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Never woulda guessed

Johnny Dickshot Oct 01 2006 07:01 AM

In equally unsurprising news, he also tested postive for being an asshole. ]Clemens implicated in banned drug case BY LANCE PUGMIRE AND TIM BROWN Los Angeles Times Staff Writers September 30, 2006, 10:49 PM EDT Former Yankees pitchers Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte are among six players accused by former teammate Jason Grimsley of using performance-enhancing drugs, the Los Angeles Times has learned. The names had been blacked out in an affidavit filed in federal court. Others whose identities had been concealed include three members of the Baltimore Orioles: former American League MVP Miguel Tejada, Brian Roberts and Jay Gibbons. The discovery ends four months of speculation surrounding the possible identities of major-leaguers whose names were redacted from a search warrant affidavit filed in Phoenix on May 31. The document was based on statements made to federal agents by Grimsley. Grimsley, a journeyman relief pitcher who played on several teams, including the Yankees, acknowledged using steroids, amphetamines and other drugs, investigators said in the document. He also implicated a number of former teammates, but the names were blacked out in copies of the affidavit that were made public in June after investigators used the warrant to raid Grimsley's house. A source with authorized access to an unredacted affidavit allowed the Los Angeles Times to see it but retained it to read back what had been blacked out of the public copies. A second source and confidant of Grimsley previously disclosed player identities and provided additional details about the affidavit. The sources insisted on anonymity. According to the affidavit, Grimsley told investigators that Clemens and Pettitte "used athletic performance-enhancing drugs." He also said Tejada, Roberts and Gibbons used anabolic steroids. Clemens and Pettitte did not respond to requests for comment made yesterday through their agents and the Astros. Tejada previously declined to be interviewed. Clemens, 44, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner who came out of retirement to pitch for the Astros in each of the past two years, was a teammate of Grimsley on the Yankees in 1999-2000, as was Pettitte, a two-time All-Star and current Astro who is nearing 200 career wins. Grimsley, Tejada, Gibbons and Roberts were teammates in Baltimore during the 2005 season. Grimsley was detained after he allegedly received an illegal shipment of human growth hormones. The shipment was tracked to his Scottsdale, Ariz., home by a task force of federal agents investigating drug use in pro baseball, the affidavit said. For a time, Grimsley secretly cooperated with investigators, they said, but he stopped after retaining a lawyer. According to the 20-page search warrant affidavit signed by IRS Special Agent Jeff Novitzky, Grimsley told investigators he obtained amphetamines, anabolic steroids and human growth hormones from a source recommended to him by former Yankees trainer Brian McNamee. McNamee is a personal strength coach for Clemens and Pettitte. McNamee did not return multiple messages left with his wife and on his answering machine. The affidavit also alleges that Grimsley told federal agents that three of his former Orioles teammates -- Tejada, Roberts and Gibbons -- "took anabolic steroids." All three Baltimore players declined to be interviewed. Roberts said he had "nothing to talk about" and didn't know why Grimsley named him. A sixth player, retired first baseman David Segui -- who played for the Mets in 1994-95 during a 15-year major-league career -- previously came forward to say his name was among those blacked out in the affidavit provided to the public. Segui told ESPN in June that he used HGH on the advice of his doctor as recently as the 2004 season. He did not obtain approval from the league, he acknowledged. Grimsley started this year with the Arizona Diamondbacks but requested voluntary retirement in June after his arrest. The National League also suspended him for 50 games. Edward Novak, Grimsley's lawyer, did not return calls. Previously, he publicly disputed the claims investigators made in the affidavit, saying his client did not volunteer the names of any teammates. He said federal agents asked Grimsley to wear a recording device to gather evidence against San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds, but Grimsley refused. Grimsley has not been charged. Since June, he has complained to friends that federal agents credited him with statements and disclosures he didn't make. "Jason is loyal to the death, a hard-headed guy who would not give up his friends," one of Grimsley's friends said yesterday. "The only names he discussed with those investigators were names [the investigators] suggested to him." The Grimsley friend, who talked about the investigation on the condition that he was not named, said investigators warned the pitcher "if he didn't continue to cooperate, they would expose him as a rat." Clemens has surprised many in the baseball world with his late-career success. Of his 348 career wins, 68 have come since the summer he turned 40. In a controversial tell-all book released two winters ago, former major-leaguer Jose Canseco speculated that Clemens' late career surge reflected "classic signs" of steroid use. "Roger says it is all nonsense," Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, told Newsday at the time. He said the pitcher "takes vitamin B-12 shots and will pass every test." Pettitte, 34, pitched nine seasons and was a part of four world championships for the Yankees, then signed with the Astros after the 2003 season. He helped Houston advance to the World Series in 2005 and won 13 more games this year for a career record of 185-104. Tejada, listed at 5-10, 170, hit 30 homers for the first time in 2000 for Oakland and has established himself as one of the top middle-infield power hitters. He was drawn into baseball's steroids scandal in August 2005 when Rafael Palmeiro, who tested positive for an anabolic steroid and was suspended 10 games, told an appeals panel the test might have resulted from injectable vitamins given to him by Tejada. After investigating, the panel cleared Tejada. Tejada's increasingly sullen demeanor has attracted hometown press coverage in Baltimore, where he also has become a target of complaints from fans for not hustling. Outfielder Gibbons spent late June on the disabled list and rehabilitated a knee injury in Scottsdale, Ariz. On July 5, his father, Jim, acknowledged the player was aware of the affidavit. "Is this about Grimsley?" the elder Gibbons asked a visiting Times reporter. "I'm not saying anything about it. I'll let him know you stopped by." Roberts, listed at 5-9, 170 pounds, hit 18 home runs in 561 at-bats last season, matching his combined total through the previous six years in the major and minor leagues. Grimsley told investigators he used anabolic steroids beginning in 2000, tested positive during 2003 survey testing and switched to human growth hormone, undetectable in a urine test, after that. He also admitted to using amphetamines until the joint drug agreement banned them several months ago, according to the affidavit.

