Dan in Florida Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 MLB suspends Manny Ramirez 50 games for drug violation By Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY Dodgers slugger Manny Ramirez singles against the Colorado Rockies last month. Los Angeles Dodgers star outfielder Manny Ramirez tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs and was suspended for 50 games, Major League Baseball announced Thursday. Through a statement released through baseball's players' union, Ramirez said the positive test resulted from a medication prescribed by a doctor, and not from a steroid. Ramirez waived his right to challenge the suspension. "Recently I saw a physician for a personal health issue," Ramirez said in the statement. "He gave me a medication, not a steroid, which he thought was okay to give me. Unfortunately, the medication was banned under our drug policy. Under the policy that mistake is now my responsibility. I have been advised not to say anything more for now. I do want to say one other thing; I've taken and passed about 15 drug tests over the past five seasons." Ramirez is the biggest star player to test positive for drugs since Rafael Palmeiro, who tested positive in 2005. Palmeiro blamed it on a B-12 shot administered by teammate Miguel Tejada, and is out of baseball, finishing with 569 homers and 3,020 hits. Ramirez, who signed a two-year, $45 million contract, has helped lead the Dodgers to a major-league leading 21-8 record. He is batting .348 with six homers and 20 RBI. Scott Boras, Ramirez's agent, was unavailable for comment. He is expected to brief reporters on the reason for Ramirez's positive test, according to his office. The news is expected to shake the Ramirez's image in Los Angeles. He had been a model citizen since being traded July 31, 2008, to the Boston Red Sox. He also becomes the second star this year to be linked to performance-enhancing drugs. New York Yankee All-Star third baseman Alex Rodriguez acknowledged in Feburary that he used steroids from 2001 to 2003. Ramirez, who will be eligible to return from suspension on July 3, is expected to be replaced in the lineup by Juan Pierre. The Dodgers enter Thursday with the best record in baseball (21-8) and set a major league record for home wins to start a season (13). link After posting this, I just saw that OldCrow posted this earlier on the Tribe board...props to him! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombo Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 More to come! Wow ... I told Beanpot not to draft him. Zombo --Is there anyone left that is clean ... Pujols? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCalBrownsFan Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 According to ESPN, it was some kind of fertility drug that helps testosterone production, and is usually used by people who do steroids. Link to Article Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Booker Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 I heard on the Rome show it was a FEMALE FERTILITY DRUG!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan in Florida Posted May 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 I heard on the Rome show it was a FEMALE FERTILITY DRUG!!! Maybe THAT'S why he has such LOVELY hair! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCalBrownsFan Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 I heard on the Rome show it was a FEMALE FERTILITY DRUG!!! Yup, the ESPN article above states the same thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Booker Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 Yup, the ESPN article above states the same thing. Good deal, I can't get to ESPN while I'm at work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuckeyeDawg Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 I am currently in dental school, and I believe the drug that is in question is used by many people taking steroids to help mask some of the undesirable side effects (mostly man boobs--excess testosterone actually gets converted to estrogen) from taking supplemental hormones. This is all from memory from a year or so ago so I am be a little off but Im fairly sure this is right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan in Florida Posted May 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 I am currently in dental school, and I believe the drug that is in question is used by many people taking steroids to help mask some of the undesirable side effects (mostly man boobs--excess testosterone actually gets converted to estrogen) from taking supplemental hormones. This is all from memory from a year or so ago so I am be a little off but Im fairly sure this is right. Lookin' Good Manny! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickers Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 Lookin' Good Manny! Dayum!......Talk about Manny being Manuela! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ndneighbor Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 22.5 million a year and now they need someone to fill in for about 1/3 of the season. Doesn't MLB have a hotline for these guys to verify if a med. is banned or not? Manny being . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffer X Posted May 7, 2009 Report Share Posted May 7, 2009 Here is an example of a bulking cycle where HCG is used. 8 Week Mens BULKING Cycle [KIT 8] $500.00 Cycle reviewed and approved by BIG A, IFBB PRO, owner of www.professionalmuscle.com * WEEKS 1- 6: Danabol 30mg Every Day * WEEKS 1- 8: Deca Durabolin 400mg Per Week * WEEKS 1- 8: Sustanon 750mg Per Week * WEEKS 1-10: Anastrozol 0.25mg Every Day * WEEKS 1-10: HCG 300-500iu Every 4-5 Days * WEEK 11 : 40mg Nolva/100mg Clomid Every Day * WEEK 12 : 30mg Nolva/ 50mg Clomid Every Day * WEEK 13: 20mg Nolva/ 50mg Clomid Every Day THIS KIT CONTAINS: * 2 x HCG (Pregnyl) 5000 IU, 1 amp by Organon * 1 x NOLVADEX (TAMOXIMED) (tamoxifene) 10mg/tab by Balkan Pharmaceuticals (Size: 50 tabs) * 1 x ANASTROZOL 0.25 MG by Balkan Pharmaceuticals (Size: 100 tabs) * 3 x CLOMID 50mg by Balkan Pharmaceuticals (Size: 10 tabs) * 4 x DECA-DURABOLIN 200mg/ml by Stealth Labs (Size: 5 ml) * 1 x SUSTANON 250 mg/ml by Stealth Labs (Size: 20 ml) * 1 x SUSTANON 250 mg/ml by Stealth Labs (Size: 5 ml) * 3 x DANABOL 10 MG by Balkan Pharmaceuticals (Size: 50 tabs) Here is a profile of the drug. This is an older article and says the drug can't be tested for, so that is false. Manny has been juicing for years, my only question is he had to have somebody holding his hand for him doing it cuz that dumb bastard is way too stupid to do juice on his own. HCG (Generic name: Human chorionic gonadotropin) Pregnyl by Organon. 5,000 to 20,000 IU (International Units) per 10 cc vials. This drug is not a steroid but it is widely used in athletics today. HCG is a natural protein hormone secreted by the human placenta and purified form the urine of pregnant women. This hormone is not a natural male hormone but mimics the natural hormone LH (Luetinising Hormone) almost identically. This LH stimulates the production of testosterone by the testis in males. Thus HCG sends the same message and results in increased testosterone production by the testis due to HCG’s effect on the leydig cells of the testis. Normally this HCG is used to treat women with certain ovarian disorders and it is used to stimulate the testis of men who may be hypogonadal. Athletes use HCG to increase the body’s own natural production of testosterone which is often depressed by long term steroid use. Also when steroids are used in high dosages they can cause false signals to the hypothalamus that results in a depressed signal to the testicles. Over a period of weeks of this depressed signal the testicles ability to respond to any signal from the pituitary becomes very weak, which results in testicular atrophy. To avoid this athletes will use HCG to keep an artificial signal going to the testis and preventing testicular atrophy. When administered, HGC raises serum testosterone very quickly. A rise in testosterone firs appears in about two hours after injecting HCG. The second peak occurs about two to four days later. HCG therapy has been found to be very effective in the prevention of testicular atrophy and to use the body’s own biochemical stimulating mechanisms to increase plasma testosterone level during training. Some steroid users find that they have some of their best strength and size gains while using HCG in conjunction with the steroids. This may wee be due to the facts that the body has high level of natural androgens as well as the artificial steroid hormones at that time. The optimal dosage for an athlete using HCG has never been established, but it is thought that a single shot of 1000 to 2000 IU per week will get the desired results. Cycles on the HCG should be kept down to three weeks at a time with an off cycle of at least a month in between. For example, one might use the HCG for two to three weeks in the middle of a cycle, and for two or three weeks at the end of a cycle. It has been speculated that the prolonged use of HCG could repress the body’s own production of gonadotropins permanently. This is why the short cycles are the best way to go. The side effects from HCG use include gynecomastia, water retention, and an increase in sex drive, mood alterations, headaches, and high blood pressure. HCG raises androgen levels in males by up to 400% but it also raises estrogen levels dramatically as well. This is why it can cause a real case of gynecomastia if dosages get too elevated for that person. Another side effect seen from HCG use is morning sickness (nausea and vomiting). There have been no cases of overdose complications with the use of HCG nor have there been any associated carcinomas, liver or renal impairment. HCG was at one point looked at to see if it could carry the AIDS virus, due to the fact that it is biologically active, but the latest word is that this could not be possible in any way. So we see how HCG be used by athletes to avoid some of the problems associated with abruptly stopping a steroid cycle. This product is also not picked up on steroid tests, so some athletes use it to keep androgen levels high before a contest that has drug testing. HCG must be refergerated after it is mixed together, and it then has a life of about 10 weeks. It is taken intramuscularly only; this drug is often available by order of a physician if you show symptoms of hypogonadism. It is hard to find on the black market. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neohionative Posted May 8, 2009 Report Share Posted May 8, 2009 Someone get Canseco back in front of a microphone. I still remember when he was touting his book Vindicated on Lanigan last spring and said that A-Rod was dirtier than hell. I really think its time the sports writers get over their phobia and give him more than begrudging credit. 1) he's an asshole, we all know it 2)he embarassed the major league not once with his use, but many times over by (accurately) labeling other offenders but... 1) as stated above he's been damn accurate in his allegations, unless he penned the Mitchell report in secret, the guy has proven himself time and again 2) that awesome bounce from his head to a home run in the early 90's was classic, still one of my favorite Indians' memories from childhood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. T Posted May 8, 2009 Report Share Posted May 8, 2009 Manny gets 50 days, while A-roid gets a pass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuckeyeDawg Posted May 8, 2009 Report Share Posted May 8, 2009 Manny gets 50 days, while A-roid gets a pass. I don't like arod but the circumstance is different. Arod was found guilty before any rules were in place while Mannys just happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombo Posted May 8, 2009 Report Share Posted May 8, 2009 Someone get Canseco back in front of a microphone. I still remember when he was touting his book Vindicated on Lanigan last spring and said that A-Rod was dirtier than hell. I really think its time the sports writers get over their phobia and give him more than begrudging credit. 1) he's an asshole, we all know it 2)he embarassed the major league not once with his use, but many times over by (accurately) labeling other offenders but... 1) as stated above he's been damn accurate in his allegations, unless he penned the Mitchell report in secret, the guy has proven himself time and again 2) that awesome bounce from his head to a home run in the early 90's was classic, still one of my favorite Indians' memories from childhood He also said he was 90% sure Manny was juicing when no one else ever publicly suspected him. Canseco has more credibility than anyone in baseball right now. Zombo --It's a sad, sad, sad, baseball world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemosley01 Posted May 8, 2009 Report Share Posted May 8, 2009 He also said he was 90% sure Manny was juicing when no one else ever publicly suspected him. Canseco has more credibility than anyone in baseball right now. Zombo --It's a sad, sad, sad, baseball world. I think we have to look at anyone who is hitting like crazy with suspicion. I suspect many pitchers have increased their longevity with steroids as well. The whole sport is dirty as hell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AdaM Posted May 8, 2009 Report Share Posted May 8, 2009 I think we have to look at anyone who is hitting like crazy with suspicion. I suspect many pitchers have increased their longevity with steroids as well. The whole sport is dirty as hell. You might as well just legalize HGH and let them go nuts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
osusev Posted May 8, 2009 Report Share Posted May 8, 2009 it seems to me that the punishment for using drugs is not harsh enough. Hitters using it are effecting contracts for all pitcher because of the Statistics factor in baseball being so important. Pitchers whoever is using these drugs MASSIVELY effect the statistics of everyone involved with the games plus wins/losses and financial contracts. It seems to me that the only real effective prohibition would be a lifetime ban and being struck from all official records. Than the gamble would be so high to take them as to truly inhibit use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCalBrownsFan Posted May 8, 2009 Report Share Posted May 8, 2009 it seems to me that the punishment for using drugs is not harsh enough. Hitters using it are effecting contracts for all pitcher because of the Statistics factor in baseball being so important. Pitchers whoever is using these drugs MASSIVELY effect the statistics of everyone involved with the games plus wins/losses and financial contracts. It seems to me that the only real effective prohibition would be a lifetime ban and being struck from all official records. Than the gamble would be so high to take them as to truly inhibit use. You know what pisses me off, that Pete Rose is banned from baseball, but none of the juicers are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffer X Posted May 8, 2009 Report Share Posted May 8, 2009 You know what pisses me off, that Pete Rose is banned from baseball, but none of the juicers are. Yeah but baseball has always laid it out there about the consequences of betting on the sport, and Rose was stupid enough to do it and then lie about it when there was more evidence than OJ's case (well., not that much). Baseball has always made it known that gambling won't be tolerated basically dating back to the Black Sox scandal. Rose clearly violated it knowing the punishment. So far, there have been no dire consequences for juicers and they are obviously not that exclusive. Steroids have been and continue to be a stone cold epidemic in baseball from the Majors on down to single A and HS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flugel Posted May 9, 2009 Report Share Posted May 9, 2009 Every sport has their Shawne Merrimans. Some say it's okay because EVERYONE is doing it. I've been told I'm no better for BACKING the sport if I KNOW this is going on. Here's where I slam on the brakes and REMIND people that sports as RICH as the NFL have the $$$ to test as deeply as they should. This would INCLUDE detection of the new drug of choice HGH. Does GREED kill this idea? I mean how many double digit millionaires are they sending on an all expenses paid free trip to Hawaii every February with payoffs like $10,000 apiece for the losing Pro Bowl squad and $20,000 apiece for the winning team? Those payoffs are just my guesstimate but I hope you get my point. Think about it the next time you attend a game, pay for parking, buy the tickets, food and beverages for the family after you've paid the price for tickets for all. I haven't mentioned purchasing game jerseys for players that aren't staying employed by the Browns long enough for the exhange value justification. I LOVED the NFL before it got REALLY dirty because I LOVE football. I'm holding out hope this commish will do something about it all to clean up the game. Nothing wrong with getting back to SHEER hard work and stop rewarding the guys that cheat the most. I used to be a HUGE bodybuilding fan when I was naive. But that sport ended up rewarding the biggest cheaters much like the NFL in the 70s. Dallas & Pittsburgh had the most guys cheating so they found themselves in the most Superbowls right? What followed? The thinking that since nothing is being done about it beyond condonin winning at all costs - the ONLY way to beat these guys is to JOIN them in how widespread the winning at all costs mentality needs to be. One problem. They forgot kids want to emulate their heros so the NEXT generation of Jim Haslett and Bill Romanowski would later rationalize the Steelers as to why they did what they did. Like it or not, the NFL has shed a blind eye on this. SI did a casket count of Steelers being buried prematurely. When you see Mike Webster, often confused with Superman in his playing days, dying of a massive coronary at age 50 - you can only ask HOW does Superman die of a weak heart? What are young kids seeing today? Arod, Manny, and Merriman are ALL paid insanely high as elite players in their sport. That's the message like it or not. The ONLY way to beat them is to JOIN them. Any of these guys losing bonuses or an ounce of sleep? What makes them do so? IMO, justifying something as right because EVERYONE is doing it when there's considerable resources to STOP it is a copout. If they clean up the NFL and MLB, who's going to stop watching it? That's my ultimate hope. Do you know when I QUIT following MLB? When it gave me the middle finger for the umpteenth time in it's play stoppage from another absurd strike. What drew people back? Cal Ripken's streak and a bunch steroid cycles chasing a home run record. In the process, the wonderful LONG standing home run records made by guys of average build and non-compromised ethics were deemed forgettable. And folks, Roger Clemons isn't ANY better than Barry Bonds when he referred his wife to the RIGHT guy to set her body up for the RIGHT look in her bikini poses for the magazine shoot. Mrs Clemons used the same road map her husband had for Shortcut City and very coincidentally used the SAME guy. Go figure and guess who allegedly didn't know a THING about it? Haven't you ever just wondered HOW Mrs Clemons knew exactly whom to look to for such a secret shortcut? The SCARY thing is half the Senators at that farce of a hearing Congress held were better at getting Roger's autograph for their children than they were at conecting the dots that led Mrs Clemons to Roger's go-to boy. I'm guessing the autographs behind closed doors made him a more honorable liar than Barry bonds has ever been. If I wanted to follow Counterfeit Champions - I would have been a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. But guess what? I'm a Cleveland Browns fan! Always have been - always will be. If the Browns are juicing more than other teams or they hired a Team Doctor like DR HGH in Pittsburgh, color me naive. - Tom F. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoorta Posted May 9, 2009 Report Share Posted May 9, 2009 Baseball blows, and I'm with Flugs, they went very wrong when a bunch of juiced up posers erased the records of real men with real talent. I haven't followed baseball with any fervor since I was a kid and Charles Nagy was on the mound and Carlos Baerga was at 2nd base. I'll ditto that. Until baseball takes the same stance as track & field, first offense you're gone for two years, next one is a lifetime ban. And void all their records while you're at it. No one shed a tear when Ben "the steroid factory" Johnson got his world record in the 100 wiped out. As far as I'm concerned, McGuire, Sosa's, A-roid, Bonds, & Clemens records all belong in the trash can, and like Pete Rose- no Hall of Fame for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flugel Posted May 9, 2009 Report Share Posted May 9, 2009 I'll ditto that. Until baseball takes the same stance as track & field, first offense you're gone for two years, next one is a lifetime ban. And void all their records while you're at it. No one shed a tear when Ben "the steroid factory" Johnson got his world record in the 100 wiped out. As far as I'm concerned, McGuire, Sosa's, A-roid, Bonds, & Clemens records all belong in the trash can, and like Pete Rose- no Hall of Fame for you. Good points Larry! And I'd LOVE for the NFL to stop making a horrible role model like Shawne Merriman as their poster boy. Do you remember what fan told everyone on our board that gaining 54 pounds of lean muscle in 15 months is physiologically impossible without serious weird science involved? Dude was a NOBODY struggling to gain more reps on a ho-hum Maryland football team PRE-weird science. If the league has the WEALTH to do the right thing - then handcuffing cheaters is every bit as important as handcuffing pass rushers and defensive backs in today's game. It's NOT the game that needs to be corrected - it's the lookaway behind the game they've been cleverly disguising as "winning at all costs" as if positive connotation is deserved. Does anyone REALLY think Jim Haslett or Bill Romanowski tackled ballcarriers any better than Ray Nitchske or Dick Butkus? Has the NFL produced a better RB than Jim Brown since the 60s? My point is the game NEVER sucked before Pittsburgh turned football into the team with the most juice has the most electricity for a Trophy. My favorite football team has always been an EASY choice because I've seen the cheap imitations since the day they changed the name of the Championship to Superbowl. The Browns were in 10 consecutive Pro Football Championships from 1946 to 1955. Could the Boston Celtics even lay claim to such an impressive feat? They won their 8th and last NFL Championship in 1964, which was a decade before the NFL's Dark Ages of steroids. - Cliff Notes Clavin (The author formerly known as Flugel) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beanpot Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 IMO, justifying something as right because EVERYONE is doing it when there's considerable resources to STOP it is a copout. If they clean up the NFL and MLB, who's going to stop watching it? That's my ultimate hope. - Tom F. Terrific post Tom. We've gone down this road for nearly a decade in various formats so while I applaud you for your inclusiveness, allow me to tell the naive to blow it out their ass when they continue to wag their finger at MLB while supporting the NFL. I get why those people prefer one sport to the other, but they're lying their sweet ass off if they point to PEDs as a bullet point. This was hardly a dark day for baseball. Sucked ass for my fantasy team, but not for the sport. Simply validated testing. I'm going to post a terrific column from Craig Calcaterra in a sec, but before that here's Bill James saying something that the children may not like to hear but they're going to think it all the same: You give me the opportunity to earn $22 million a year by taking steroids, I’ll shoot the pharmacist if I have to. I’m not saying it’s right. I’m not saying I shouldn’t be punished for shooting the pharmacist. I am saying it is self-righteous to pretend that I don’t have the same human failings that these guys do, and further, if you are insisting that you don’t have them, I don’t believe you. Calcaterra: Manny’s suspension: less crisis than opportunity by Craig Calcaterra May 08, 2009 Come and step into my time machine for a moment. I want to show you something. (Flash forward) Nov. 3, 2009 LOS ANGELES (AP)—A season filled with ups and downs finished at the highest possible point last night for the Los Angeles Dodgers, as they defeated the Boston Red Sox for their seventh World Series championship in franchise history. "It's a long season," said a champagne-soaked Dodgers manager Joe Torre, "and the key to surviving a long season is staying healthy and team depth, and those are both things we had in spades." (Flash back) I can see that, can't you? As the news of Manny Ramirez's suspension was breaking yesterday morning, the Dodgers were sitting pretty with a six-and-a-half game lead over the