PEDs, steroids, etc 2012

Love that Selig's Brewers and Yankees are basically keeping the PED testing afloat. No commissioner has been harder on PED abuse!

well maddux and glavine did benefit from strike zones no mere mortal could coax from an umpire later in their careers but thats mostly a function of them being really fucking good

― panettone for the painfully alone (mayor jingleberries), Friday, January 10, 2014 9:32 AM (4 days ago)

I don't know, I watched the '98 playoff game with Glavine against the Padres that mlb classic has on Youtube recently and it was weird seeing those outside strikes again.

http://espn.go.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/44350/jack-mcdowell-says-ped-users-in-hall

No surprise here (and I'm assuming he's not just referring to amphetamines), but I think there will need to be names attached for this to actually change anything. If that happened, who knows.

Small study suggests actual performance enhancement: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2014/02/18/athletes-improve-eyesight-virtual-training/

"moralizing baseball writers remain willfully oblivious to the fact that PED users are in the HOF" is the new "moralizing baseball writers remained willfully oblivious to the use of PED's in the 90's"

We've had this discussion before, maybe even on this thread, but because it's my own position, it's something I always want to clarify. I don't think moralizing describes all writers who don't cast HOF votes for PED users. If so, I think it would follow that the same writers would want Ty Cobb removed from the HOF, and there's no evidence of that; probably some would be fine with Rose in there too. My own ongoing uncertainty about PEDs, rightly or wrongly, is wholly based on the idea of an uneven playing field, and I think that's also true of some of the writers.

You don't specifiy all writers, though, so maybe you'd agree with that.

That's exactly what bothers me about this issue -- those same writers *never* moralize about anything except for the supposed advantages gained by taking PEDs, or more specifically, PEDs tajeb after 1994 (widespread use of PEDs (amphetamines) in the 60's and 70's aren't a problem). If they would apply the "morality clause" less selectively and also argue against keeping the Ty Cobbs and Pete Roses out of the HOF then I could respect their opinion just a little bit.

When all sorts of bad stuff came to light about Mantle and Puckett (to name two), people were shocked and disappointed, but I don't remember anyone saying they didn't deserve to be HOF's.

And the definition of "uneven playing field" can be stretched a bit too, e.g. Babe Ruth had an "unfair advantage" because he only played against white players.

tajeb after 1994

taken after 1994

What I want to see, in short, is more consistency in their positions. You can't arbitrarily apply a "morality clause" against the people you don't like. If it's about keeping a level playing field, then you have to rethink all cheaters and drug users who played, not just the ones who were stars in the 90's. If it's about keeping "bad guys" out of the HOF, then that's something else entirely. But what we're seeing is writers staking positions on players they don't like and giving totally arbitrary reasons to "support" their stances.

My own ongoing uncertainty about PEDs, rightly or wrongly, is wholly based on the idea of an uneven playing field

This is where I cite Bill James' comparison of letting guys play with no effective drug penalty to never calling traveling in the NBA, then trying to vilify such players 20 years later.

I know, but you're still starting with the assumption that they're moralizing about PED players. Some writers may be perfectly consistent: PED out, because I think they had an on-field advantage, Cobb in, because his racism created no on-field advantage. Not all, but some.

Ruth (and Cobb) definitely had an unfair advantage when judged against anyone who played post-Robinson. They didn't have an unfair advantage against their contemporaries: everyone played in a segrated league.

But even with traveling, it's not that some players are allowed to travel and some aren't--when I watch basketball, it looks like everyone travels. If you believe that everyone was taking PEDs, okay. I don't.

ban morbs for mentioning another sport

Exasperated media published on March 4:

http://www.freep.com/article/20140304/SPORTS02/303040023/detroit-tigers-st-louis-cardinals-jhonny-peralta

Jhonny Peralta isn’t a St. Louis Cardinal because he violated baseball’s drug policy. He’s a Cardinal because he got caught violating that policy.

This put the Tigers in a squeeze last season when Peralta was about to be suspended, forcing the team to trade for another shortstop, giving up a valuable prospect — Avisail Garcia — in return.

That shortstop, Jose Iglesias, didn’t play Monday when the Cardinals took on the Tigers at Joker Marchant Stadium.

But Peralta did, reminding Tigers fans what baseball justice looks like.

Cheat. Serve time. Move on. Come back. Blast two homers against the team you hurt. This end result isn’t Peralta’s fault, per se; he’s just navigating the system that employs him.

BRING THE PAIN!

Bosox' butthurtedness on Peralta led to stiffer penalties

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/after-facing-jhonny-peralta-in-alcs-boston-red-sox-fought-to-change-ped-penalties-041014

Poor World Champions

Two leaders of Major League Baseball's investigations unit are among five employees to leave following last year's drug inquiry that led to suspensions of 14 players....

MLB said Thursday the department is now handling "wide-ranging areas" and "felt compelled to restructure in order to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of its investigative capabilities."

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/10869005/top-mlb-officials-leaving-invstigations-unit-restructuring

29yo orioles minor leaguer eddie gamboa was suspended 50 games today for 'exogenous testosterone'

which is kind of interesting because he is a knuckleballer

Exogenous means it's applied on the outside, ie the surface of the baseball

what will they think of next

A knuckleballer who didn't want to have kids, perhaps.

xp

(They've probably thought of knuckleballers who don't want to have kids.)

the ol' ADD exemption

http://www.sbnation.com/mlb/2014/7/23/5930893/cameron-maybin-suspended-padres-amphetamine-add

remember when he was a five-tool prospect?

http://www.makeandtakes.com/wp-content/uploads/kidscookingtools3.png

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/tony-la-russa-put-steroid-cheats-baseball-hall-fame-asterisks-article-1.1880787

“I knew our programs in Oakland were 100% clean,” said La Russa, who managed the A’s from 1986-1995. “But we had our suspicions — guys hitting stronger but not working out. I went to Sandy and ownership about this. And they told me flat off, ‘Right of privacy. It’s a collective bargaining issue.’ ”

This guy's supposed to be a genius or something? Sounds more like he got his JD from a Florida school.

@JoeGiglioSports
In order to take down A-Rod, MLB worked with a drug dealer that distributed PEDs to 12-17 yr olds in the Dominican.

@jay_jaffe
MOAR BIOGENESIS RT @TJQuinnESPN: Two law enf. sources tell me investigation revealed previously unnamed MLB players. Expect more suspension

Two most common responses I've gotten on unnamed players are "please be Ortiz" and "please be Jeter."

— T.J. Quinn (@TJQuinnESPN) August 5, 2014

Ortiz?!

people've wanted that for years now

had no idea... i guess mainly because he's "well liked"?

did you not follow the price/ortiz stuff at all

hits a lot of homers for an old guy, is a boston red sock, has been a boston red sock through all of their annoying incarnations, will probably end up in the hall of fame without really deserving it, is kind of a dick now, never gotten the impression that he's well-liked outside of boston maybe except for ~2004

>price/ortiz stuff at all

no idea. i really don't read much baseball outside of scores/stats!

It's better that way

i think it mostly just comes down to people suspecting he's on roids

Ortiz was supposedly one of the hundred or so players who tested positive in '03, before there were any penalties for taking PED's. So it wouldn't be Ortiz's first time getting caught (allegedly).

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2014/08/05/biogenesis-tony-bosch-more-mlb-names-could-be-leaked/13641293/

"Are drugs ever going to be out of the game? No," Kirk Radomski, the former New York Mets clubhouse attendant who was convicted for distributing steroids in 2007 to baseball players, told USA TODAY Sports.

"I still get guys calling me, asking me how to get to that next level. There are a lot of guys out there beating the system.

"There probably are going to be a bunch of guys who are worried now that the feds are involved."

Dan Connolly ‏@danconnollysun 4m
Waiting on official word but hearing Chris Davis has tested pos for amphetamines. 25 game suspension

now official

The 25 games shall include all regular season games and Postseason games in which the player would have been eligible to play.

and so close to the mendoza line too

wonder when the failed test was, like if it was announced a week ago he'd be back by postseason

Assuming he's telling the truth, why wouldn't Davis request an exemption for using Adderall, especially if he's had exemptions in the past? Or maybe that's the whole point (nobody could possibly be so stupid, that is) and he's lying?

yeah, kind of weird. anyway, whatever -- everyone pop some greenies

@DBWilson2
Buck on whether it's fair to judge Davis' 2013, and really just on life. "What is fair?"

buck makes u think

Rodriguez also described how Bosch gave the ballplayer “tips on how to beat MLB’s drug testing,” according to the DEA report.

The secret? According to Rodriguez, “Bosch advised him to only use mid-stream urine for MLB drug testing. Bosch told Rodriguez not to use the beginning or the end urine stream.”

It worked. A test he took while using the drugs came up negative.

http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/mlb/article3578762.html

This may have some effect:

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/12289319/commissioner-rob-manfred-says-hall-fame-voters-surmise-ped-use

potentially fit for this thread or is it teh crack again?
http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-josh-hamilton-20150224-story.html