Report: Ortiz not sure if he took steroids

by docgonzo on May 8, 2007 4:18 PM EDT

Should be interesting to watch this development...:

It appears Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz is not sure if he has taken steroids.

Ortiz told the Boston Herald that he could not say definitively if he had ever used performance-enhancing drugs in the past. The burly designated hitter also said that if he did, it happened when he was much younger.

"I tell you, I don't know too much about steroids, but I started listening about steroids when they started to bring that (expletive) up," Ortiz told the paper. "I started realizing and getting to know a little bit about it. You've got to be careful.

[editor's note, by John Amato] I find this interesting coming from Big Papi after he just said that steroids might not have helped Barry Bonds:

Count David Ortiz among those who isn't convinced Barry Bonds used illegal performance-enhancing drugs -- or if they really helped the San Francisco Giants outfielder make his run at Hank Aaron's home run record. "To hit the ball, the guy makes it look easy, but it ain't. I don't know how you can have that swing, consistently. I don't know how steroids can do that," Ortiz told the Boston Herald. "There are supposed to be guys using steroids in the game, and there's nobody close to Barry Bonds. What's that mean? He was using the best [stuff]? Know what I'm saying?"

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I guess that means that he did.

Everything looks nicer when you win. The girls are prettier. The cigars taste better. The trees are greener. --Billy Martin

by garp on May 8, 2007 5:11 PM EDT 0 recs

Fat

I've said in the past that he looks like a juicer (no neck), but everyone tells me it's just because he's fat.

by SP on May 8, 2007 5:33 PM EDT 0 recs

I don't understand how Ortiz

doesn't recall taking steroids or not. You have to go out of your way to take steroids.

by YANKtheTitle on May 8, 2007 6:46 PM EDT 0 recs

Cheerios

reduces cholesterol and has steroids in them also.

Great Success!

by ReLaunch on May 8, 2007 9:11 PM EDT up 0 recs

Not in this case

Ortiz was talking about some protein shake type energy drinks he took in the Dominican when he was much younger. They don't have a version of the FDA to regulate that kind of stuff.
I still wouldn't be surprised if he comes up positive at some point. Maybe that Met clubhouse attendant?

Mystique, don't fail me now!

by jscape2000 on May 8, 2007 9:48 PM EDT up 0 recs

He goes from hitting 20HR

at most with The Twins to a HR machine in one year? Please.

by docgonzo on May 8, 2007 11:16 PM EDT up 0 recs

Yes,

it's called maturing as a hitter and getting a chance to actually play.

by Willton on May 9, 2007 2:23 AM EDT up 0 recs

The witch hunt continues

I can't believe this shit is news. Ortiz is not sure he took steroids? Why does anyone care about this nonsense?

The worst part is no one cares about finding a solution to this "problem." All people care about is bringing down the good players. I've noticed that no one here has mentioned that D-Rays reliever Juan Salas just tested positive for performance enhancers, but if it's not a hitter, no one cares.

Has anyone questioned whether Hank Aaron was taking amphetemines the night he broke the record? Are we assigning an asterisk to his numbers because he never faced pitchers on "the juice?"

No one gives a shit about a solution. All people want is blood. It's disgusting.

by Willton on May 9, 2007 2:28 AM EDT 0 recs

Seriously,

stop throwing good players like Kendall in the fucking mud.

Great Success!

by ReLaunch on May 9, 2007 6:33 AM EDT up 0 recs

This coming from

the guy who thinks everybody juices. I'm surprised you're not already burning your Hammerin' Hank paraphernalia in effigy.

by Willton on May 9, 2007 9:22 AM EDT up 0 recs

Seriously,

people should never suspect a player that hits 1 homer in 3 years after hitting double digits to be juicing. I'm tired of people throwing people's name in the fucking mud.

P.S- Who gives a shit if people are bringing their names up? It is entertainment. These players make 14 million a year. Comes with the job. Unless Kendall or Oritz is your partner, you shouldn't care either.

Great Success!

by ReLaunch on May 9, 2007 10:09 AM EDT up 0 recs

Would you give a damn

if Mattingly was thought to have used steroids?

by Willton on May 9, 2007 11:30 AM EDT up 0 recs

I would

care if Mattingly did steroids. If it was rumour, I really wouldn't care either way.

Great Success!

by ReLaunch on May 9, 2007 12:01 PM EDT up 0 recs

The main problem

is that people think that steroids are actually being used by the stars. They were used by a select few of those guys. What people don't understand is that a majority of the players who actually used steroids were 1) fringe guys, and 2) pitchers.

The reason I care is because the real discussion should be about how to solve the problem (if there actually is one), not a game of who-dun-it. I'm sick of sports writing turning into tabloid jounralism.

by Willton on May 9, 2007 11:39 AM EDT up 0 recs

Sports are

entertainment. Money is involved (alot of it). Get used to it. And I disagree that only a selct few guys have used steroids. You have no proof on that either.

Great Success!

by ReLaunch on May 9, 2007 12:00 PM EDT up 0 recs

Here's proof

These players have tested positive for steroids in MLB's recent upgrade in testing:

Alex Sanchez
Jorge Piedra
Agustin Montero
Jamal Strong
Juan Rincon
Rafael Betancourt
Rafael Palmeiro
Ryan Franklin
Mike Morse
Carlos Almanzar
Felix Heredia
Matt Lawton
Yusaku Iriki
Guillermo Mota
Juan Salas

How many star players do you see here? I see one: Palmeiro. I also see 8 pitchers, most of whom are relievers. It's reasonable to think that in MLB's recent run of more stringent PED testing, we'd get a fair representation of the types of players that use steroids now and in the past, especially when you consider that since testing has begun, the levels of offensive production in baseball have not changed. Well, there is your representative steroid group: mostly fringe guys, and a preponderance of pitchers.

by Willton on May 9, 2007 1:50 PM EDT up 0 recs

Steroids don't enhance fastballs

They enhance recovery time. There's little evidence showing that steroids will add any speed to a fastball, but there's a ton of evidence that steroids can help broken down muscles repair themselves. That would be the real reason for pitchers to use steroids: they allow pitchers to pitch more often, especially relievers, without breaking down.

Besides, when was the last time you saw a big burly guy pitch? When was the last time you saw a guy as huge as Bonds throw a rocket from the outfield? And why is it that guys as skinny as Pedro Martinez, Ian Snell, and Tim Hudson can throw lightning?

If you want a more informed look at steroids, check out Will Carrol's "The Juice". It's not going to be filled with tell-alls about Bonds or whatever, so if that's what you want just go to ESPN or read that drivel by Jose Canseco. But if you care to read an informed opinion about the subject of performance enhancing drugs, you should check it out.

by Willton on May 9, 2007 2:22 PM EDT up 0 recs

Also, J.C. Bradbury

http://www.sabernomics.com/sabernomics/index.php/2007/04/i-dont-worry-about-hgh-in-baseball-and-neit her-should-you

River Ave. Blues
Yanks and prospects

by PinstripePowerhouse on May 9, 2007 2:50 PM EDT up 0 recs

Carroll

In his column today, he called this Chemical McCarthyism.

Now, I don't like to give the guy credit for being creative, because he can be an enormous, egotistical ass. But that was dead on.

River Ave. Blues
Yanks and prospects

by PinstripePowerhouse on May 9, 2007 3:00 PM EDT up 0 recs

While I agree

that a player cannot hit the ball because of steroids, it can make them hit the ball farther. A 280 foot fly ball to right could become a 320 fly ball to right.

Great Success!

by ReLaunch on May 9, 2007 4:11 PM EDT up 0 recs

The guys who are stars

can afford to buy customized stuff that won't be tested for. What else are you going to do with 18 million dollars?
Aside from Palmeiro, who in that list would have 3 million dollars to spend on special roids each year?

Mystique, don't fail me now!

by jscape2000 on May 9, 2007 3:39 PM EDT up 0 recs

What "special roids"?

And how do you know how much they cost? They could be as cheap as $100K or as expensive as $5M, whatever they are.

This is all wild speculation. I'm sure there are some masking agents out there and other stuff we don't know about, but if we don't know about it, how do we know it's effective? We already have one source telling us that even though we don't have a reliable test for HGH, it's probably not going to do anything for any athlete who uses it. So how do we know that these "special roids" are actually doing anything, especially when we have litte idea what they are?

The reason why you see so many fringe guys getting caught for steroids is because they have the most to gain from using them. These PEDs, so they believe, are the difference between having a job and not having a job. The stars have the talent w/o the steroids to stay in the league for a while, and that will likely net them a fairly large chunk of change by itself. But if you're not in the league, you don't get any money.

by Willton on May 9, 2007 4:42 PM EDT up 0 recs