Why not just admit to using both? Because HGH is “ok” since players used it to heal faster, but steroids are bad because they pump you up and have a terrible stigma? Brian Roberts of the Orioles – when you see this guy up close, he’s got Popeye arms – has admitted to using steroids so Vina and Rocket and the rest of these frauds should just do the same. Hopefully, nobody is buying this, ‘I used it once’ bunk … put yourself in their shoes – you use it, you don’t get caught, and slowly, your numbers skyrocket (please take a look at Roberts’ stats leap from 2004 to 2005). All these cheaters make us wonder if in the last decade, baseball had as many PED users as Track & Field. It’s probably closer than everyone thinks.
Remember, the Mitchell Report is largely based on the words of one guy who worked in the clubhouse a decade ago, and a trainer. Can you imagine if 10 trainers had cooperated? What if every trainer and strength coach in MLB was forced to speak? Poor Roger Clemens. Getting stalked by reporters in Houston. What a whiney little bitch.
I wonder if Fernando Vina will soon join Harold Reynolds in the former ESPN analyst pile. Took too many days in my estimation for him to make that statement. It was dumb of him to dangle out there that he was pressured to return. Take it like a man and be 100 percent responsible for your actions.
I love how all of these guys are saying they used it just to heal from an injury. I usually let a doctor prescribe medication when I get injured, not a clubhouse attendant. Oh, and I wonder when Gammons and MANY others are going to apologize for calling Radomski and McNamee “sewer rats” and other similar names right after the Mitchell Report came out, when, day after day, more and more players are coming out and confirming every single thing those “sewer rats” said.
Does anyone else find these admissions that they only used it once or twice extremely weak? Aren’t these drugs cycled for a period of weeks before you would even have a chance to see if they work? So multiple injections would be required, right? This looks like a strategy for making a half-apology…
I just find it strange… I remember when I was a kid and the Russians cheated in the Olympics it was a HUGE deal and we Americans were so ashamed and pissed off, but now we have been accused of the same crime in both Olympics and MLB and we don’t really apologize. Hypocricy at it finest…
jimmy that is exactly what i was thinking about larussa something is fishy with him, rick ankiel was on the report also
a lot more than just ankiel and vina are connected to larussa. aside from the obvious name not on the report (big mac):
rick ankiel david bell gary bennett larry bigbie jose canseco ryan franklin cody mckay kent merker fernando vina
if you read the report, larussa is cited quite often. i know when he came to st. louis, after the first year or two he got rid of a longtime trainer with the cardinals and replaced him with his oakland trainer. at the time, gene gieselman, the replaced trainer, noted how he didn’t want to give players creatine whereas his successor was a big proponent of the supplement.
As a native STL-ian, I’m not a big LaRussa fan at all, but he had nothing to do with Franklin’s steroid use, since Franklin did it with Seattle before coming to STL. That said, LaRussa is still guilty of associating with him.
BRob had 14 more extra base hits from 04 to 05. He did have a jump in home runs but his extra base numbers have stayed pretty consistent every year since 05, while there was testing.
I am just glad that he admitted to trying roids and Larry Bigbie is still a rat in my mind.
neyer has a great post today about HGH not having any proven benefit to people except those with human growth hormone deficiencies. so theres is a very good chance everyone named in the mitchell report (which was nearly all about radmonski and his HGH ring), saw now increase in performance due to the HGH they took.
of course, that doesnt mean they also all didnt take a bunch of regular roids too, but that’ll be for the next sewer rat to reveal.
I have no problem with professional athletes using HGH or steroids if under the care of a doctor. I speak only for myself, but the last decade of baseball, heck, sports in general, has been great. All of you bashers, step down from the Ivory Tower, quit bashing them, it happened and its over. Remember the great moments they gave you watching sports and forget about it. Honestly, why are you bashing them…because they took drugs to help them play PROFESSIONAL sports. Do you think there are others in professional sports who cheat but by different methods. ie: filming opponents practices, speaking with clubhouse attendants to get a more clear report of injuries, calling a potential free agent letting him know what type of money you would offer them, bribing an ex girlfriend to make BS phone calls to star players before games. I could go on and on about how to cheat in professional sports. At least this cheating makes it more fun to watch.
