Is Having Clemens At Their Pitching Camp The Best Decision?

Updating an earlier post, Roger Clemens decided to attend the Houston Astros' mini-camp that starts today. Apparently he's looking forward to speaking with the Astros' prospects, though there's no word on whether that will include tips on taking injections and denying published reports.

The Astros kept an open invitation for Clemens to participate in the minicamp, a precursor to spring training next month. Clemens planned to throw batting practice and talk to the Astros prospects.

"I'm doing everything I love to do. I mean, I'm not going anywhere," he said. "So I love to do these things, and the Astros and the other teams that I've worked with have always been real supportive. And like I said, if I can share any insight to these young kids at this level while they're trying to reach their goals, reach their dreams, it's all the more better."

Honestly, I am a bit surprised that the Astros invited Clemens to the camp. I understand that his presence is a huge draw, but it also seems to be something that could blow up in their face. Right now, the Clemens talk has died down, but with Andy Pettite prepared to corroborate Brian McNamee's statements next Monday the "Clemens did steroids" hype machine is about to get back into fullswing. Just in time for the Astros to have to field questions about why they invited him to the camp this year. To me, it just seems like a situation that is just waiting to become a problem for Houston, and one that could have been easily avoided.

Clemens Staining Nolan Ryan's Pitching Camp?

This coming Monday, the annual Nolan Ryan Elite Pitching Camp and Jeff Bagwell Elite Hitting Camp begin. In the past, Roger Clemens has assisted with the pitching camp, though due to the recent steroid use allegations it's unclear whether or not he'll be at the camp this year. However, the Astros have extended an invitation to him.

Roger Clemens is deciding whether to accept an invitation to appear at a Houston Astros pitching camp next week.

"He knows he is welcome and appreciates the Astros standing by him," Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, wrote Tuesday in an e-mail to The Associated Press. "He would love to be with the kids, but doesn't want to be a distraction. He will decide later what to do."

Well, that's nice. First the Astros sign Miguel Tejada, who was also listed in the Mitchell report, and now they're inviting The Rocket to come mentor the kids. I am somewhat surprised by this considering what Nolan Ryan had to say about the subject of steroids last May.

Ryan, 60, now a special assistant to the general manager of the Astros, said he thought steroid use has been a “big stain” on almost all sports.

“It probably has impacted baseball more than any other sport, mostly because of the history of the game,” said Ryan, who retired with 5,714 strikeouts and 324 wins.

“There were benchmarks that when approached were indicative of what kind of season a player was having. Steroids has changed that.”

Obviously Ryan believes that steroids have negatively impacted the game of baseball. Which is why I can't believe that he would let the Astros invite Clemens to a camp that bears his name. Unless he's just setting up Clemens so that he can put him in a headlock and punch him a few times. Now that's something that everyone would probably enjoy seeing.

Could Dana Stubblefield's Guilty Plea Open The Flood Gates?

Earlier today, former NFL player Dana Stubblefield was charged with perjury. This afternoon he plead guilty to those charges which stem from the BALCO steroids case.

Former NFL defensive lineman Dana Stubblefield has pleaded guilty to lying to investigators in the BALCO steroids case.

Stubblefield was charged with perjury earlier today, becoming the first football player accused in the case.

Stubblefield, a three-time Pro Bowler who testified before the BALCO grand jury in November 2003, is charged with lying to federal agents about his alleged use of performance enhancing drugs.

The charges unsealed in federal court in San Francisco allege Stubblefield made false statements to an Internal Revenue Service Agent when he allegedly said he had not used steroids linked to the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative and denied receiving performance enhancing drugs from BALCO founder Victor Conte.

Up to this point, the NFL has been able to deflect any criticism that's accompanied positive tests for performance enhancing drugs by their players.

Two participants in this weekend's conference championship games, Shawne Merriman and Rodney Harrison, have been suspended in the past because of violations of the league's substance-abuse policy(Merriman-supposed Nandrolene use, Harrison-HGH use). However, those positive tests have been all but forgotten. Other players such as Jarrod Cooper, Ray Edwards, Jim Miller and David Boston have all missed time because of steroid suspensions, but we rarely hear about them. For the most part, the NFL isn't portrayed as having a "steroid problem" on the level as say Major League Baseball.

However, Stubblefield's involvement with the BALCO case, and his acknowledgement that he lied about taking steroids could be the first step in the "outting" of other players. Don't forget that Barry Bonds' involvement with BALCO was sort of a starting point for where Major League Baseball is today in terms of steroid investigation and controversy. While Stubblefield probably isn't as disliked as Bonds was/is, which was a factor in the BALCO investigation, he has now admitted to taking steroids and obtaining them through the same channels as Bonds. And don't forget that Stubblefield was the Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1993, the Defensive Player of the Year in 1997 and was a three time Pro Bowl selection. So he has some amount of fame attached to his name, like Barry Bonds.

It will be very interesting to see how this admitted guilt by Stubblefield affects the NFL. Up to this point the league has been able to stay out of the spotlight when steroid talk takes place. However, this event could focus that light brightly on it.

If It Wasn't For Date Rape Brian McNamee Might Never Get Laid

When he made his statements about injecting Roger Clemens with steroids, Brian McNamee had to know that everything he's done or said would be scrutinized. Anything salacious and/or illegal would be sought out, and he would be hounded by questions and accusations. It might have taken a little while, but now we know that Mr. McNamee engaged in some questionable sexual conduct, and that that was the reason he was fired by the Yankess.

The records released Tuesday by the St. Petersburg police show McNamee was suspected of raping a woman he had met at the Renaissance Vinoy Resort in October 2001. The Yankees were in town to close out the regular season against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, and many players and support staff were staying at the upscale resort.

McNamee was having sex with the woman in the resort's pool and didn't stop when confronted by security, the documents say. Police were notified. When they arrived, they found McNamee had helped the woman out of the pool and get dressed, according to the documents. Groggy and incoherent, she was taken to the hospital, where the documents said she was found to have GHB, the "date-rape drug," in her system.

The woman told detectives she could not remember details of the encounter in the pool. She said she did not give McNamee permission to have sex with her, and witnesses told detectives they had heard her saying "no" during the encounter, according to the documents.

Detectives later recovered some of her jewelry, an empty beer can and a water bottle containing GHB at the side of the pool.

Police interviewed McNamee hours later, according to the documents, and he denied having sex with the woman or knowing Yankees batting practice pitcher, Charles Wonsowicz, who was also in the pool. McNamee refused to submit a saliva sample for DNA analysis, the documents said.

Although the state attorney's office decided not to press charges, the accusations ended McNamee's career with the Yankees.

Clemens knew of the accusations, but hired McNamee as his personal trainer anyway. Though, it might have had something to do with the fact that McNamee would do anything to help someone.

According to the pitcher's lawsuit, McNamee told him that his actions were "actually a life-saving attempt.

Yep, saving someone with non-consentual sex. I knew I should have taken that CPR class!

The Mitchell Report

The Mitchell Report was released today, and it provides a pretty good insight into steroid(HGH, etc.) use in Major League Baseball. I'm not going to go into it too much in this post because I'm still reading through it. If you want more expansive coverage, then head on over to Deadspin.

One thing I did want to address was the inclusion of Roger Clemens in the report. It appears that Clemens has utilized "steroids" quite frequently since at least 1998. How will this information affect his legacy?

Personally, I don't believe that it will affect it much.

This is based primarily on the fact that Clemens is a pitcher, and the belief that the public sees a pitcher using steroids differently than they see a hitter that uses steroids. And remember, that the court of public opinion is often the harshest of all.

I think that when the public hears about a pitcher using performance enhancers a majority of them justify it by tying the use to rehabilitation and not gaining a competitive advantage. I feel that many people hear about a pitcher like "The Rocket" using HGH, or injecting Winstrol, and they, in their own minds, see it as a way for him to keep his arm fresh. Not make it more powerful. They don't feel that Clemens is doing it to get a leg-up, but rather that he's trying to prolong his career.

On the other hand, when they hear about hitters like Giambi, Palmeiro, Sheffield or Bonds using a performance enhancer they instantly envision homeruns flying out of ballparks. They feel that the hitters are gaining a competitive advantage, and that they're tainting the game. They will vilify the hitters for the rest of their lives, while giving the pitchers a "free pass" of sorts. All because of their perception of how performancing enhancers relate to each position.

The MLB Free-Agent Pool Could Get A Little Smaller

Eleven major league baseball players that are free-agents this season have been asked to speak with George Mitchell regarding his steroid investigation.

Up to 11 players from this year's free-agent class were asked to speak with George Mitchell as part of his investigation into performance-enhancing drugs in baseball.

The union's general counsel, Michael Weiner, made the statement Wednesday to agents attending a meeting in New York.

The Boston Globe's Web site Thursday reported agents were told at the meeting that 11 current free-agent players are named in Mitchell's report.

It will be interesting to see if any of this information is put out to the public. Right now, it doesn't appear that any big names are involved, and those 11 represent less than 1/10 of the free-agents that will be available. However, it would probably only take one or two even marginally popular players to be included on the list for it to be released in some fashion.

Is That Really The Best Player For This Madden Cover?

In case you're not aware, EA Sports has decided to produce a Spanish version of the mega-hit Madden NFL '08. They're hoping to tap into the sport's popularity at a time when the NFL is ratcheting up marketing efforts aimed at Spanish speakers.

For the first time, Electronic Arts Inc. is producing a Spanish-language version of its hugely popular Madden NFL football video game, the company announced Tuesday.

The move is evidence of the growing popularity of the NFL among Spanish speakers as well as a sign of the company's desire to tap into new customers.

It's estimated that "about 12 percent of the NFL's 120 million fans are Hispanic", and it is nice that EA Sports has taken them into consideration. Eventhough, they've probably already purchased the English version of this year's game which has been available since August. But I'm sure that EA wouldn't mind someone buying two copies of the same game.

Probably the two biggest questions regard the announcer and the cover victim athlete. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately for our Spanish speaking friends, John Madden is not doing his schtick in Spanish. Which is really a shame because I wanted to hear him shout "auge!" at least once. No, instead it will be Alvaro Martin.

And who's the cover athlete?

Luis Castillo of the San Diego Chargers. Who was chosen because of his heritage.

The cover will feature San Diego Chargers defensive end Luis Castillo, the second player from the Dominican Republic to be drafted and start in the NFL.

Now, everything seems fine and dandy, but some of you may have heard of Mr. Castillo. And you probably remember that it wasn't all good.

Luis Castillo was an All-American defensive linemen while at Northwestern, but during his senior season he suffered a severe elbow injury that nagged him the entire season. He opted not to take a medical redshirt, and as the NFL Combine got closer he was scared that he wouldn't perform up to the level he was capable of. So, he used the steroid, androstenedione, for a short while and was able to put up 32 reps at 225lbs at the combine. However, he also tested positive for the steroid there, and instantly had to go on the defensive. All 32 teams knew of his failed test, but San Diego still took him with the 28th pick of the 2005 draft.

Here is what Patriots linebacker Mike Vrabel had to say about it at the time:

"It sends a terrible message,'' Vrabel said. "He cheats. He cheated the system and got away with it."

Castillo admitted that he took andro to help him with his combine performance, and whether or not you justify his decision because he's a "great kid"(like Chargers' GM A.J. Smith) the fact is he did cheat to enhance his performance. He was rewarded back in 2005 with being drafted #28, and he's being rewarded in 2007 with the cover of the Spanish version of Madden '08. Well, if you can call being on the cover a reward.

And in a weird twist of coincidence, Castillo's teammate Shawne Merriman, who has also had some steroid issues, has been selected as the cover athlete for EA's NFL Tour.

So, that's two athletes with ties to steroids that are doing endorsements for EA's NFL marketing. Somewhere Roger Goodell is burning all of his EA games.

This Is What Happens When You Watch Too Much "Prayer of the Rollerboys"

First off, a father giving his 13 year old son steroids is bad enough. Though, some part of you might try to justify it if the kid was bulking up for football or wrestling. However, when it's to give his son an advantage in his inline skating competitions, then he gets no sympathy whatsoever.

A 41-year-old Lady Lake man has pleaded guilty to providing steroids to his 13-year-old son to give him an advantage in in-line roller skating competitions.

James Gahan signed a plea agreement saying he provided his son, Corey, with synthetic testosterone and human growth hormone starting in 2003 when the boy was 13 and continuing at least into 2005. Gahan initially obtained the drug from a clinic in Tampa and later from a doctor in DeLand, the plea agreement states.

Damn, two years of steroid use? That can't be good for a 13 year old. Though, it does seem that the steroids might have helped Corey Gahan because he became a "world-ranked" skater, and was the 2004 teenage national champion. He was also invited to participate in the Inline World Speed Skating Championships in '05, but had to withdraw after failing a drug test. A positive test that both Corey and his father had excuses and denials for.

Corey Gahan, who denies using any prohibited drugs...Kopf notes in his order that Corey "vehemently'' denies using any prohibited drugs...

Gahan wants to appeal, saying his son’s testosterone level was elevated because he was tested shortly after a long-distance race. He said the 19-norandrosterone was possibly the result of a tainted supplement.

It's interesting to see how those excuses and denials turned into a two year ban for Corey, and a guilty plea for his father that could get him up to 10 years in prison.

One other interesting tidbit is that Gahan received some of the steroids from Signature Pharmacy. Yes, the same Signature Pharmacy that was shut down this past February by federal officials, and had at one point supplied Chris Benoit with steroids.

Gahan, who pleaded guilty Friday, said he used Signature Pharmacy in Orlando, which is under investigation by New York authorities who are looking into whether it provided steroids to professional athletes.

This case is also being called "the first -- and so far only -- in the United States in which a parent of a world-class athlete was charged with providing steroids to boost a child's performance". Unfortunately, I doubt it will be the last.

What's That, Bud Selig Gave Barry Bonds Steroids?

Oh man, if even 1/10 of this were true it would be awesome. America's favorite litigious inmate(well, my favorite at least) has filed another lawsuit. This time against Barry Bonds, Bud Selig and...Hank Aaron's bat!. With defendants like that involved who needs Judge Judy for law humor?

Some of the best parts are:

"Barry Bonds and Bud Selig are in a secret conspiracy together to boost television ratings. Mr. Selig has been secretly giving Barry Bonds steroids for over 9 years under the supervision of Sammy Sosa. Mr. Selig on 2 occcations(Dec. 10th 2001, Feb. 6th 2003) met Mr. Bonds at the I-70 Steak 'n Shake, booth #11, made an under the table cream exchange, needles, HGH, as Mr. Bonds provided Mr. Selig 22 thousand for his services.

I knew Sammy was involved with steroids! Though, I had no idea he was instructing Bonds on how to use them. And an "under the table cream exchange" between Bonds and Selig? I don't think my lunch really liked me reading that.

Barry Bonds uses Hank Aaron's corked bat during ballgames. The bat has a secret chamber where Barry stores his HGH supplements.

A bat with secret chambers? Sounds like something Harry Potter would use. I always doubted that he was a non-doping wizard.

Barry Bonds on June 22, 2004, bench pressed me against my will to show off in front of his ballpark buddies. I also witnessed Mr. Bonds selling steroids to nuns.

Well, that explains why we never knew about this, Barry doesn't have any "ballpark buddies". Also, you might want to ask your local Catholic school to test their nuns for 'roids to prevent any danger of them "going yard" on your child with a ruler.