Giants and an eight-and-a-half game lead over everyone else in the division. None of the Dodgers' competitors seems poised or equipped to make a run. Last year the Dodgers stood two games out of first place on July 31 when Ramirez joined the team. This year they will likely be at least two games— more, I'd bet—ahead of the pack on July 3 when Ramirez joins the team, impacting them in much the same way any big ticket deadline deal impacts a team. Except his legs will be fresher, his body less battered and bruised by the seemingly interminable baseball season. What's more, the $7 million the Dodgers will have saved could be used for an additional deadline pickup or two, and whoever steps in for Manny will either be helped by having taken the extra reps or definitively determined to be useless, which will prompt the team to make shakeups it might not otherwise have done. Obviously you'd rather have Manny Ramirez in your lineup, but as the old saying goes, crisis is another word for opportunity, and the Dodgers' big lead affords them the luxury to make an omelet out of all of these broken eggs. (Flash forward) Sept. 17, 2011 NEW YORK, N.Y. (AP)—NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will announce today that football players and owners have reached an agreement on a tougher drug-testing program, one modeled after that employed in Major League Baseball, sources said. Discussions regarding a change in the league's testing program have been ongoing for over two years. "It was really the Manny Ramirez thing in baseball that got the ball rolling here," said a source in the commissioner's office who asked to remain unnamed because he was not permitted to speak about the plan before its unveiling. "Sure, football has always been assumed to have less of a drug problem than baseball. And yeah, on paper, the policies were pretty similar. But once Manny was suspended, people started to wonder why none of the big football stars have ever been caught. Our linemen average 320 pounds for cryin' out loud. It strained credulity that the NFL was so much cleaner than baseball, and that's when everyone figured out all of our loopholes and dirty secrets. These days baseball is considered the gold standard of drug testing in American sports, and frankly, we needed to get our house in order too." (Flash back) Probably wishful thinking on my part, but really, isn't Manny Ramirez's positive test and subsequent suspension a good thing for baseball? Isn't it, contrary to the reports out last night, a validation of the testing system? It certainly represents that which baseball's critics sought just a few short years ago: a relatively swift and automatic system that isn't bogged down by union maneuvering and litigation any time a violation is found. It's also strong evidence that baseball's testing regime is not just for show, with the occasional Quad-A player and international prospect sacrificed in the name of false purity. Manny Ramirez is one of the biggest stars in the game, and if he can be caught, anyone can. There certainly has been no NFL equivalent of Manny Ramirez caught red-handed, and I find that quite curious. Regardless, this news, if anything, should give us greater confidence about the current state of drugs in baseball, not less. (Flash forward) July 23, 2018 COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. (AP)—For more than two decades, Manny Ramirez unnerved opposing pitchers while inhabiting the batter's box with an almost preternatural calm. On Sunday, he was calm again as he took the stage for his induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame—the same stage upon which other immortals have broken down with emotion when similarly honored. Guess it was just Manny being Manny one last time. There was a time, however, when such a sight seemed unthinkable. That was in 2009 when Ramirez was suspended for 50 games for violating the league's substance abuse policy. Baseball's anti-doping program was still in its early stages then, and Ramirez was the first major star to be suspended for performance enhancing drugs. At the time, any association with steroids was thought of as a Hall of Fame death sentence. And indeed, it has only been recently that PED-associated players who have long been eligible for induction—players like Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire and Roger Clemens—have been allowed into the Hall without buying a ticket. Why the sea change in national sentiment? "Perspective," said Baseball Writers Association of America President Joe Posnanski. "An understanding of history. An appreciation that steroids, while altering our relationship with the game and its players, didn't alter the game itself nearly as much as many of us thought 15 years ago." Posnanski continued: "As more and more information about what went on in baseball in the so-called 'Steroid Era' came to light, it became apparent that we didn't have a situation in which evil cheaters preyed upon overmatched innocents. Far more players used than initially realized, the effects were