@ Plats, take it easy, filming games isn’t the same as roiding up. None of the offenses you talked about are. I would rather watch a team full of genuine guys who play because they are talented. I am sorry that you are only amused by gawdy numbers and HRs. There is a lot more to baseball than that. You are the type of fan that I hope stops watching the game now because you are clueless.
@ Jimmy…Ankiel did it when he was in the minors, not with LaRussa. I don’t think Tony scared Canseco into taking them either. Just because Vina says he was pressured by management to play doesn’t mean LaRussa made him do it. It is just like every other excuse, BS.
Torre also had a number of players that used “stuff” or HGH, does that mean he forced them to?
Sheffield, Giambi, Clemens, Pettite, Knoblauch, Rondell White, Glenallen Hill…Maybe Torre is even a worse manager than we thought.
This is the best excuse these guys can come up with five days after the fact? If they were used so innocently, maybe they should have been a little more proactive and apologetic before the Mitchell Report came out. I might have been willing to believe them if they would have come clean before they were busted.
It’s one thing to want answers, it’s another to follow the man while he drops his son off at lower school. Sorry, I don’t think that makes him a whiney bitch.
These players have all their answers and excuses, and I respect Pettite for coming clean, but why hasn’t anyone come clean before they were caught and trapped?
I really wish all of these guys would just come totally clean. I heard Buster Olney state on ESPN radio that he estimated 75% of MLB award winners since the late 80’s were using PED’s. Unbelievable.
I love baseball, but until these guys step up and tell the whole truth, many of them will be tainted longer than Shoeless Joe Jackson.
im with platts – roids make sports more fun to watch. T&F is worthless without roids. same with the tour de france. baseball is fine with or without roids but with was pretty sweet. i only wish more mets took roids in the 90’s – then maybe the team wouldnt have sucked so friggin bad.
die eagles die…you are on the Ivory Tower and telling me I am clueless with a name like “die eagles die” You want ME to stop watching sports. YOU are the reason why professional athletes take the PED’s. If they dont perform, you’ll kill them. Shut your mouth and come up with a better name than something that will get you 20 to life.
Platts…You can get 20 to life for making a parody of the famed Fly Eagles Fly theme? Even Vick didn’t get 20 years. Oh, so it’s my fault that Fernando Vina had to take HGH, or that Pettite did it twice because of me. That is a new excuse. I would like an athlete to come out and say that. I don’t cheat at my job, and they shouldn’t cheat at theirs. Excuse me for wanting a genuine product on the field. You, Skip Bayless, and Screamin’ A should have a show together where each one of you try to top eachother with outrageous points. It can be like “Duel” and be hosted by Golic. It can be called Diahrria of the Mouth.
Sports were fine before everyone was on HGH, and yes they were entertaining when people were on them, but that doesn’t make it right. Luckily for you, Gladiators is coming back, so you can still get your fill of roided up juice heads. You defend them because you are probably a steroid freak too. Why don’t you go to the gym and do another cycle you clown.
Ah…MLB has bigger problems than this sorry HGH/steroids episode. Really, the league would probably rather have people talk about this than the fact that ~ 20 teams have no real chance of competing beyond July 4th.
I’m not a fan of performance-enhancing drugs (though someday I’m sure I’ll be asking my doctor about Viagra!), but do people in Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, etc really think Fernando Vina shooting himself in the ass is the reason why the game isn’t nearly as entertaining as it was just 20 years ago?
December 18th, 2007 at 9:18 AM
Did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?
Congrats! Is this your first embedded video post?
December 18th, 2007 at 9:23 AM
“i was getting pressure from the team.”
translation: “perpetually constipated tony larussa was hounding me, just like he did later to scott rolen which virtually ruined his career.”
why is it so many players outed by the mitchell report have some connection to larussa?
December 18th, 2007 at 9:25 AM
jimmy that is exactly what i was thinking about larussa
something is fishy with him, rick ankiel was on the report also
larussa’s dui video is still a classic to watch
December 18th, 2007 at 9:26 AM
I wonder if Fernando Vina will soon join Harold Reynolds in the former ESPN analyst pile. Took too many days in my estimation for him to make that statement. It was dumb of him to dangle out there that he was pressured to return. Take it like a man and be 100 percent responsible for your actions.
