In advance of the Mitchell Report being published, there was a lot of talk this offseason about teams possibly shying away from players who had been associated with performance enhancing drugs.
Don’t count the Milwaukee Brewers among them.
Because with the Brewers’ signing of free agent outfielder Mike Cameron last week, the Brewers have acquired three players (since November 2007) who have either tested positive for PED’s or have been alleged to have purchased them.
Let’s take a look …
Signed a one-year deal with the Brewers on Jan 11, 2008.
In 2008, Cameron will miss nearly the entire month of April because he was suspended 25 Games by MLB back in October 2007.
It was Cameron’s second positive test for banned stimulants.
The closer signed a one-year deal with the Brewers on Dec 10, 2007.
Three days later, Gagne was named in the Mitchell Report as having received Human Growth Hormone supplied by Kirk Radomski.
The Dodgers had their suspicions about Gagne and PED’s and the Red Sox also had their doubts before they traded for him last season.
In November 2007, the Brewers traded catcher Johnny Estrada to the New York Mets for Mota in an effort to shore up their bullpen after they lost Scott Linebrink in free agency this offseason.
Back in November 2006, Mota was suspended 50 Games by Major League Baseball for an undisclosed infraction of the banned substances list.
And let’s not forget Derrick Turnbow, who’s been in the Milwaukee bullpen since 2005.
While trying out for the US Olympic team in 2003, Turnbow was the first Major League ballplayer to test positive for steroids. Mind you, MLB had no punishment for such an infraction back then …
Turnbow was also named in the Mitchell Report.
That’s three Milwaukee relief pitchers (Turnbow, Mota and Gagne) who were on something or another.
Might as well rename the Brewers’ Bullpen “The Juice Box” in 2008.
In 2004, Brewers GM Doug Melvin said that steroids were a consideration in researching a player …
Brewers GM Doug Melvin said his team uses a player check list when analyzing available talent. He said steroids have been added to the check list.
“It’s a question you have to ask: ‘Has he had a hint of steroids?’ ” Melvin said. “If the answer is yes, you probably have to be a little concerned and research it.”
And recently, Melvin has toed the MLB line when it comes to the Mitchell Report and PED’s …
The Brewers fully support any and all efforts to eliminate the use of performance-enhancing substances from all professional sports as we believe it is critical to the success of the industry
I guess my question now is how much concern Melvin and the Brewers really have about players who have used performance enhancing drugs, considering that they’ve acquired three of them in the past three months.
And all of them had suspensions or serious questions about their involovement in PED’s before they signed them.
Entries (RSS)
January 14th, 2008 at 11:26 pm
You forget: They need really strong guys from round 2 of Ned Yost’s bean ball wars with the Carindals. They aren’t there to play ball; they’re there to fight!
January 14th, 2008 at 11:31 pm
Agreed!
January 15th, 2008 at 11:36 am
How do they sleep at night?
January 28th, 2008 at 4:08 pm
Turnbow was kept out of the Olympics for testing positive for a precursor to steroids that wasn’t banned by MLB. A precursor is not a steroid.
The banned substances list include non-PEDs.
There is considerable debate whether HGH is a PED as well.
Your post sounds like you might have done a bong or two before you wrote it. I certainly won’t hold that against you.