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Lou Merloni Sings

Edgy DC May 11 2009 07:52 AM

Yestereday on Comcast SportsNet's <i>The Baseball Show</i>: <blockquote>"I'm in spring training, and I got an 8:30-9:00 meeting in the morning. I walk into that office - and this happened while I was with the Boston Red Sox, before this last regime - I'm sitting in the meeting. There's a doctor up there and he's talking about steroids, and everyone was like, 'Here we go, we're gonna sit here and get the whole thing - they're bad for you.' "No. He spins it and says, 'You know what, if you take steroids and sit on the couch all winter long, you can actually get stronger than someone who works out clean. If you're going to take steroids, one cycle won't hurt you; abusing steroids, it will.' "He sat there for one hour and told us how to properly use steroids while I'm with the Boston Red Sox, sitting there with the rest of the organization, and after this, I said, 'What the heck was that?' "And everybody on the team was like, 'What was that?' And the response we got was, 'Well, we know guys are taking it, so we want to make sure they're taking it the right way.' Where did that come from? That didn't come from the Players Association. "It wasn't Dr. [Arthur] Pappas or anyone like that, but I don't recall who it was. We'd had many meetings and talks about how bad steroids were, but this one was different. It was the team acknowledging there were people taking it and they were trying to inform us about not abusing steroids. In no way were they telling us to take steroids or encouraging us to do so."</blockquote>Dan Duquette is vociferously denying any knowledge of this meeting. Troy O'Leary also is on record denying any knowledge of it. (Duquette goes on to claim that it could have happened but it certainly wasn't any doctor sanctioned by the Red Sox, and O'Leary that he might have missed such a meeting, so neither has outright denied that such a meeting couldn't have happened.) A good reporter can go down the roster of the team and find some retired player that will corroborate.

metirish May 11 2009 07:58 AM

Hi Lou Rather convenient that Merloni can't remember the Doctor I think.

seawolf17 May 11 2009 08:06 AM

I conflate Lou Merloni with Lou Malnati. (Oh, damn! I just realized... I'm going to Chicago in July! HELL YEAH Lou Malnati's!)

Edgy DC May 11 2009 08:13 AM

="metirish":1h5xnv7b]Rather convenient that Merloni can't remember the Doctor I think.[/quote:1h5xnv7b] Maybe, but he's remembered more than anybody else. themetfairy May 11 2009 08:22 AM ="seawolf17":1iw06wlf]I conflate Lou Merloni with Lou Malnati. [/quote:1iw06wlf] I actually remember Merloni from his Trenton Thunder days, back when the Thunder was a Red Sox affiliate. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr May 11 2009 01:44 PM ="metirish":20xkdie9] Rather convenient that Merloni can't remember the Doctor I think.[/quote:20xkdie9] We had an intriguing presentation in the office two weeks ago about managing workplace transitions (further layoffs are impending). HR brought in a fetching South Asian woman with a sharp-edged medium-length haircut, in a brown, chalkstriped suit and dramatically-high heels. She had some deliberately provocative points about fear-of-change, almost drawing one of our department heads into a shouting match. Her accent sounded vaguely Philadelphian, but when I asked, she told me I was mistaken and avowed that she was Canadian (Winnipeg). Damned if I can remember her name. Blahblahblah. I'm not sure anyone who holds out hope of future MLB employment-- coach, scout-- is going to speak too candidly on the record about this. Nymr83 May 11 2009 01:58 PM ="metirish":13ypim9n]Hi Lou[/quote:13ypim9n] Hi Doctor Nick! Edgy DC May 13 2009 07:51 AM Here's a guy who needs to be deposed.: http://www.nyyankeefans.com/forums/inde ... ntry501666 Yeah, that's right. I'm chilling at the Yankee forum. Frayed Knot May 13 2009 08:05 AM ]For example, Roger Clemens tested positive for steroids at the end of the 2005 season and thats why he missed the beginning of the 2006 season. He wasnt signed until the night after the Astros played 50 games I've heard this theory before but it doesn't hold water IMO. I think people see the 50-game mark and simply run with it. But we all know that Guillermo Mota was able to sign during the winter before the days of the suspension even started ticking off. And, of course, Clemens merely signed on day 51 (assuming that's even accurate) but didn't start pitching until 70-some days had gone by. Why? And then he did the same thing the next season. Then, of course, none of this explains Manny, who only got suspended after only a questionable drug test made MLB do follow-up investigations to confirm their suspicions. Edgy DC May 13 2009 08:09 AM Oh, I think the guy definitely has to add some pieces to the story, but anybody who steers the conversation even a little bit away from players who might have used toward suits who might have facilitated them is somebody who neutral parties should be talking to. John Cougar Lunchbucket May 13 2009 08:31 AM ="Edgy DC":3hu1314s] Yeah, that's right. I'm chilling at the Yankee forum.[/quote:3hu1314s] Say Hi to Steve J Rogers for me. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr May 13 2009 08:36 AM ="Frayed Knot"] ]For example, Roger Clemens tested positive for steroids at the end of the 2005 season and thats why he missed the beginning of the 2006 season. He wasnt signed until the night after the Astros played 50 games I've heard this theory before but it doesn't hold water IMO. I think people see the 50-game mark and simply run with it. Folks have whispered in the same way about Jordan's first retirement-- that it was a secret gambling sanction from Stern-- for years. The circumstantial evidence here-- pretty much "the lengths of time seem to match, don't they?"-- is just as unconvincing (and the non-circumstantial evidence, unless someone kept copious notes, is nonexistent). As plausible as some of the details sound, ultimately, I'm left with the same feeling I get when someone spills the supposed workings of an elaborate-but-workable government conspiracy theory: if 90% of the folks in office can f*ck up something as simple as [tax administration/sunsetting of bills/fill in the blank], how the HELL are they properly administering-- AND keeping the lid on-- something this far-reaching and filigreed? Edgy DC May 13 2009 08:48 AM Yeah, I'm not trying to endorse any particular thing the guy reports, only that anybody who claims to have inside knowledge of suit faciliation needs to point somebody down the trail. Keep in mind, though, that this account comes six months before the Mitchell List, so the notion that MLB was throwing marginal players over while protecting All Stars was still pretty viable. I mean, I guess I remain bothered that the players get raked over while the suits remain free to practice. Steve Phillips position that he had suspicions about his players (apparently accurate, as it turns out) but didn't know what he could do remain pretty weak.