scattershot at best, and it eventually became obvious to all of us that, while steroids brought some benefits, they didn't make a Hall of Famer. Sure, 500 home runs doesn't mean the same thing now as it meant when I was a kid, but if we can induct pitchers who threw off of 18-inch mounds, took amphetamines and scuffed baseballs in the '60s, we can certainly induct guys who took HGH in the '90s." (Flash back) OK, I'll admit that one may be the biggest stretch of all, but it's not totally implausible, is it? Each time a new player— especially a superstar—is pushed out of the PED closet, it means that the era in which we've been living is, ironically, less illegitimate than we previously believed. Why? Because the more players who are found to have used PEDs, the less accurate it is to say that anyone truly had an unfair advantage. Sure, on a matchup-by-matchup basis there were users facing non-users, but the caricature of a small group of cheaters ruining it for everyone else in the game grows more ridiculous as each new name surfaces. Let's face the facts: Many, many ballplayers have used PEDs in recent years. So many, that the allegation that any one user had an unfair advantage is at risk of becoming obsolete. As I've said time and time again, rather than demonizing these guys, calling for bans and locking the doors of the Hall of Fame, perhaps we should simply acknowledge that PEDs are best thought of as a generation's unique playing conditions like dead balls, segregated leagues, and giant strike zones. We have no problem acknowledging that 18 wins and a 2.50 ERA didn't make a guy anything special in 1904, so why is it so hard to come to grips with and adjust to the fact that 400 or 500 home runs don't necessarily make anyone special today? Have PEDs thrown us so off our game that we can't tell the difference between a Hall of Famer and and a non-Hall of Famer? I don't believe so, and I think that eventually the writers and historians will realize this too. Okay, our time traveling is over. Pretty trippy, huh? But before you say anything, I should let you know: What we saw was only one potential future. Time is not set in stone, and indeed, there are many other potential futures as well. Which one we actually experience depends on a lot of things. Solar flares. Chaos Theory. How much emotion and how little logic we employ when we come to a historical crossroads. We're at one now, so it's probably a pretty good time to think about rather than simply emote at what lies before us. http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/...an-opportunity/ Beanpot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beanpot Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 I'll ditto that. Until baseball takes the same stance as track & field, first offense you're gone for two years, next one is a lifetime ban. And void all their records while you're at it. No one shed a tear when Ben "the steroid factory" Johnson got his world record in the 100 wiped out. As far as I'm concerned, McGuire, Sosa's, A-roid, Bonds, & Clemens records all belong in the trash can, and like Pete Rose- no Hall of Fame for you. How do you do that exactly? The void their records part. Do you just ignore Sosa's career even though he never once tested positive for performance enhancers? You'd clearly have to do the same for Clemente and everyone in his era, what with greenies stacked on the table of locker rooms for all to enjoy back in the day. Obviously, the same gifts were given to football players. I just don't understand how anyone can be so certain - so positive - that certain players benefited from enhancers while others clearly did not. Beanpot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tobalaz Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 Look, Womanny isn't a bad guy, she was suffering from herniated ovaries. That suspension was so uncalled for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kshutchins Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 HCG (Generic name: Human chorionic gonadotropin) Pregnyl by Organon. 5,000 to 20,000 IU (International Units) per 10 cc vials. This drug is not a steroid but it is widely used in athletics today. HCG is a natural protein hormone secreted by the human placenta and purified form the urine of pregnant women. hCG is the substance detected by home pregnancy tests. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beanpot Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 Look, Womanny isn't a bad guy, she was suffering from herniated ovaries. That suspension was so uncalled for. I liked Dan St. Paul's line - That's just Manny being Tranny. Beanpot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffer X Posted May 10, 2009 Report Share Posted May 10, 2009 hCG is the substance detected by home pregnancy tests. Umm, yeah, but I'm going out on a limb and saying ManRam wasn't taking it for that particular purpose nor was he trying to cut weight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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