SteveJRogers Oct 01 2006 09:34 AM

Somewhere Michael Kay and Joey Salvia (Michael Kay's board op and the biggest Andy Pettitte fan around, so much he made parodies of "Mandy" in honor of him) are sobbing "WHY ROGER? WHY ANDY?"

Valadius Oct 01 2006 10:58 AM

One day they'll implicate Derek Jeter, and I'll be laughing for a month.

MFS62 Oct 01 2006 12:19 PM

The other player he implicated, not named in this article, was David Segui. I believe Segui has already been explained away... don't recall the details, but he was taking HGH with a valid doctor's prescription because of some particular condition (at least that's the story he stuck with). I think performance enghancing drugs been running rampant in the O's locker room for the past 15 years. They've had so many players' names come up and others who added quick/short-term power that it's ridiculous... add Rafael Palmeiro, Manny Alexander... Brady Anderson... BJ Surhoff went from gimpy singles hitter to a tough power hitter in his 30s. It makes me wonder about guys like Mike Deveraux and Jeffrey Hammonds, too. And maybe even Melvin Mora. Anyhow, listening to Michael Kay should be an interesting experience this coming Monday. Later

Edgy DC Oct 01 2006 01:12 PM

Segui implicated himself, having already retired, making an official statement to say that he was one of those redacted names, and here's why.

DocTee Oct 02 2006 12:37 AM

And let's not forget that Sammy Sosa was an O for a spell, too!

Rotblatt Oct 02 2006 07:48 AM

]"Roger says it is all nonsense," Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, told Newsday at the time. He said the pitcher "takes vitamin B-12 shots and will pass every test." Hm. A user of HGH would pass every test, wouldn't he?

Valadius Oct 02 2006 08:59 AM

As much as I'd love to implicate Clemens... STOP IT!!! Enough is fucking enough already with these goddamn steroid/HGH accusations. I really honestly don't care anymore. Look, when some minor, crappy player goes down, he's going to try and drag down all the big names he can. I don't buy any of this shit. None. Zip, zero, nada, nil. We're gonna let crap accusations by chronic attention-seekers envelop these players, tarnish their reputations and keep the deserving out of the Hall of Fame? This is STUPID. I'm completely sick of it. I don't give a rat's ass that Palmeiro tested positive once. I don't give a crap that McGwire waffled on the spot. I could care less about everybody Canseco, Grimsley, etc. implicated. Whoever deserves it based on their numbers should be in. End of story. The fact is that this is simply what happened in baseball for a few years. You can't prove anything now, but I'm sure anybody looking to sell a book and make a buck will point a finger at anybody and everybody. You can't keep a whole generation of baseball players out of the Hall of Fame. It would be a disgrace to do that.

Johnny Dickshot Oct 02 2006 09:32 AM

Whew. A lot wrong with that rant, starting with the implication that anyone here is arguing against HOF enshrinement. Then there's the mistaken impression that Grimsley was "taking down guys with him," and "seeking attention." He sang as the result of an interrogation and the fact that federal agents had arrived at his doorstep. The last thing he was looking for was attention. Finally you appear to be arguing that you don;t care about it while at the same time appearing quite perturbed by it. Look, CPF: The playoffs are starting and we have to be at the top of our games, posting-wise.