Barry Bonds used Hank Aaron's bat to crack the Liberty Bell.

Ok, the steroid stuff is one thing, but cracking the Liberty Bell?

Mr. Bonds gave mustard gas to Saddam Hussein. Part of the oil for food scandal.

Well, maybe Barry can go to work for GWB when Karl Rove leaves at the end of the month because he obviously knows where the WMD's are.

There are other interesting items in there, so you should check it out.

Oh yeah, any lawsuit filed by someone who calls himself the "White Suge Knight" has to have some truth, right?

The Hair Club For Baseball Suspensions

Things really aren't going your way when you receive a suspension because of the hair growth medicine you're taking. Which is exactly what happened to an American pitcher playing in a Japanese baseball league.

An American pitcher has become the first player to fail a drug test in Japanese baseball history.

Japanese baseball commissioner Yasuchika Negoro said Friday that Rick Guttormson tested positive for a banned substance and has been suspended for 20 days. Guttormson's team, the Softbank Hawks in Japan's Pacific League, were fined $63,000.

Japanese baseball officials said a postgame test July 13 revealed Finasteride in Guttormson's system. Finasteride was in a hair-growing agent the 30-year-old Guttormson had been taking for two years. It's banned because it can be used as a masking agent.

I wasn't able to find any pictures showing exactly how bald Guttormson is, but it doesn't sound like he was purposefully trying to mask his test results. It sounds like he was just the unfortunate victim of baseball's broad steroid/doping ban.

And while using the excuse "I didn't know" isn't always viable because the players are supposedly informed of what is legal and what isn't, there does seem to be an expansive gray area that legit players get caught in. Hopefully it's something that can be tweaked to make incidents like this non-existent.

Are That Many High School Football Players Really Using Steroids?

This high school football season in Florida is going to be a bit different than past ones because of a bill signed into law by Governor Charlie Crist back in June. The law states that athletes and their parents must consent to the "anabolic steroid random testing program" before they can play any regular season games.

I don't have a problem with the program, but one quote from an Orlando Sentinel article on the matter caught my eye. This is from Nathan Keller, a senior middle linebacker at West Orange High School.

"I'm sure a lot of kids that are hearing about this today are pretty scared, because I think a lot of guys are juiced," said Nathan Keller, a middle linebacker entering his senior year at West Orange High School. "I think a lot of guys might not play football once they realize they could get tested."

"I wouldn't be scared or nervous, because I know I'm not on steroids," Keller said. "But there are probably five kids on every football team out there that are doing at least something to get bigger."

Five kids on every team that are juiced? There are 18 high schools in Orange County alone, so that would mean that close to 100 kids are using steroids. For some reason that number seems awfully high to me. Though, not all 18 of those schools have football teams. Hopefully the new bill can help eradicate the problem that seems to be so big in our area high schools.

Golfers Really Are 'Roiding Up?

Will and MJD at Deadspin touched on the topic of golfers using steroids a while back, but Gary Player has stepped into the spotlight of this matter by saying that he's certain that golfers take performance enhancing drugs.

"Gary Player said he knows of at least one golfer who has used steroids, and is urging golf organizations to move quickly toward a random drug-testing plan.

The Hall of Famer estimated 10 players from tours around the world are taking some type of performance-enhancing drug. Asked how he knew golfers were taking steroids, he said a player told him in confidence.

'One guy told me -- and I took an oath prior to him telling me -- but he told me what he did and I could see this massive change in him,' Player said. 'And somebody else told me something I also promised I wouldn't tell, that verified others had done it."

While 10 players total isn't a huge number, it's still affecting the sport, especially if any of them are successful golfers. It also increases the speculation about who the juicers are. I'm guessing they're not on the Champions Tour, and that it's probably either the PGA or Nationwide Tours. For some reason, steroid use doesn't seem to be as prevalent in Europe, though maybe it just doesn't get reported here quite so much.

One thing, exactly what type of oath did Player take? Also, not telling everyone something after just telling them that you know something they would probably like very much to hear is just bad form Gary.

Chris Benoit Was A Former Customer Of Signature Pharmacy

Back in February when I first wrote about Signature Pharmacy in Orlando being raided as part of a steroid investigation I said "stay tuned because I have a feeling that more and more athletes are going to be named in the coming weeks". At that point, L.A. Angels outfielder Gary Matthews Jr. and Richard Rydze, a physician for the Pittsburgh Steelers, were the biggest names tied to Signature Pharmacy. Since then, Jason Grimsley, Jose Canseco and Evander Holyfield had been the only other athletes tied to Signature. Until today.

It was reported today that Chris Benoit, the WWE superstar that killed his wife and child then hanged himself over the past weekend, was a customer of Signature Pharmacy.

"After learning about the tragic deaths over the weekend, we were able to confirm that professional wrestler Christopher Benoit received packages from Signature Pharmacy and MedXLife," Albany County District Attorney P. David Soares said in a written statement.

It hasn't been made public yet how long Benoit was a customer of Signature, or how many "packages" he received from them. Though, it's been stated that officials knew that Signature was a steroid supplier since 2004, and they suuposedly did $40 million in business last year, so Benoit could have been involved to a large degree.

This isn't going to help Signature's case at all because a large amount of the media coverage so far has focused on whether "roid rage" caused Benoit to commit these horrible acts. Here's a sample of what the various major news outlets are reporting with regard to the Benoit tragedy:

CNN: 'Roid-rage' questions surround Benoit murder-suicide

FOXNews: Wrestler Chris Benoit Double Murder-Suicide: Was It 'Roid Rage'?

MSNBC: Cops eye 'roid rage' in wrestler's murder suicide

As you can see, the media is hitting the steroid angle pretty hard, and after asking the question of "was it 'roid rage?" they'll probably move on to "where did Benoit get his steroids?". Especially if toxicology reports come back showing large amounts of steroids in his system at the time of the murders. None of which bears well for Signature Pharmacy's founders.

James Toney and Danny Batchelder, Bringing Twice The Amount Of 'Roids Into The Ring

Back on May 24, James Toney beat Danny Batchelder by split decision in a heavyweight match. Today it was revealed that Toney tested positive for boldenone and stanazolol. Now, you might feel like calling Toney a cheater until you hear that Batchelder also tested positive for steroids(stanazolol and oxandolone).

Armando Garcia, executive officer of the California Athletic Commission, said that both fighters face a one year suspension and a $2,500 fine, and that both have the right to an appeal. He also said that the results of the match would count. Which I guess is appropriate since both fighters were juiced when they stepped into the ring.

However, it does bring up an interesting question regarding sports and steroids. If it were discovered in a sport like baseball that two individuals, say a pitcher and a hitter, were using steroids, should all of their records except the ones from when they went head-to-head be thrown out? In other words, the stats they racked up against clean individuals that didn't have the steroid "advantage" get tossed, but the ones they compiled against other steroid users stay. Or should everything get tossed out because they cheated in the first place?

The Wheels Have Come Off At The Floyd Landis Hearing

The Floyd Landis arbitration hearing has been going on for a few days, and for the most part it's been fairly mundane. That was until yesterday.

On Thursday, Greg LeMond took the stand to testify that during a phone conversation the two had Landis had hinted to him that he had used performance enhancing drugs. As if that wasn't interesting enough, he also dropped a bombshell about how he had told Landis a secret of sexual abuse by an uncle that he had never made public before, and how Landis' manager called him the night before he was to testify pretending to be his uncle and trying to intimidate him.

Seriously, you can't make up stuff this crazy.

Here's how LeMond recounted the creepy phone call from Landis' manager, Will Geoghegan:

"The drama escalated when USADA attorney Matt Barnett asked LeMond about a phone call Wednesday, which LeMond said he answered on speakerphone with his wife, Kathy, next to him.

