The biggest fear of major league players, and their union -- and, now, Red Sox fans -- has reawakened. "The list" -- the names of the approximately 100 players who tested positive for steroids in 2003 -- has again been compromised, this time with Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz outed as users.
The information about Ramirez and Ortiz emerged through interviews with multiple lawyers and others connected to the pending litigation. The lawyers spoke anonymously because the testing information is under seal by a court order. The lawyers did not identify which drugs were detected.
Now people will ask if the 2004 and 2007 World Series titles are "tainted," which is ridiculous, because there's no proof either player used that year -- and no proof their opponents didn't.
But this means more star players have been outed as cheats.
For the last couple of years Baltimore Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts has made it clear he'd love to get a contract extension that would keep him in Baltimore for possibly the rest of his career. Yet, no matter how much Brian wanted to stay, neither he nor the team could ever come to terms, which led to a whole lot of trade rumors.
In fact, I'm pretty sure that Roberts had been theoretically traded to the Chicago Cubs or White Sox about 32 times over the last 24 months, but time and again, any possible deal always fell through. Well, it looks like all the Brian Roberts trade rumors are about to come to an end, for now anyway, as the Orioles are close to signing him to a four-year extension.
Tuesday morning, Miguel Tejada received word that he's being charged with a crime. Yes, it's related to steroids/performance-enhancing drugs. No, it does not necessarily mean he used. The charges are related to information in the Mitchell Report, which circumstantially proves Tejada lied to congressional investigators in 2005.
During the interview, Tejada denied using performance-enhancing drugs. He also stated that he didn't know any player in baseball was using them. This is where he got himself into trouble.
It's not a move on the scale of CC Sabathia or even Ray Durham, and who knows if it's going to bear any fruit. But the Brewers obviously think Jay Gibbons can provide a key at-bat or two in September because they've signed the exiled former outfielder away from the Atlantic League's Long Island Ducks to a minor league deal.
"He's a little rusty, self-admittedly rusty," Brewers assistant general manager Gord Ash said. "The idea is to get him some Minor League at-bats and then evaluate as we go along." (...)
"He was very straightforward about his situation off the field," said Ash, who was the Blue Jays' GM when that team drafted Gibbons in the 14th round in 1998. The Orioles snatched him away in the 2000 Rule 5 Draft.
"They sat down and basically interviewed him," Brewers GM Doug Melvin said. "Gord is familiar with him from Toronto, and [Gibbons] wants to get back and playing. I don't know exactly what his [off-the-field] issues were, but they were not enough to not give a guy a second chance. He's always been a good guy with a good work ethic."
Doug obviously never read that pesky Mitchell Report if he didn't know exactly what his off-the-field issues were. I mean, it was all there for you in print. But it's nice to see that Eric Gagne hasn't scared the Brewers away from players from that pesky report. Heck if I was the GM of the Brewers, Gagne might scare me away from signing pitchers altogether, Mitchell Report or no Mitchell Report.
"And if, in the end, Clemens knew damn well what the risks were and opted to proceed down a path of potential self-destruction, Hardin should have simply told him to get another lawyer."
Though I have to agree with him that the Clemens case has been a text book for celebrities on how not to preserve your reputation using the legal process, I disagree with my legal colleague on how much responsibility he puts for the Clemens mess on Hardin.
After Bud Selig decreed any player named in the Mitchell Report wasn't going to be sent to the corner for their (alleged) transgressions, it should only follow suit that members of management named in the report weren't going to get a slap on the wrist either.
As part of Selig's announcement April 11 that players wouldn't be disciplined, management and the players' association agreed that players will join Major League Baseball in "efforts designed to educate youth and their parents regarding the dangers of performance-enhancing substances." The union also agreed to contribute $200,000 to "an anti-drug, charitable, educational or research organization."
"I don't use the word amnesty. I don't think there is amnesty because I think that whatever they're doing, they're doing something as a result of what they did. And the club officials and the clubs will be treated in exactly the same manner," Selig said. "That would be unfair if they weren't."
Asked as a follow-up whether that meant management officials wouldn't be suspended of fined, Selig responded: "They're going to be treated the same way."