Edgy DC Oct 02 2006 09:34 AM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Oct 02 2006 12:44 PM

]I really honestly don't care anymore. Others do. ]Look, when some minor, crappy player goes down, he's going to try and drag down all the big names he can. Except this was a sealed affadavit with the names redacted, solicited and filed under duress, and not somebody trying to bring others down. The one who tried to bring big names down was Canseco, not a minor crappy player. In fact, dozens and dozens of minor "crappy" players have gone down and gone down quietly. ]I don't buy any of this shit. Why not? ]We're gonna let crap accusations by chronic attention-seekers envelop these players, tarnish their reputations and keep the deserving out of the Hall of Fame? It's hard to charaacterize Grimsley as a chronic attention seeker. Again, Canseco is another story. And the Hall of Fame is not the only matter this is relevant to. ]This is STUPID. I'm completely sick of it. Don't read. ]I don't give a rat's ass that Palmeiro tested positive once. Others do. There were a lot of people cheated. ]I don't give a crap that McGwire waffled on the spot. Yeah, well, you're the one who spent his year in government. That's your Congress he exhibited contempt for. ]I could care less about everybody Canseco, Grimsley, etc. implicated. I guess you don't care. ]Whoever deserves it based on their numbers should be in. End of story. Pete Rose. Beginning of story. ]The fact is that this is simply what happened in baseball for a few years. You're in the passive voice. It didn't happen. People made it happen, with actions, inactions, and choices. ]You can't prove anything now, Sure you can. ]but I'm sure anybody looking to sell a book and make a buck will point a finger at anybody and everybody. Grimsley wasn't looking to sell a book. Canseco, who you are defending, was. ]You can't keep a whole generation of baseball players out of the Hall of Fame. (1) Nobody has suggested that. (2) Yes, you can, if you have the authority and so choose. ]It would be a disgrace to do that. When we're in a place where the disgrace isn't the crime, but the acknowledgement of it, we're in bad shape. Why is it so important to you that you don't want the facts before the public?

metsmarathon Oct 02 2006 10:32 AM

if you're naming names just for the sake of naming names, truth be damned, why include brian roberts and david segui? if you're naming names just for the sake of throwing false accusations out there, isn't it lucky of you to name a guy who comes clean on his own, and has signed affadavits from doctors who'd given him prescriptions for actual medical conditions? or was the inclusion of david sequi, who would admit to HGH use, and brian roberts, who nobody gives a rats ass about, part of some marterful strategizing so as to lend credibility to the clemens, tejada, and pettitte assertions? i find that harder to believe than what is being put out there as the truth.

ScarletKnight41 Oct 02 2006 10:41 AM

If Clemens throwing the bat at Piazza during the 2000 World Series ("I thought it was the bat") wasn't Roid Rage, then what was it?

cooby Oct 02 2006 10:52 AM

I don't give a crap that McGwire waffled on the spot Val, I very rarely disagree with you on issues, but I do on this. McGwire is getting away with it all and Bonds is taking the brunt of the heat.

Elster88 Oct 02 2006 12:45 PM

MFS62 wrote: I think performance enghancing drugs been running rampant in the O's locker room for the past 15 years. All of baseball, really.

Elster88 Oct 02 2006 12:46 PM

="cooby"]I don't give a crap that McGwire waffled on the spot Val, I very rarely disagree with you on issues, but I do on this. McGwire is getting away with it all and Bonds is taking the brunt of the heat. Two reasons: 1) Still playing. 2) Holds the records. Sosa is also getting away with it all.

cooby Oct 02 2006 12:47 PM

I think your right about the "still playing"; it was the reason that came to mind for me, too.

Valadius Oct 02 2006 01:33 PM

Let me clear something up. I do care about it. It upsets me. But I'm sick of hearing about it. We all know it happened. But I've had enough of the scandals. Let's focus on the game of baseball rather than a witch hunt.

Elster88 Oct 02 2006 01:38 PM

Fine. But that's not even remotely close to what your other post said.

Frayed Knot Oct 02 2006 01:57 PM

Clemens on the juice? What's next ... dope on Willie Nelson's tour bus?

MFS62 Oct 03 2006 09:17 AM

Reports today, from the group investigating the use of performance enhancing drugs in baseball, say that there were "errors" in the list of names released. Later

Johnny Dickshot Oct 03 2006 09:24 AM

What's pathetic is how the Internet Scoop Press Association crapped all over itself in this peice. You might recall Deadspin bombed the USA by saying a source IDed a Pujols' trainer, not an MFY trainer, as one redacted in the document. The moment the Clemens story broke in the LA Times they decided that was more trustworthy and issued a lame apology. Now, this "inaccuracies" story breaks -- will they break a rib patting themselves on the back for getting it right all along? Or just admit they're as clueless as anyone and a rotten place to get news?

Valadius Oct 03 2006 10:52 PM

I was surprised when I went to do today's crossword by a Tank McNamara comic strip that humorously summed up what I was trying to say before: