Unconfirmed rumor 2: The next big name MLB steriods bust is...

[Easy Mac]

Johnny Damon. I'm not just throwing names out there, aside from Clemens, Damon's name is almost as concrete in the rumor mill as Clemens. They rumors are 1 AL star and 1 NL star's info will be released later today.

[jeff061]

Damon denies it (http://redsox.bostonherald.com/redSox/view.bg?articleid=98750)

[Philliesfan980]

They've been saying for the last two weeks that "today is the day". When the hell is this actually going to happen.

[Ksyrup]

Today just started, in case you were unaware. :)

[Blackadar]

Baseball Jesus? Say it isn't so...

[TroyF]

While my guess is Damon isn't going to be suspended for this (why would he and Epstein both deny this so strongly if they knew a pending announcement was coming down today?), I was interested in this quote:

`No way,'' Damon said. ``If I tested something positive for anything, then someone threw something in the (sample). I think it's because of the way I'm built. I've had people thinking that since I was in high school.''

Anyone else find that first sentence odd? Why would you say that?

[Leonidas]

The powers that be are flat out denying these rumors.
http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20050810&content_id=1165214&vkey=pr_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
On behalf of the Health Policy Advisory Committee established pursuant to the Basic Agreement, Robert Manfred, Executive Vice President Major League Baseball, and Eugene Orza, Chief Operating Officer of the MLBPA, today issued the following statement:

"We are taking the unusual step of responding to media reports about certain 'rumors' concerning the operation of baseball's drug-testing program. All drug-testing results are reported directly to HPAC, and no one else in the sport has access to them. Positive test results are thereupon reported directly to the player involved. After the exhaustion of any available appeal, disciplines are announced publicly. Reports of large numbers of positive tests currently unreported are totally false. Reports of 'big name' players having the reporting of their test results delayed are totally false. All drug-testing results are processed in precisely the same manner, and without regard to the identity of any player or to the volume of positives at any given time. These media reports and rumors are totally, and completely inaccurate, and do not deserve further comment."

[Ksyrup]

He wouldn't be so stupid as to head-on deny this, and then have it happen, so I have to rule him out. Still, given what an immature and irresponsible ass he turned into the past 5 years, I'd be happy to see him go down.

[Leonidas]

While my guess is Damon isn't going to be suspended for this (why would he and Epstein both deny this so strongly if they knew a pending announcement was coming down today?), I was interested in this quote:

`No way,'' Damon said. ``If I tested something positive for anything, then someone threw something in the (sample). I think it's because of the way I'm built. I've had people thinking that since I was in high school.''

Anyone else find that first sentence odd? Why would you say that?
Actually I understand this from Damon. I knew him when he was in HS, I officiated his track meets. He was a big, well developed teenager. We were always amazed someone that big could run as fast as he did. And this was while competing against future UF, Miami, and FSU football players. Damon was bigger and faster than those guys.

[TroyF]

Read that snippett from Manfred.

Reports of 'big name' players having the reporting of their test results delayed are totally false.

Most of these rumors haven't dealt with delayed test results, they've simply said their appeal process is going to run out.

I'm not looking for a smoking gun in any of these comments, I just find it odd. If no star players are in the pike to get suspended, why not say "No star players have tested positive" instead of saying the above.

I don't call that a denial. If anything, it sounds a lot like the MLB covering their asses when something does come down.

[TroyF]

Actually I understand this from Damon. I knew him when he was in HS, I officiated his track meets. He was a big, well developed teenager. We were always amazed someone that big could run as fast as he did. And this was while competing against future UF, Miami, and FSU football players. Damon was bigger and faster than those guys.


I quoted too much text. I'm talking about the first part of the statement, not the second. "If I tested positive, someone spiked the test"

I don't understand why you'd make a statement like that. It's almost as if you've already prepared your excuse for when and if you do get caught.

[Ksyrup]

It certainly reads as legalese, meant to convey a broader statement than the words suggest upon a closer reading. I should know. :)

[TroyF]

It certainly reads as legalese, meant to convey a broader statement than the words suggest upon a closer reading. I should know. :)

Thanks Ksyrup. I was hoping I wasn't the only person reading it like that.

[CraigSca]

He wouldn't be so stupid as to head-on deny this, and then have it happen, so I have to rule him out. Still, given what an immature and irresponsible ass he turned into the past 5 years, I'd be happy to see him go down.
Yeah, no one ever denies anything and the truth comes out shortly after that proved the initial deny was a lie. Paging Raffy Palmeiro, paging Raffy Palmeiro...

[Ksyrup]

Each fact in that paragraph, taken alone, is probably truthful. It's meant to convey a more general denial than it does, though. For instance, just the two sentences...

Reports of large numbers of positive tests currently unreported are totally false. Reports of 'big name' players having the reporting of their test results delayed are totally false.

...do not deny that a big name player's positive test result is currently unreported. It denies that large numbers of positive tests are unreported (regardless of whether the player is no-name or big-name), and it denies that any big name players have had their tests delayed. Both statements are probably true. And if Roger Clemens or Johnny Damon or some other "big name" is reported today, they haven't lied about it here.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, no one ever denies anything and the truth comes out shortly after that proved the initial deny was a lie. Paging Raffy Palmeiro, paging Raffy Palmeiro...
Different situation, though. When he denied it, he hadn't been caught. Here, if the rumors are true, Damon would know of the positive test result AND the denial of his appeal, when making these denials.

[vex]

Of course they're ALL going to deny it.

[Hurst2112]

I'm still waiting for that one guy from 5 years ago that said he was gonna 'out' a very popular baseball player from an east coast team. Everybody thought it was Piazza, blah blah.

Oh, theadjack!

:D

[CraigSca]

Different situation, though. When he denied it, he hadn't been caught. Here, if the rumors are true, Damon would know of the positive test result AND the denial of his appeal, when making these denials.
Yeah, but Palmeiro is STILL "denying it". He keeps saying "when the truth comes out, I'll be vindicated."

[Celeval]

Reports of 'big name' players having the reporting of their test results delayed are totally false.
So essentially when Gabe Kapler comes out as having tested positive, he's going to be pissed at MLB for calling him a no-namer?

[Ksyrup]

The truth will set them free.

[TroyF]

Each fact in that paragraph, taken alone, is probably truthful. It's meant to convey a more general denial than it does, though. For instance, just the two sentences...

Reports of large numbers of positive tests currently unreported are totally false. Reports of 'big name' players having the reporting of their test results delayed are totally false.

...do not deny that a big name player's positive test result is currently unreported. It denies that large numbers of positive tests are unreported (regardless of whether the player is no-name or big-name), and it denies that any big name players have had their tests delayed. Both statements are probably true. And if Roger Clemens or Johnny Damon or some other "big name" is reported today, they haven't lied about it here.

Yup, I'm not a lawyer, but I deal with insurance companies on a daily basis. That's exactly the way I read it Ksyrup.

The thing is, when someone words a press release like that, it does the exact opposite of what it was intended to do. I automatically assume that there is something they don't want to say.

It can always be a poorly worded PR statement, but in this case the word choices are a little too specific for me. I think a big name will get suspended soon. I'm not going to guess who it is, but by him not just coming out and saying no big name players have tested positive, it actually strengthens the reports in my mind.