2001.

"When I arrived in Texas in 2001, I felt an enormous amount of pressure. I needed to perform, and perform at a high level every day," Rodriguez told ESPN's Peter Gammons in an interview in Miami Beach, Fla. "Back then, [baseball] was a different culture. It was very loose. I was young, I was stupid, I was naïve. I wanted to prove to everyone I was worth being one of the greatest players of all time.

"I did take a banned substance. For that, I'm very sorry and deeply regretful."

Rodriguez's admission comes 48 hours after Sports Illustrated reported that Rodriguez was on a list of 104 players who tested positive for banned substances in 2003, the year when Major League Baseball conducted survey tests to see if mandatory, random drug-testing was needed in the sport.

Sources who know about the testing results told SI that Rodriguez tested positive for testosterone and Primobolan, an anabolic steroid. In his ESPN interview, Rodriguez said he did not know exactly which substance or substances he had taken. In 2003, there were no penalties for a positive result.

"I am sorry for my Texas years," A-Rod said. "I apologize to the fans of Texas."

Rodriguez, who joined the Yankees for the 2004 season after a trade from Texas, said "all my years in New York have been clean." He also said it felt good to be honest about what he's done in the past.

"The more honest we can all be, the quicker we can get baseball [back] to where it needs to be," he said.

Rodriguez said he was told by Gene Orza, the chief operating officer of the MLB Players' Association, that he might, or might not, have tested positive in the 2003 survey. A source told ESPN on Saturday that Rodriguez knew he had failed the test.

"I had never heard anything since," he said. "Whatever I was experimenting with in Texas might have been OK."

Rodriguez also said of his 2007 interview with Katie Couric on "60 Minutes," when he denied ever using steroids, that "at the time, I wasn't being truthful with myself. How could I be truthful with Katie Couric or CBS?"

Steroid Era Side Effects?

Steroids

Associated Press via Sports Illustrated:

Home runs in the major leagues dropped this year to their lowest level since 1993, and Angels center fielder Torii Hunter thinks he might know why.

"I think the steroid testing has something to do with it," he said. "If there were any guys who were taking it, they're not taking it anymore. I'd say it's a small percentage, but of course it's going to have an impact."

An average of 2.01 home runs per game were hit this year, down from 2.04 in 2007. The average hadn't dropped that low since 15 years ago, when it stood at 1.78, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

The homer high of 2.34 was set in 2000, and the average stood at 2.14 in 2003, the last season before drug testing with penalties began.

Canseco Set To Make Fool Of Self On National TV

Steroids

In an exclusive interview with "Nightline" co-anchor Martin Bashir and Jose Canseco talk about the explosive allegations in his new book, including his claim that he put star New York Yankee third baseman Alex Rodriguez in touch with a trainer who was also a supplier of steroids.

Canseco acknowledged to Bashir that he does not know whether the trainer -- whom he calls "Max" -- actually provided steroids to Rodriguez.

"I cannot bet my life on it … that Alex Rodriguez ever used steroids," he told Bashir, "but in my opinion, I suspect he has, yes." When challenged by Bashir to identify "Max" or to provide other evidence to support his claims, Canseco said "the timing's not right."

"That's just not a good enough answer," Bashir said. "Why don't you produce the evidence?"

"Let's see how Alex reacts to this," Canseco said. "Let's see how Alex reacts. Let's see if they call me a liar again. How's that for ya? Let's see if all of a sudden they're gonna call me a liar again."

You can watch Martin Bashir and Jose "The Clown" Canseco's interview tonight (3/27/08) on ABC's "Nightline" at 11:35 p.m. ET.

Hank: Canseco Must Be On Drug's Or Something

Steroids

Article By Pete Caldera for NorthJersey.com:

Agitated by the steroid accusations volleyed at Alex Rodriguez in Jose Canseco's latest book, Yankees general partner Hank Steinbrenner defended his $275 million slugger as "just a natural" and stated that Canseco is merely out to make a buck.

"Consider the source, that's No. 1," Steinbrenner said of Canseco. "He wouldn't have been able to hit the ball out of the infield without steroids.

"And No. 2, if Mickey Mantle or Babe Ruth were playing today, with the 550-foot home runs they hit, everybody'd be saying they were on something. They didn't even lift weights in those days. They played on alcohol and hot dogs.

