Who is clean?

FavreFan1971 · May 8, 2009 2:27AM

With all of the crap coming out on baseball, again. Who out of this list who is clean? I added my thoughts.

Albert Puljos - Dirty
Ryan Braun - Clean
Jim Thome - Dirty
Ryan Howard - Clean
Prince Fielder - Clean
Griffey - Clean
Sheffield - Does a bear dump in the woods? DIRTY
Andruw Jones - Dirty
Helton - Clean
Sesxon - Dirty
Jim Edmunds - Clean
Chipper - Dirty
Delgado Dirty
Pudge - Dirty
David Ortiz - Dirty
David Wright - Dirty
Chase Utley - Dirty
Hank Blalock - Clean
Justin Morneau - Clean

What are your thoughts. These are just my opinions. I have no proof at all. Well besides Sheffield hanging around Senor Bonds.

lsutigers1973 · May 8, 2009 2:30AM

<< Jim Edmunds - Clean >>

Who is that guy?

<< Chipper - Dirty >>

You have to be kidding. He is the one guy on your list that had the best excuses to use roids but his numbers have never changed to reflect such usage.

Elemenopeo · May 8, 2009 2:36AM

Madison - Dirty
Unger - Clean

leathtech · May 8, 2009 2:50AM

<< With all of the crap coming out on baseball, again. Who out of this list who is clean? I added my thoughts.

Albert Puljos - Dirty
Ryan Braun - Clean
Jim Thome - Dirty
Ryan Howard - Clean
Prince Fielder - Clean
Griffey - Clean
Sheffield - Does a bear dump in the woods? DIRTY
Andruw Jones - Dirty
Helton - Clean
Sesxon - Dirty
Jim Edmunds - Clean
Chipper - Dirty
Delgado Dirty
Pudge - Dirty
David Ortiz - Dirty
David Wright - Dirty
Chase Utley - Dirty
Hank Blalock - Clean
Justin Morneau - Clean

What are your thoughts. These are just my opinions. I have no proof at all. Well besides Sheffield hanging around Senor Bonds. >>

did you flip a coin to figure all this out?

billwaltonsbeard · May 8, 2009 2:51AM

Brett Favre is dirty.

I dont mean steroids either....he's just dirty

Yankees001 · May 8, 2009 2:52AM

You actually believe 9 of the 19 players listed are clean?

I doubt Griffey is clean, he was a rookie towards the start of the era. I would have to say he used them at least once from 1989-2000. After 2000 he was injured so often who knows. He played with too many users.

Sheffield- he was involved with BALCO

I'll give you Morneau, Fielder, Howard and Braun.

Chipper Jones that is a good question.

Dave

OAKESY25 · May 8, 2009 2:53AM

I think chipper is the real deal.. and i am not a huge chipper fan

rbdjr1 · May 8, 2009 2:54AM

Miguel Cabrera - Maybe it is only a little baby fat?

fuj · May 8, 2009 3:02AM

In my mind just about everyone is suspect at this point. I have a very short list of players that I can say with relative confidence did NOT use PEDs. Here's the ones that quickly jump out at me:

David Wells
John Kruk
Rod Beck
Rick Reuschel
Tony Gwynn

NickM · May 8, 2009 3:05AM

Why do you assert Sexson is dirty? IMO he's from the Dave Kingman mold - tall guys with broad shoulders, who are all-or-nothing hitters. They will rack up a lot of home runs. Jeromy Burnitz was the same way.

Nick

Bosox1976 · May 8, 2009 3:05AM

Maybe one or two guys on each team who are, and always have been, clean (high school, college, minors, bigs) - max. Everybody is suspect.

richtree · May 8, 2009 3:22AM

I played competitve baseball at a high level and had a couple of minor league tryouts. At one time I myself and the other college captain did a "survey/review" of all our teammates. We concluded that 28 of 34 players have tried some form of steriod. Basically, because it was cheap and available everywhere. Many guys didn't think it was fair that players of lesser talent were playing over them because they decided to use steriods that season.

Out of the 28 that tried it only a few used it often. Meaning more then trying it out, or more than one cycle.

I don't think past players understand what was going on at the time. Many supplements over the counter, on websites, or even in your local vitamin store are banned substances now. Many of these supplements are now considered "steriods/PED's".

Overall, it is pretty impossible to find out everyplayer that did or didn't use. Also, there are a ton of guys that probably tried it and said, "Nah, this isn't for me".

With all the vairables and different levels of use and abuse I think the situation is to liquid to try to go back and intestigate any particular players.