The caller identified himself as “Uncle Ron” and said, “This is your uncle and I’m going to be there tomorrow,” in addition to graphic remarks describing sexual abuse, LeMond said.

After the caller hung up, LeMond said he immediately returned the phone call and got a voicemail message for someone named “Will.”

Barnett displayed the call log of LeMond’s BlackBerry with Geoghegan’s number."

It will be interesting to see how far Landis distances himself from Geoghegan, a former teammate of his from Landis' Chevy Truck mountain-bike days. The most frustrating thing for the Landis team is that LeMond's testimony about his phone call with Landis regarding steroid use wasn't all that damaging by itself, but coupled with the call from Geoghegan it casts an air of suspicion upon Landis and anyone associated with him.

The Steroid Nation has pretty coverage on this as well, and goes into a little more detail regarding the other graphic remarks.

David Ortiz Does Not [Expletive] Care About Steroids

On Monday, Boston Red Sox player David Ortiz discussed his feelings regarding Barry Bonds, steroids, Commissioner Bud Selig and protein shakes in the Dominican Republic.

He doesn't believe that Bonds has ever taken steroids because he has such a "consistent swing", and because he doesn't think that "steroids mentally get you perfect". Also, Oritz would just like you to admit that Bonds is "a bad [expletive]".

Ortiz went on to say that he thinks Commissioner Selig should watch Bonds break Aaron's homerun record in person even if he doesn't want to because if he doesn't people will consider baseball "a joke". And that eventhough Selig is the Commissioner "there's nothing he can do" about the situation.

Ortiz also said that he might have taken steroids in the Dominican Republic while drinking protein shakes.

“I used to buy a protein shake in my country. I don’t do that anymore because they don’t have the approval for that here, so I know that, so I’m off buying things at the GNC back in the Dominican (Republic). But it can happen anytime, it can happen. I don’t know. I don’t know if I drank something in my youth, not knowing it.”

Sure, I could see that happening. Maybe if Yankees' fans ran the smoothie counter.

Though, it is good to know that Ortiz is sure that Bonds hasn't done steroids, isn't sure whether he himself has or not, and thinks that Commissioner Selig not seeing Bonds break Aaron's record in person is what will make baseball a "joke". Yeah Big Papi, that's what will make people think baseball is a "joke".

Signature Pharmacy Steroid Probe Goes Deeper

Yesterday, federal officials raided a pharmacy in Orlando, FL in connection with an investigation into the illegal distribution of steroids.

The first professional athlete tied to the investigation was Gary Matthews Jr., outfielder for the Los Angeles Angels. Since then, more ties to athletes have surfaced.

*Richard A. Rydze, a physician for the Pittsburgh Steelers, purchased roughly $150,000 worth of steroids and HGH in 2006. Currently, there are no allegations that he broke any laws, and he's claiming that he bought them for his private patients.

*Allegedly, authorities have a Philadelphia Eagles player on tape entering the facility while they were conducting surveillance.

Also, one of the founders, Naomi Loomis, "attended The Ohio State University, College of Pharmacy and graduated with honors in 1995". Officials involved with the case have stated that college athletes were involved with Signature Pharmacy, though no OSU players have been mentioned at this point.

Stay tuned because I have a feeling that more and more athletes are going to be named in the coming weeks.

Latest Internet Steroid Purchasing Investigation Could Expose Athletes

Signature Pharmacy in downtown Orlando, FL was raided today as part of an investigation into the sale of illegal pharmaceuticals being sold over the internet(see Mr. Gore, it's not all good). Illegal purchases of pharmaceuticals over the internet are nothing new, but according to authorities this investigation could potentially expose a number of athletes.

"The Times Union reported that investigators in the year-old case uncovered evidence that testosterone and other performance-enhancing drugs may have been fraudulently prescribed over the Internet to current and former major league baseball and NFL players, college athletes, high school coaches, a former Mr. Olympia champion and another top contender in the bodybuilding competition."

Pretty soon Chris Hansen will be hosting a new Dateline special, "To Catch A Juicer".