By John McMullen
The Phanatic Magazine
Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell unveiled his report on performance-enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball Thursday.
The much-anticipated 311-page report revealed the names of numerous players who purchased and possibly used performance enhancing substances after a 20- month investigation.
The biggest names not previously tainted by rampant accusations were future Hall of Fame pitcher Roger Clemens along with his friend and former teammate with the New York Yankees and Houston Astros, Andy Pettitte.
"For more than a decade there has been widespread anabolic steroid use," Mitchell said at a press conference announcing the findings. "Each of the 30 clubs had a player or players involved in taking illegal substances."
Other names listed in the report were Barry Bonds and current or former All- Stars like Jason Giambi, Benito Santiago, Gary Sheffield, Lenny Dykstra, Brian Roberts, Chuck Knoblauch, David Justice, Mo Vaughn, Paul Lo Duca, Denny Neagle, Miguel Tejada, Mike Stanton, Fernando Vina, Kevin Brown, Eric Gagné, Brendan Donnelly and Rondell White.
Lesser names mentioned were Marvin Benard, Bobby Estalella, Jeremy Giambi, Randy Velarde, David Segui, Larry Bigbie, Jack Cust, Tim Laker, Josias Manzanillo, Todd Hundley, Mark Carreon, Hal Morris, Matt Franco, Jason Grimsley, Gregg Zaun, F.P. Santangelo, Glenallen Hill, Ron Villone, Ryan Franklin, Chris Donnels, Todd Williams, Phil Hiatt, Todd Pratt, Kevin Young, Mike Lansing, Cody McKay, Kent Mercker, Adam Piatt, Jason Christiansen, Stephen Randolph, Jerry Hairston Jr., Adam Riggs, Bart Miadich, Mike Bell, Matt Herges, Gary Bennett, Jim Parque, Chad Allen, Jeff Williams, Howie Clark and Nook Logan.
Others include Rick Ankiel, David Bell, Paul Byrd, Jose Canseco, Jay Gibbons, Troy Glaus, Jose Guillen, Darren Holmes, Gary Matthews Jr., John Rocker, Scott Schoeneweis, Ismael Valdez, Matt Williams and Steve Woodard.
Mitchell's examination also described a "serious drug culture within baseball, from top to bottom," and blamed both the commissioner's office and the players' union for fostering the problem.
The report details how the players, as well as clubhouse personnel, allowed steroids and other banned substances in clubhouses, or knew about it and stayed silent.
Mitchell recommends MLB implement new policies, including investigations without positive tests, improved educational programs, and enhanced year-round testing as well as hiring an independent drug-testing company that advocates transparency.
The league's current testing program is overseen by a joint management-union Health Policy Advisory Committee, with an independent administrator approved by both sides.
Most of Mitchell's investigation was based around former New York Mets clubhouse attendant and bat boy Kirk Radomski, as well as Brian McNamee, a former trainer for the Yankees and Clemens.
The report claims that Clemens approached McNamee and brought up the subject of using steroids, claiming he was unable to inject himself. Clemens eventually asked McNamee to inject him with Winstrol, which Clemens supplied. McNamee claims he injected Clemens approximately four times in the buttocks over a several-week period with needles that Clemens provided. Each incident reportedly took place in Clemens's apartment at the SkyDome in Toronto.
According to McNamee, he injected Clemens with Winstrol through the end of the 1998 season and Clemens's performance showed "remarkable improvement." During this period of improved performance, Clemens told McNamee that the steroids "had a pretty good effect" on him.
Mitchell, also a director of the Boston Red Sox, was tabbed by commissioner Bud Selig in early
2006 to head an investigation into steroid use by MLB players.
Baseball had been beset with reports, testimony and legal wranglings of players using performance-enhancing drugs, and at the center of the issue was Bonds, the game's all-time home run king, who recently appeared in U.S. District Court in San Francisco and pleaded not guilty to perjury and obstruction of justice charges stemming from his alleged performance-enhancing drug use.
Selig has scheduled a news conference at 4:30 p.m. (et) to discuss the findings in the report and MLBPA executive director Donald Fehr is expected to follow with his own briefing at 6 p.m. (et).
Read the entire Mitchell report here.
No comments:
Post a Comment