Lastly, what are we the people of the US getting out of this. One, Mlb did nothing during the summer of Sosa/McGwire when he was all juiced up with bottles of andro in his locker for post-game interviews. Two, embarassing a player for a mistake? Why is it that baseball players can be pulled in front of congress and told that they have to tell the truth or an investigation will follow? This doesn't happen to senators or celebrities who cheat on their wives, do recreational drugs.

MLB is playing the role of the victim when they should be taking alot of the blame here as well. There is nothing to gain by identifying what players have/have not used other than for our own personal inquiry and to keep them out of the hall of fame.

Just imagine the FBI, Senate, and other government funding is being wasted on this when the U.S. economy is worse than it has every been in the last 70 years. I want more jobs for my friends with 50,000 plus in student loans and can't get a 30,000 a year slaray. I don't really care if they find out Clemens did the "sauce" because the bottom line is even if Clemens, Bonds, McGwire, Sosa, and more all admit it, (which we already knew) they will just try to find the next guy and the next guy. Government money down the tubes. My money down the tubes.

Sorry for rant. I wanted to type more but just can't take this anymore and think the public feels the same way.

cheers

artistlost · May 8, 2009 3:34AM

David Wright dirty? I think (er rather hope) he's clean

mathew

FavreFan1971 · May 8, 2009 3:36AM

<< 

did you flip a coin to figure all this out? >>

No, I looked at who never went to Purdue and put them on the list because only knobs go or like Purdue

markj111 · May 8, 2009 3:41AM

Thome? If he's dirty he needs a refund. His stuff turned him into a lardbucket.

storm888 · May 8, 2009 3:53AM

"...MLB is playing the role of the victim when they should be taking alot of the blame here as well. There is nothing to gain by identifying what players have/have not used other than for our own personal inquiry and to keep them out of the hall of fame.....

Just imagine the FBI, Senate, and other government funding is being wasted on this when the U.S. economy is worse than it has every been in the last 70 years....Government money down the tubes. My money down the tubes....

Sorry for rant. I wanted to type more but just can't take this anymore and think the public feels the same way..."

///////////////////////////////////////////////

I like your "rant."

The guys who write the checks are ALWAYS the most blameworthy.
(That is the rationale for "John Laws.") MLB is really the ONLY villain
in this controversy, but the fans paying for tickets are guilty of some
things, too.

The government has NO desire to deal with the nonsense. The antitrust
exemption is their only entry point; if MLB was doing "right," the govt
would NEVER have said a word.

The CHEATING players need to be identifed and their numbers need
to be annotated in the books. BB is a game BUILT on statistics; that
is one of the MOST interesting things about the game. (The WHOLE
backside of our baseball cards is devoted to THOSE numbers!!!!) The
CHEATERS have ruined that, but it can be fixed.

MLB is short on moral courage; always has been.

Yo Commish....... RELEASE THAT LIST.....TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!

Speculation - like we have in this thread - would largely END, if we
could simply see the list. Guessing is understandable, but it is unfair
if we guess wrong.

If I was a non-cheating player, I would be DEMANDING that the list be made
public NOW.

thunderdan · May 8, 2009 3:54AM

Pretty sure Ichiro is clean.

Other than that, I suspect all or nearly all of them have tried PED at one time or another.

fur72 · May 8, 2009 3:55AM

What does everyone think abour Jeter if I may ask?

Edit to say: In Torre's book "The Yankee Years" Joe said "Andy Pettitte had bad mood swings" wonder why that was?

mealeworm · May 8, 2009 3:58AM

I think JR is clean. He never lifted a weight in his life. That being said if you are going to use PED's you would atleast get in the gym ONCE. End result we will never know who is really clean and who is dirty that never got caught. It is sad anyway you look at it.

Dave

Brian48 · May 8, 2009 3:59AM

Left is clean.
Right is very, very dirty.

leathtech · May 8, 2009 4:14AM

<< 

<< 

did you flip a coin to figure all this out? >>

No, I looked at who never went to Purdue and put them on the list because only knobs go or like Purdue

>>

that makes much more sense... I think you should stick to flipping coins.

matthewbschultz83 · May 8, 2009 4:17AM

<< Why is it that baseball players can be pulled in front of congress and told that they have to tell the truth or an investigation will follow? This doesn't happen to senators or celebrities who cheat on their wives, do recreational drugs. >>

Last I checked Guys that make movies or star in them don't have anti-trust exemptions from the US Government. Thats why the US Government can get involved and other sports can give the Senate the Heisman.

