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AL Playoff Outfielder Tested Positive for Steroids?

GYC Oct 29 2005 06:08 PM

Really, really sorry if this was posted, but I didn't see it on the first 2 pages. http://journals.aol.com/dcsportsguy/mrirrelevant/entries/2162 ]AL Playoff Outfielder Tests Positive for Steroids Deadspin's 'Who's the Mystery AL 'Roider?' post from yesterday included the following excerpt from this week's USA Today Sports Weekly: "An American League outfielder on a postseason team tested positive for steroids, according to his agent, but the player is appealing the results." Certainly interesting, but I didn't make much of it until we talked to Baseball Prospectus' Will Carroll on today's Sports Bloggers Live. Will writes a weekly column for BP that Peter Gammons has called an "industry standard," and he also wrote a book called 'The Juice' earlier this year. His response when told of the rumor? Carroll: "I really can't talk about it right now. It should be coming out within the next two weeks." SBL: "Is this a name we're actually going to care about?" Carroll: "Yes." SBL: "Is it a World Series champion?" Carroll: "I really can't talk about it." SBL: "I would hope not, because that might turn those White Sox black... Will, cough once if he's on the White Sox... Cough twice if it's Gary Sheffield." Carroll: "I was involved in the appeals process so I can't comment at all." Here's the full audio interview. The dialogue dictated here takes place between 6:20 and 7:00. If this is true, there's a 1-in-4 chance someone on the White Sox used steroids this season and then contributed to Chicago's first World Series victory since 1917. And there's a 100% chance a player used and then participated in the playoffs. So... Who was it? And what would Selig do if that player was the World Series MVP or the Game 2 hero? Would it be a Black Sox-level fiasco? Say it ain't so, Jermaine! Given what we presume to know -- that the guy is in the AL, made the playoffs, is relatively significant and plays outfield -- the list of possibilities is only 12-deep: · Chicago: Podsednik, Dye, Rowand · Anaheim: Anderson, Guerrero, Finley · New York: Matsui, Sheffield, Williams · Boston: Ramirez, Damon, Nixon As a fan of the game and none of the teams or players involved here (actually, Vlad is rad), I hope none of them are guilty. But if one is, I certainly hope he isn't on the White Sox. Discuss. My guess is, that if the rumor is true, it's Dye. Don't know why. Just my feeling. I wouldn't be surprised if it was Anderson or Podsednik because they were both injured earlier in the year and it could be a part of recovery. Sheffield doesn't have an agent, so it lessens the chance (at least, according to this posting).

mlbaseballtalk Oct 29 2005 06:20 PM

Both Damon and ManRam have been targets of whispers Hell so has Vlad Not sure if all this really "taints" championships, a great point I always use is the emphenimes used by the 1980 Phillies! File this one though into the same rumor bin that had Damon and Clemens being outed "in the next few days" back in August

Valadius Oct 29 2005 06:26 PM

Steve Finley. That's my gut feeling.

Johnny Dickshot Oct 29 2005 06:50 PM

Will Carroll isn't exactly Mr. Reliable.

Nymr83 Oct 29 2005 07:03 PM

my feeling is that its not really a name that anyone but a fan of the team will care about, its the 4th or 5th outfielder for one of these teams. i dont think 1 guy on a championship team usingroids makes me want to take away the trophy or anything, but it would certainly be a black mark on them and something the fans of that long suffering team don't deserve.

Edgy DC Oct 30 2005 07:59 PM

Well, Carroll answers an explicit yes when asked if it's a name people will care about. What are emphenimes?

silverdsl Oct 30 2005 10:10 PM

Johnny Dickshot wrote: Will Carroll isn't exactly Mr. Reliable. Especially after reading the interview he did for [url=http://www.baseballmusings.com/]Baseball Musings[/url]. Scroll down to Oct. 29 to read it. Major backpedaling from Carroll and I can see why - he did a major disservice to every AL outfielder in the post-season by helping spread a rumor that one of them uses steroids, when it sounds like that's all it is - a rumor. That's a pretty serious accusation. In addition, if it did happen that he was involved in the appeals process, if there's even one going on, then what is he doing talking about it?

mlbaseballtalk Oct 30 2005 10:25 PM

Edgy DC wrote: Well, Carroll answers an explicit yes when asked if it's a name people will care about. What are emphenimes? Botched spelling of greenies, speed, uppers, or whatever jargon you want to use for those drugs

Edgy DC Oct 30 2005 10:50 PM

Amphetamines? Well, the 1980 Phillies, if you believe reports, are neither the first nor the last team to abuse those.

mlbaseballtalk Oct 30 2005 11:03 PM

Edgy DC wrote: Amphetamines? Well, the 1980 Phillies, if you believe reports, are neither the first nor the last team to abuse those. First team to come to mind thats all

Nymr83 Oct 31 2005 11:53 AM

Edgy DC wrote: Well, Carroll answers an explicit yes when asked if it's a name people will care about. i know, i just have a feeling that his definition of a guy "people will care about" is not the same as mine.

KC Nov 02 2005 04:45 PM

I lose track of where to post stuff these days, but I don't think this has been posted. Matt Lawton has been suspended for steroid use.

Nymr83 Nov 02 2005 04:54 PM

thanks for the update...i've gotta give that a big ::yawwwwn:: after the buildup Carroll gave it.

silverdsl Nov 02 2005 04:58 PM

I'll give Carroll that there was in fact a positive test. But Lawton wasn't even on the post-season roster for the Yankees and he was pretty awful for the Yankees when he was with them during the regular season. So I'm not sure this is a positive test that is going to send shockwaves through the game like he implied that it would.

sharpie Nov 02 2005 05:04 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Nov 02 2005 05:08 PM

He (Lawton) also said that he would retire if he wasn't starting for a contender.

Johnny Dickshot Nov 02 2005 05:07 PM

It is good that YET ANOTHER Yankee has been caught. Sheff Giambi Lawton Heredia... Are they the juiciest team in baseball?

seawolf17 Nov 02 2005 05:14 PM

Considering that (a) nothing's officially official on Sheff or Giambi yet, and (b) Heredia and Lawton are just as ex-Met as they are ex-Yankee, I wouldn't gloat just yet. Besides, I thought the Bay Area teams were the Juice Kings, due to the BALCO connections.

Centerfield Nov 02 2005 05:14 PM

Well, Felix is technicially our's....

Nymr83 Nov 02 2005 05:27 PM

Giambi admitted it without really admitting it, but where was Sheffield implicated? was he one of the BALCO witnesses, i don't really remember.

Johnny Dickshot Nov 02 2005 05:29 PM

Sheff admitted he used but pretended he thought it was skin lotion. How soon we forget. The Yanks also had an obvious abuser in Clemens.

mlbaseballtalk Nov 02 2005 07:06 PM

silverdsl wrote: I'll give Carroll that there was in fact a positive test. But Lawton wasn't even on the post-season roster for the Yankees and he was pretty awful for the Yankees when he was with them during the regular season. So I'm not sure this is a positive test that is going to send shockwaves through the game like he implied that it would. Well Lawton kind of, sort of, is the biggest "name" so far, a former All Star, guy was on a Twinkie team that made a good run but was traded just before they started winning divisions And he was traded for Roberto Alomar! It is also possible that he isn't the guy Carroll is talking about, though I wouldn't blame him if he THOUGHT Lawton had landed on the Yankee postseason roster for 2005. I think he was on their "inactive but can be for the next series" list though Steve

Nymr83 Nov 02 2005 07:51 PM

Johnny Dickshot wrote: Sheff admitted he used but pretended he thought it was skin lotion. How soon we forget. you're right, i forgot. Johnny Dickshot wrote: The Yanks also had an obvious abuser in Clemens. i hate clemens as much as the next guy, but theres as much evidence, even anecdotal evidence, that he took as there is for Piazza or any other big looking star.

Johnny Dickshot Nov 02 2005 07:54 PM

Yeah, but I'm being intentionally ignorant in an attempt to reform the Yankee fan.

MFS62 Nov 02 2005 08:23 PM

Johnny Dickshot wrote: Yeah, but I'm being intentionally ignorant in an attempt to reform the Yankee fan. We support you in your Holy mission. Go forth, my son, and reform the sinner. Later

Frayed Knot Nov 03 2005 12:15 PM

The aforementioned Will Carroll talks about Lawton http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=4584

Edgy DC Nov 03 2005 12:26 PM

I've got to appreciate Carroll's detail in getting the facts and being honest about what is unknown.

silverdsl Nov 03 2005 02:24 PM

Personally, I'm still not comfortable with Carroll's involvement - was the question of whether he was involved in the appeals process ever settled? If he was then he definitely shouldn't be talking in this much detail about Lawton. If he wasn't then why did he saw he was in the first place?