"There are certain naturals. There are guys who can just do it, and Alex is one of those guys," Steinbrenner said. "He's just friggin' great."

"It's a shame, because Canseco is preying on a player that everyone's attention is on," said Hank, who emphasized A-Rod's comparison to a modern-day Mantle regarding his natural ability.

"Without injuries," Steinbrenner said, "[Mantle] would've broken every record in the book.

"[Rodriguez] is not only one of the greatest hitters ever, he's one of the best shortstops ever, and one of the best third basemen," Steinbrenner said. "He is just a natural. People have to come to grips with that."

Remembering Steroids (Humorously)

Steroids

This video is almost as old as the Joe Torre one, but just as hilarious! I can't believe I never saw these!

HOF Thinking About Steroids Exhibit

Steroids

Biz Of Baseball has the story:

It’s been called the “Steroid Era” in baseball, and now, the Baseball Hall of Fame may be creating a “Steroid Exhibit”.

Today, Jeff Idelson, the vice-president of communications and education for the Hall of Fame was on the Dan Patrick Show, where Patrick brought up the topic.

“Have you thought about a steroid exhibit in the Hall of Fame?” Patrick asked. “Brian McNamee says to you, ‘Jeff, I’ve got some vials, I’ve got syringes, I’ve got HGH… I’d like to donate it to the Hall of Fame.’”

“There’s no doubt that in time we will address steroids and human growth hormones in our museum. It’s a part of the game,” replied Idelson. “It’s a lousy part of the game, but it’s part of the game’s history...But when we do tell the story, it will be in the context perhaps of good medicine versus bad medicine. It will be done in an educational way. Would we accept artifacts or items from Brian McNamee? I don’t know, I mean if it allows us to tell the story in an educational way, we’d consider it. But if it’s just to have, I doubt we’d take them.”

The comments by Idelson come after it has been reported that Barry Bonds’ record setting 756th homerun ball owned by Marc Ecko, and branded with an asterisk, should be on display in the Hall of Fame museum by Opening Day.

"We'll display it, but the text accompanying the ball will cover when it was hit and how it ended up in Cooperstown," Idelson, told reporters. "It's meant to be educational.

Video Highlights Of Congressional Circus

Steroids

Roger Clemens' Opening Statement:


Brian McNamee's Opening Statement:


The Case Against Clemens:


The Case Against McNamee:


Roger Clemens struggled to find the right words under questioning during a congressional hearing Wednesday and denied new accounts of drug use made against him by former teammate and close friend Andy Pettitte.

Using words like "misremembered" and mispronouncing the last name of his chief accuser, Brian McNamee, Clemens rambled and stumbled during his early remarks on Capitol Hill.

Clemens' reputation and legacy were on the line, and there was the possibility that criminal charges could follow after the seven-time Cy Young Award winner testified.

"I have never taken steroids or HGH," Clemens said under oath, his voice rising. "No matter what we discuss here today, I am never going to have my name restored."

For many, his denials rang hollow...

READ ALL OF THE DEPOSITIONS ONLINE HERE

Side Note: Just got a text message from a buddy asking, "What are you doing". I responded back with, "Just blogging about the abcess Clemen's had on his ass from shooting up to many roids." The hilarious part of this is that I have T9 Text Prediction on my phone and when I typed in roids- it automaticaly suggested "ROGER". Try it. It's pretty funny.

Andy Delivers Serious Blow to Rocket

Steroids

Before I go into the details I thought it was important to state a fact first; there are two contributors to this blog and sometimes we disagree on certain topics. One of those topics is the Roger Clemens saga. I am stating this because my post is about to contradict the feelings and beliefs that my blog partner has expressed here previously and some of you may simply think this is a 180 based on the evidence. It is not, I have always felt this way.

Roger Clemens' case has now taken a huge credibility hit. According to Newsday....

Sources said McNamee has told investigators that in the winter of 2002, he, Clemens and Pettitte were working out together at the gym in Clemens' Houston home. According to the sources, McNamee says that during a break in the workout, Pettitte went over to McNamee by himself and asked: "How come you don't give me the stuff you give Roger?" McNamee supposedly replied, "Because it's illegal."
...and now on to Pettitte

Pettitte's account matches McNamee's in most details

So now we are supposed to believe both are lying? Or as Rocket claims they are talking about medications besides steroids? Even if it was something other than steroids that's enough to create suspicion. After all, if a player will take other illegal drugs why wouldn't he take steroids? I have always believed Roger was lying and this does nothing but solidify that. Look at some of the relevant facts:

• Nobody else has disputed McNamee's claims
• Andy backed up McNamee and his story
• The needles
• "I was eating Vioxx like it was Skittles" - Roger Clemens
• The Tape - Why wouldn't Roger ask McNamee why he was lying?
• McNamee had everything to lose by lying, nothing to gain.
  

Tomorrow should be an interesting day as Rocket will most likely bring out all the stops to defend himself. The thing that I do not understand is why hasn't a player taken the stance we all know is true and might actually give them some vindication? I want someone to stand up and say:

"Yes, I did steroids but it was necessary to compete at a high level. Was it wrong ? Yes. I apologize for it but I wanted to maintain a high-level of performance for me, my family and my team. To do that I needed to have the same advantage as the other top players and that meant taking steroids."

I know the truth is not something baseball, its union, or Selig is really interested in.

Roger - Say it Ain't So!

Steroids

Uh-oh! Word is leaking out that Roger may not make the trip to proclaim his innocence in front of congress after all. This would be an incredibly bad move for an innocent man. However, this is the ONLY option for a guilty man.

Tarnishing a Hall of Fame legacy is one thing; lying in front of congress is quite another.

I've said before that if Roger stands before congress and continues to boldly and emphatically deny he used PEDs I am going to believe him.

If, however, he wiggles his way out of testifying, my mom's old saying comes to mind - when in doubt, actions speak louder than words.

McNamee/Clemens Mitchell Report Revisited

Steroids

Now that Roger is in full attack mode there is a lot of misinformation floating around about what McNamee said to Mitchell and what is in the Mitchell report. Lets take a look back and clear some things up;

1. I heard Robb Dibble and Kevin Kennedy discuss how McNamee was up to something because he didn't even have a written agreement with the feds. Mitchell report says
   "McNamee, through his attorney, entered into a written agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California."
2. Some so called experts have also used the McNamee never said he provided Clemens with drugs defense. Mitchell report once again debunks "According to McNamee, during the middle of the 2000 season Clemens made it clear that he was ready to use steroids again. During the latter part of the regular season, McNamee injected Clemens in the buttocks four to six times with testosterone from a bottle labeled either Sustanon 250 or Deca-Durabolin that McNamee had obtained from Radomski."
3. Some also question why there isn't a paper trail like in the Balco scandel. A couple of experts provide a window into that; " McNamee stated that he has no ill will toward Clemens and “was always ahead [financially] with Roger.” McNamee received money for expenses from Clemens’s business representatives. They paid McNamee for training Clemens, and for his expenses. From time to time Clemens also gave McNamee “extra money.” Clemens never gave money to McNamee specifically to buy performance enhancing substances."

Roger really had the best possible cover for his dealer; a guy already on his payroll who was also paid by his business partners. He also gave him extra money, we'll call it a Christmas bonus but never paid specifically for steroids. Roger is lying I firmly believe that, I suspected him prior to the report coming out and nothing has made me change my opinion.

The thing I am anxious to see is what Andy Pettitte is going to do with congress. The hearing was delayed so prosecutors could gather evidence and prepare, maybe for a Bonds like perjury follow-up. So how does Andy handle that? Refuse to go? Plead the 5th? Sell out his best friend? And how has this affected their relationship? By Andy coming out and admitting guilt he is clearly taking a different path then Clemens. This is just going to get worse and drag on longer then the Johan situation....

A Brilliant Strategy?

Steroids

As has been posted here before, the incredibly difficult burden of proof in slander/defamation suits makes it highly unlikely that Roger Clemens would bother to sue MLB as a result of the Mitchell Report. Roger has, however, been extremely vehement in his denials of PED use. It has gotten to the point where Brian McNamee has hired an attorney to explore a defamation suit against Rocket (well, I use the term 'hire' loosely as all of McNamee's lawyers have taken his case pro bono (for free).

What if it is Rocket's plan to force McNamee to go forward with a defamation case by screaming on 60 Minutes and in every newspaper in the country that McNamee is a liar? If McNamee were to sue Rocket for slander/defamation he would have the same burden of proof in his case against Roger as Roger would have if he had sued MLB. McNamee would have to not only prove that Roger did, in fact, use PEDs (almost impossible), he would also have to prove that Clemens made the statements to 60 Minutes and the other media in an express effort to harm McNamee. HA! There is truly no way that he can do that; unless, of course, McNamee video taped himself shoving a syringe in Rocket's backside, and also taped Roger confessing that his evil master plan was to ruin McNamee's reputation, NOT to defend his own!