As spring training enters it's final days, teams are busy making the final decisions on which 25 players they plan on taking with them when the break camp, and who they're going to send to the minors. Who's the long man in the bullpen going to be? Who's the fifth outfielder and left-handed bat off the bench going to be? All very important decisions, to be sure.
Well new Royals manager Trey Hillman is going through the process for the very first time in the majors, and MLB is making it a little tough on him. You see, Hillman is trying to decide who is going to be in his outfield, and he wouldn't mind if MLB let him know whether he's going to have Jose Guillen or not.
"One thing I'd like to know is what the situation is with our right fielder," manager Trey Hillman admitted. "I'd like to know the definitive final-final on Jose (Guillen). I don't know anything. That affects things."
Guillen is currently awaiting the outcome of his appeal of a 15-game suspension for violating baseball's drug policy. Jose received the suspension after being busted by the San Francisco Chronicle for spending $19,000 on steroids and HGH between 2002 and 2005. He was also one of 86 players mentioned in the Mitchell Report.
Unfortunately for Hillman and the Royals, they're going to have to keep waiting. Guillen's appeal isn't expected to be settled until this weekend at the earliest. If it's not settled by then, Guillen and his agent will seek to delay Jose's suspension until a final verdict is reached.
Andy Pettitte may have been forgiven by his fans and teammates for his involvement in the Senator Mtichell steroids scandal, but unfortunately for him that doesn't mean that he's done with the legal aspect of the hoopla. Thanks to the new investigation into Roger Clemens's possible perjury, Pettitte almost surely will be drawn back into the drama. He has already testified against his longtime BFF (that's "best friend forever" for those of you older than 11), an act that no doubt hurt dear Andy deeply, but with this new investigation he fears he'll have to be subjected to yet another interview, this time by the feds.
If testifying to Congress against Clemens hurt Pettitte -- and I assure you it did -- then having to pound yet another nail into the coffin that is the case against the Rocket has got to tearing the man apart. As he said:
"I don't like any of this. I cannot stand it. I told you how I feel about him. I hate it. It's like a part of my family that's going to have to go through this. It's a bad deal."
It was only a matter of time before something like this popped up -- yes, it was predictable, yet also quite funny. (And seriously, it's long overdue, but congrats to Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, the marketing geniuses behind the extremely-viral NBA campaign being spoofed -- you can adapt that for anything and it never gets old.)
While so manyother players named in the Mitchell Report are offering only ambiguous apologies for mistakes they'd rather not explain, Andy Pettitte did things the right way on Monday. In his first meeting with the press since arriving to spring training, Pettitte apologized to the Yankees, Astros and his fans for using HGH in 2002 and 2004, and then stayed around for an hour and answered every question lobbed his way:
Pettitte sat alone at a podium, taking dozens of questions. He often paused to collect his thoughts and several times patiently asked reporters "did I answer your question?"
It had been about a month since he had spoken to Clemens, Pettitte said.
"I can't even describe how uncomfortable a situation" this has been.
With Yankees teammates Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada in attendance, along with two of his lawyers, Pettitte acknowledged he had considered not playing because of the ongoing situation.
"That wouldn't be the thing to do as a man. I felt like I needed to come out and face you guys and whatever circumstances that come I'll take it, I'll take it like a man and I'll try to do my job," he said.
Pettitte hasn't been entirely honest throughout this whole process, but even when he's admitted to lying (he originally omitted the fact that he used HGH in 2004 because he didn't want to drag his father into the spotlight), his rationale made me sympathetic for his position. While most players accused of using HGH or steroids come across as greedy or unethical, Pettitte's frank admissions and explanations has actually made him more likable, at least from where I sit.
The biggest fear of major league players, and their union -- and, now, Red Sox fans -- has reawakened. "The list" -- the names of the approximately 100 players who tested positive for steroids in 2003 -- has again been compromised, this time with Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz outed as users.
For the last couple of years Baltimore Orioles second baseman 
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As spring training enters it's final days, teams are busy making the final decisions on which 25 players they plan on taking with them when the break camp, and who they're going to send to the minors. Who's the long man in the bullpen going to be? Who's the fifth outfielder and left-handed bat off the bench going to be? All very important decisions, to be sure.
Andy Pettitte
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