December 18th, 2007 at 9:29 AM
I love how all of these guys are saying they used it just to heal from an injury. I usually let a doctor prescribe medication when I get injured, not a clubhouse attendant. Oh, and I wonder when Gammons and MANY others are going to apologize for calling Radomski and McNamee “sewer rats” and other similar names right after the Mitchell Report came out, when, day after day, more and more players are coming out and confirming every single thing those “sewer rats” said.
December 18th, 2007 at 9:31 AM
Does anyone else find these admissions that they only used it once or twice extremely weak? Aren’t these drugs cycled for a period of weeks before you would even have a chance to see if they work? So multiple injections would be required, right? This looks like a strategy for making a half-apology…
December 18th, 2007 at 9:34 AM
I just find it strange… I remember when I was a kid and the Russians cheated in the Olympics it was a HUGE deal and we Americans were so ashamed and pissed off, but now we have been accused of the same crime in both Olympics and MLB and we don’t really apologize. Hypocricy at it finest…
December 18th, 2007 at 9:36 AM
We didn’t believe Clinton when he said he smoked weed but didn’t inhale and we don’t believe these guys that say they used HGH but not Steroids.
December 18th, 2007 at 9:38 AM
a lot more than just ankiel and vina are connected to larussa. aside from the obvious name not on the report (big mac):
rick ankiel
david bell
gary bennett
larry bigbie
jose canseco
ryan franklin
cody mckay
kent merker
fernando vina
if you read the report, larussa is cited quite often. i know when he came to st. louis, after the first year or two he got rid of a longtime trainer with the cardinals and replaced him with his oakland trainer. at the time, gene gieselman, the replaced trainer, noted how he didn’t want to give players creatine whereas his successor was a big proponent of the supplement.
December 18th, 2007 at 9:48 AM
As a native STL-ian, I’m not a big LaRussa fan at all, but he had nothing to do with Franklin’s steroid use, since Franklin did it with Seattle before coming to STL. That said, LaRussa is still guilty of associating with him.
He’s a paranoid freak.
December 18th, 2007 at 9:52 AM
BRob had 14 more extra base hits from 04 to 05. He did have a jump in home runs but his extra base numbers have stayed pretty consistent every year since 05, while there was testing.
I am just glad that he admitted to trying roids and Larry Bigbie is still a rat in my mind.
December 18th, 2007 at 9:53 AM
neyer has a great post today about HGH not having any proven benefit to people except those with human growth hormone deficiencies. so theres is a very good chance everyone named in the mitchell report (which was nearly all about radmonski and his HGH ring), saw now increase in performance due to the HGH they took.
of course, that doesnt mean they also all didnt take a bunch of regular roids too, but that’ll be for the next sewer rat to reveal.
December 18th, 2007 at 10:03 AM
I have no problem with professional athletes using HGH or steroids if under the care of a doctor. I speak only for myself, but the last decade of baseball, heck, sports in general, has been great. All of you bashers, step down from the Ivory Tower, quit bashing them, it happened and its over. Remember the great moments they gave you watching sports and forget about it. Honestly, why are you bashing them…because they took drugs to help them play PROFESSIONAL sports. Do you think there are others in professional sports who cheat but by different methods. ie: filming opponents practices, speaking with clubhouse attendants to get a more clear report of injuries, calling a potential free agent letting him know what type of money you would offer them, bribing an ex girlfriend to make BS phone calls to star players before games. I could go on and on about how to cheat in professional sports. At least this cheating makes it more fun to watch.
December 18th, 2007 at 10:11 AM
“I only used it to heal from an injury”. Like that makes any fucking difference. Dipshit.
“I only used it the specific times that are cited in the report. Not any additional times.” Of course, why would we not believe you?
“I only used HGH, never steroids!”. Of course, because you only used it to heal, not pump up. That makes perfect sense.
“My job was not to hit home runs, it was to turn double plays and get base hits.” This is relevent to your cheating, in what way, exactly?
I don’t believe anything this guy says. Pettitte, Roberts or Clemmens, either.
