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When the San Francisco Chronicle broke the news of Paul Byrd's connection with HGH on the even of Sunday's pivotal Game 7 of the ALCS, a lot of people questioned the timing. Byrd himself questioned George Mitchell's allegiances to the Red Sox, and New York Times columnist Selena Roberts opined that Mitchell's investigation might not be on the up and up since it has yet to dig up dirt on the Red Sox.

What everyone either failed to realize or refused to believe, however, is that Mitchell had nothing to do with the Chronicle's article. Finding himself in the middle of a firestorm of fabricated controversy, he felt the need to respond to his critics, essentially admitting he's clueless, not conniving. From FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal:

Other Indians found the timing suspicious: Why was this story coming out now? To them, it was a significant distraction, hours before the biggest game of their lives.

On Monday, Mitchell found it necessary to release a statement from his New York office formally denying that he leaked the information on Byrd.

"Neither I nor any member of my investigative staff had anything whatsoever to do with the publication of the allegations about Mr. Byrd," the statement said. "We had no prior knowledge of those allegations, and we first learned of them, along with the rest of the public, through news accounts."

Conspiracy theorists will accept or dismiss Mitchell's statement at their leisure, but it's worth pointing out exactly who wrote the article in question: Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada, authors of the Barry Bonds expose Game of Shadows. It's not a stretch to think that their previous research as well as their dedication to protecting their sources has granted them more connections and insider-knowledge than Mitchell, and it's not surprising that their newspaper decided to hold the story until the moment Byrd's team was at the center of the sporting world. If the timing seems peculiar, it shouldn't: it's simply good business.

Last week I told you that BALCO attorney Troy Ellerman agreed to a longer prison sentence than the original maximum sentence. Now, news has come out that Ellerman has been sentenced to prison for two and a half years. To refresh your memory, Ellerman is the man who leaked the confidential grand jury testimony of ballplayers such as Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, and Gary Sheffield to San Francisco Chronicle writers Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams.

Just as I said before, you have Ellerman going to prison for two and a half years, while both Victor Conte and Greg Anderson have completed their prison terms. Jason Giambi will be meeting with George Mitchell later in the month. Meanwhile, Barry Bonds is still partying like a rock star at night, and cracking home runs, well, by night as well. Something just doesn't seem right.

Previously at FanHouse:
BALCO Attorney Troy Ellerman Agrees to Long Prison Sentence

Lesson be learned, you leak federal grand jury testimonies to reporters, you will go to prison. For a long time. That's what's happening to Victor Conte's BALCO attorney Troy Ellerman, who gave information about athletes being investigated for steroids use such as Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, and Gary Sheffield, to San Francisco Chronicle reporters Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams.

In papers filed in San Francisco federal court Thursday, prosecutors said Troy Ellerman is willing to accept that sentence [maximum of two years and nine months] after a judge last month rejected the original 24-month maximum sentence as too lenient.

Federal prosecutors did agree to reduce his maximum fine to $60,000 from $250,000.

District Court Judge Jeffrey White, who rejected the earlier deal, still must approve the new agreement when Ellerman returns to court July 12.

How long the actual sentence is remains to be determined. But we do know that this guy will be going to prison for quite some time. So that should take care of Ellerman, with Greg Anderson and Victor Conte already having served their terms. Next up, Bonds, Sheffield, and Giambi? I doubt it, but it's certainly a possibility.

Back at the end of April, we posted about Kirk Radomski, the Mets clubhouse employee who distributed HGH and the like to a whole host of major leaguers from 1985-1995. Well, truth-seeking journalists Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams -- they of Game of Shadows fame -- wrote an article in today's San Francisco Chronicle stating the paper's parent company, Hearst Corp., has petitioned the government to release the redacted names in Radmonski's court files.

The government should be compelled to make public the identities of as many as 23 Major League Baseball players who received performance-enhancing drugs from an admitted steroids dealer and former employee of the New York Mets, according to legal papers filed Thursday on behalf of The Chronicle.

And later:

The use of steroids by professional baseball players "is a matter of public interest and concern," lawyers for the Hearst Corp. wrote in the motion filed on behalf of two papers owned by the company, The Chronicle and the Albany Times Union.

The motion noted that steroid use had become the subject of congressional hearings, legislation, public commentary by politicians and widespread public debate about the impact of the drugs on the nation's youth.

"Those athletes who choose to use controlled substances to gain a professional advantage are at the heart of this controversy," the newspapers argued in their motion submitted to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Even though Hearst Corp. seems to have a strong case, I doubt the government is just going to hand over these names anytime soon. However, if they were to do so, it would be quite the earth-shattering day for MLB -- especially if some big-time names surface.