As McNamee's attorneys are not getting paid, they will want as much press and exposure out of their McNamee time as possible. To get max airtime there is little doubt his lawyers will convince McNamee to initiate an unwinnable slander/defamation suit against Roger.

What then? Well, as it is practically impossible to win any defamation suit (let alone one that is purely 'he said, he said'), and as Roger will be paying his attorneys (quite handsomely, I'm sure), Roger would no doubt win that lawsuit.

All Roger has to do is push McNamee into suing him and then the burden of proving an impossible thing would shift to McNamee's lawyers instead of his own.

After inevitably beating McNamee in court (it may take perjury, but that's a topic for another time), Roger could then look into the cameras and say "See! I told you I was clean!"

I have no idea if this is Roger's plan, but Wow! wouldn't it be brilliant if it were!

Mitchell Report Credibility Takes a Hit

Steroids

Stumbled across this article on Salon.com about the omission of Larry Star in the Mitchell Report. According to Star he was interviewed by Mitchell's team four times and had the following to say;

"I have notes from the Winter Meetings where the owners group and the players association sat in meetings with the team physicians and team trainers. I was there. And team physicians stood up and said, 'Look, we need to do something about this. We've got a problem here if we don't do something about it.' That was in 1988."

Guess how many times Star's name was mentioned in the report? Yup, zero times. As this thing plays out I think we will find more of these convenient omissions by the Mitchell report. While I do not doubt the players named in the report did indeed take steroids what will end up being more telling in the end is what we find out was left out of the report then what was included.

The report was meant as a way for Selig to assure he would be looked at kindly by history not as a way to really figure out what the problem was and is.

Yankee Haters Unite!

Steroids

So the report is out and there are a number of ex-yanks on the list. This is prompting the vast anti-yankee universe to start spewing all kinds of crap about how the dynasty is "tainted", and even prompted one ignorant Met fan with a platform to demand an apology from the Yanks for kicking their a@@'s in 2000.

What a load!

The only 2 players in the Mitchell report that made any significant contribution to the 2000 drubbing of the Mets were Clemens and Pettitte, and the report says Andy used in 2002 and Clemens started in 98. Having been a Yankee fan for 30 years I realize that the majority of the media is gonna take any chance they get to slam our beloved bombers; this, though, is insane! Every team has major contributors that are on the Juice, the Yankees just happened to have their major supplier exposed.

One more thing - how does this report come out and there are represtentatives from about every team (especially the Yanks!) and there are no Red Sox on the list? You have to think being a member of the front office Mitchell had access to inside information but none of that came out in the report.

Names On the Mitchell Report

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As reports come in I will list them here.

Update 10:00am:
Clemens named according to ESPN.

Update 11:12:
Pettitte is named, damnit!

Update 11:40:
Deadspin has a list compiled completely from rumors.

Update 12:27:
Arod's contract was annouced today, finally ARod is not the big story! I hope.....

Update 12:56:
Add Brian Roberts, Miguel Tejada, Chuck Knoblauch, Mike Stanton and Jason Grimsley according to SI.com. Knobby? Why did he suck so bad then?

Also, the backlash has started with this smear piece on Clemens. This could get ugly fast.

We Wait for THE LIST

Steroids

From MLB Trade Rumors;
"I did receive one tip on this topic - my guy says the Yankees are in for a bad day (but Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera are not in the report)."
Pretty much anyone but Jeter and Mo I can handle. Pettitte would hurt but not like those two. I wondered yesterday about the timing of his press conference, the day before the list is released. Also, his relationship with Clemens puts him under suspicion. I suspect we will see Giambi, Clemens and maybe even a couple of relievers on the list. All we can do is wait and hope this doesn't hurt too bad. As was written on RLYW;
"A report that was prepared by a director of the Red Sox is going to list several prominent Yankees? Shocking…"
Also, from the Boston Herald;
"Mitchell does not have an equity stake in the Red Sox, as a thorough ESPN.com report by former Herald scribe Howard Bryant details, but he is expected to resume a paid role with the organization once the investigation is completed"
This should be fun....