December 18th, 2007 at 10:22 AM
@ Plats, take it easy, filming games isn’t the same as roiding up. None of the offenses you talked about are. I would rather watch a team full of genuine guys who play because they are talented. I am sorry that you are only amused by gawdy numbers and HRs. There is a lot more to baseball than that. You are the type of fan that I hope stops watching the game now because you are clueless.
December 18th, 2007 at 10:25 AM
@ Jimmy…Ankiel did it when he was in the minors, not with LaRussa. I don’t think Tony scared Canseco into taking them either. Just because Vina says he was pressured by management to play doesn’t mean LaRussa made him do it. It is just like every other excuse, BS.
Torre also had a number of players that used “stuff” or HGH, does that mean he forced them to?
Sheffield, Giambi, Clemens, Pettite, Knoblauch, Rondell White, Glenallen Hill…Maybe Torre is even a worse manager than we thought.
December 18th, 2007 at 10:31 AM
This is the best excuse these guys can come up with five days after the fact? If they were used so innocently, maybe they should have been a little more proactive and apologetic before the Mitchell Report came out. I might have been willing to believe them if they would have come clean before they were busted.
December 18th, 2007 at 10:36 AM
It’s one thing to want answers, it’s another to follow the man while he drops his son off at lower school. Sorry, I don’t think that makes him a whiney bitch.
These players have all their answers and excuses, and I respect Pettite for coming clean, but why hasn’t anyone come clean before they were caught and trapped?
December 18th, 2007 at 10:37 AM
anyway roger, everyone in Htown knows that you don’t hire Rusty Hardin if you’re innocent
December 18th, 2007 at 10:45 AM
I really wish all of these guys would just come totally clean. I heard Buster Olney state on ESPN radio that he estimated 75% of MLB award winners since the late 80’s were using PED’s. Unbelievable.
I love baseball, but until these guys step up and tell the whole truth, many of them will be tainted longer than Shoeless Joe Jackson.
December 18th, 2007 at 10:47 AM
im with platts – roids make sports more fun to watch. T&F is worthless without roids. same with the tour de france. baseball is fine with or without roids but with was pretty sweet. i only wish more mets took roids in the 90’s – then maybe the team wouldnt have sucked so friggin bad.
December 18th, 2007 at 11:00 AM
die eagles die…you are on the Ivory Tower and telling me I am clueless with a name like “die eagles die” You want ME to stop watching sports. YOU are the reason why professional athletes take the PED’s. If they dont perform, you’ll kill them. Shut your mouth and come up with a better name than something that will get you 20 to life.
December 18th, 2007 at 11:10 AM
go on with your bad self plattsmouth
December 18th, 2007 at 11:11 AM
Roger Clemens is a bitch and the fact that he isn’t getting roasted by the media like Bonds makes even me think racism was involved.
December 18th, 2007 at 1:22 PM
Platts…You can get 20 to life for making a parody of the famed Fly Eagles Fly theme? Even Vick didn’t get 20 years. Oh, so it’s my fault that Fernando Vina had to take HGH, or that Pettite did it twice because of me. That is a new excuse. I would like an athlete to come out and say that. I don’t cheat at my job, and they shouldn’t cheat at theirs. Excuse me for wanting a genuine product on the field. You, Skip Bayless, and Screamin’ A should have a show together where each one of you try to top eachother with outrageous points. It can be like “Duel” and be hosted by Golic. It can be called Diahrria of the Mouth.
Sports were fine before everyone was on HGH, and yes they were entertaining when people were on them, but that doesn’t make it right. Luckily for you, Gladiators is coming back, so you can still get your fill of roided up juice heads. You defend them because you are probably a steroid freak too. Why don’t you go to the gym and do another cycle you clown.
December 18th, 2007 at 1:58 PM
Nice try, die eagles die. Go back to kicking your dog.
December 18th, 2007 at 4:01 PM
Ah…MLB has bigger problems than this sorry HGH/steroids episode. Really, the league would probably rather have people talk about this than the fact that ~ 20 teams have no real chance of competing beyond July 4th.
I’m not a fan of performance-enhancing drugs (though someday I’m sure I’ll be asking my doctor about Viagra!), but do people in Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, etc really think Fernando Vina shooting himself in the ass is the reason why the game isn’t nearly as entertaining as it was just 20 years ago?