Hey everytime you throw Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa, Andruw Jones, or anybody else that you are pretty sure that used steroids please go on a rant over Shawn Merriman, The Williams Brothers in Minnesota, Deuce McAllister, etc. from the NFL that have actually been found guilty of using steroids. Allow me to make an accusation here on how many members here have cheated on a spouse, cheated on an income tax return. I have a real problem with people making blanket accusations on who does/doesn't use steroids.

This whole situation gives me severe tired head and frankly I don't care anymore. I am more mad about Arod tipping pitches than using steroids, because now he is messing with another players livelihood. That is if that accusation is actually true. After Selena Roberts wrote what she wrote regarding the Duke lacrosse team before all the facts were in and refused to write another column after she basically proclaimed their guilt in NY Times and used mostly unnamed sources to claim Arod tipped pitches, I am suspect of what she says as well.

Look I think MLB has this somewhat under control. Manny got caught!!! I think this shows if you use you'll get busted. So you say Chipper is "dirty" wouldn't he get busted? Yes I know there are ways around the tests, but why take that chance? The stigma for getting caught is pretty bad. As I don't think the ones proven guilty will get in the Hall. I support baseball and will always be a fan. I think we need to put down the pitch forks and torches.

thunderdan · May 8, 2009 4:18AM

All natural, baby. I think I've found my new avatar. Me at Gold's gym this morning.

swartz1 · May 8, 2009 4:32AM

Gabe Kapler - Dirty

rbdjr1 · May 8, 2009 4:35AM

<< All natural, baby. I think I've found my new avatar. Me at Gold's gym this morning. >>

He's going to need a "new pickle transplant", just so he can take a wiz!

rd

matthewbschultz83 · May 8, 2009 4:36AM

swartz1 have you ever done anything wrong? What basis do you have for this claim? The works out religiously so that makes him a user? How would you feel if your boss claimed you stole some money because you started driving a nicer car and wearing nicer clothes. Or if your wife accused you of an affair if you had lunch with another woman?

lanemyer85 · May 8, 2009 5:29AM

you've got guys on that list who have already been busted but Thome dirty? Have you ever heard a Thome interview? He's a total hick and a really spiritual family guy. I seriously doubt Thome has ever taken anything. The dude is just country strong as they say and his numbers are falling off as you'd expect from someone pushing 40. There is no change in body type and no spike in numbers. He was always a HR or Flyout or BB or K total uppercut hitter. I"d put Howard, Hafner, and Dunn in that same naturally big & strong category but I wouldn't be shocked to see Howard or Hafner turn up juicers.

I can see the questions with Chipper because of his late career spike in BA. His power numbers haven't really changed over the years but I"ve heard that the spike in BA is related to him finally actually making an effort to improve himself by watching extensive video on opposing pitchers which allegedly he didn't do before a couple years ago. Who knows for sure but I can see the questions with him based solely on the BA spike. If he were on something I could see perhaps HGH as opposed to anabolic steroids simply because HGH's greatest benefit is improved eyesight and you have this late career spike in BA...but I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt as of now.

For ELITE STAR players since the Canseco/McLiar era began I think the only four elite players who were clean were
Jr Griffey
Frank Thomas (dude was always huge and his numbers have fallen off at the appropriate age)
Maddux
Pedro
You would think to put the Big Unit in there as well but I'm a little suspicious of a guy who throws that many sliders and is still pitching in his mid 40's...I don't consider Glavine to be an elite player otherwise I'd put him on that list.

Star players who haven't already been officially busted that I'd bet my Banks RC are/were dirty
Bagwell
R. Alomar
Sosa
Juan Gonzalez
I-Rod (aka the human bobblehead)
Pujols
McLiar
Edmonds
Luis Gonzalez
Shawn Green
Bobby Abreu
Piazza
Bret Boone
Helton
Giles Bros

I wouldn't comment on current young players like Braun and Wright because there isn't enough of a career sample size to gauge effects of steroid use. They simply haven't played long enough to see a spike in any particular numbers or whether they tail off at the end of their careers like they should....except for Pujols because there's just too many smoking guns around him already with his trainer and JC coach getting pinched with HGH and basically I'm suspicious of anyone in the Cardinals organization given the history of guys LaRussa has around him like coach Dave McCay who was the "strength and conditioning" coach during the days of widespread juice in Oakland.

and I have serious questions on
R.Johnson
Delgado
Biggio (mainly because of the relationship with Bagwell & Caminiti and later career spike in power).
Jeff Kent
Andruw Jones (although I'm guessing his refusal to stay in shape plays a big part of the drop in production)
D.Ortiz

lanemyer85 · May 8, 2009 5:42AM

matthewbschultz83 I hear what you're saying and I don't often agree with much of anything Tony Cornheiser says, but like he said on PTI yesterday, "the players haven't done anything to earn our trust". When they do get caught it was their doctor's fault, or they didn't "knowingly" take PEDs, or MLB's fault for not explaining better what "supplements" are or aren't on the banned list, or it was their Dominican cousin's fault. The players and their union who are supposed to be there protecting them have created this mess. It's their union who have fought to keep PED testing out of the game since the early 80's. When the next MLB CBA comes up in 2011 blood testing will be a major sticking point because in the end that will be the only way to prove who is or was clean.

fur72 · May 8, 2009 6:08AM

No comment on Jeter? I would like to think he is the gold standard but I would like to hear what others think.

lsutigers1973 · May 8, 2009 6:15AM

<< Or if your wife accused you of an affair if you had lunch with another woman? >>

I went to lunch with my mom and sister today.

FavreFan1971 · May 8, 2009 6:19AM

<< 

<< Or if your wife accused you of an affair if you had lunch with another woman? >>

I went to lunch with my mom and sister today. >>

Um, I was at lunch with your mom too. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm,

TheThrill22 · May 8, 2009 6:30AM

I don't think Thome is dirty, not at all.

ElToroLoco · May 8, 2009 6:37AM

Kirby Puckett, Ryne Sandberg,Tony Gwynn,Dale Murphy,Will Clark, Wade Boggs,Rickey Henderson, etc.....................

NickM · May 8, 2009 6:39AM

lane - Pedro was among the players Canseco named as likely users.
Biggio's power spike is attributable to changing home parks from the Astrodome to Enron in 2000. 2005: 26 HR - 19 at home, 7 away; 2006: 22 HR - 15 at home, 7 away. By comparison: 1993: 21 HR - 8 at home, 13 away; 1995: 22 HR - 6 at home, 16 away.

Nick

lawnmowerman · May 8, 2009 6:45AM

Who cares?

edit: Not directed at you NickM. Just the thread in general

FavreFan1971 · May 8, 2009 6:48AM

<< Who cares?

edit: Not directed at you NickM. Just the thread in general

>>

Actually not directed at the thread in general. Just the thread generator. What a fool.

richtree · May 8, 2009 6:50AM

You can't just tell who has and has not.

Brady Anderson probably did but was never caught.

No one in the world would think Wally Joyner would be a "juice" type guy, but he admitted it.

Lastly, Texas aren't the anti-trust agreement's established between the union and MLB. So, could you explain why this allows Senate to pull players up at will. Please use an example, not MLB, to compare how this is allowed.

**Mark McGwire looked like a bumm that day in front of senate but today I respect him 100000000 times over for 1. - not lying, 2. not letting some guys push him around and not releasing any of the information from his past.****

matthewbschultz83 · May 8, 2009 6:50AM

<< Who cares? >>

Couldn't agree more.

Again with the thread in general.

matthewbschultz83 · May 8, 2009 6:58AM

Basically Baseball doesn't want to lose their anti trust status and if the senate wants to talk to a few players MLB generally agrees. If you want to read up on it feel free to google it. There are several articles out there.

I assume you were referring to me when you said Texas.

richtree · May 8, 2009 7:07AM

Yes, and Yes, Texas....

I have been reading up on it.

I still don't know how Senate could just pull the players up there.

It boggles my mind because I know the Players Union wouldn't allow that but yet they couldn't stop it. Especially with players that were not active McGwire, Rafael, Sosa etc.

I still stick to all my original points in my rant, lol.

richtree · May 8, 2009 7:08AM

pretty soon every MLB player will have to have a "MLB sanctioned chef" travel with them 365 days a year in fear that someone may put a Steriod into their food or drink and taint their career...

its crazy

lawnmowerman · May 8, 2009 7:15AM

<< 

<< Who cares?

edit: Not directed at you NickM. Just the thread in general

>>

Actually not directed at the thread in general. Just the thread generator. What a fool. >>

I guess I should have said not directed at you NickM or you TroyJ or the thread but directed at baseball.

I'm tired of all the cheating douchebags. I will just assume they are all dirty from now on.

Screw baseball. I can't wait till September.

Bottom9th · May 8, 2009 7:18AM

<< You can't just tell who has and has not.

>>

It's all just conjecture. We'll never really know for sure.

storm888 · May 8, 2009 7:18AM

The doc here contains links to EVERYTHING you might
ever want to know about antitrust and MLB.

the full scoop

//////////////////

I believe that the best book on the general subject is

Antitrust Paradox

Written by a great American and a true patriot.

I try to read the whole thing at least once a year, because it gives
me hope that someday the strong - and not the protected - might
actually prevail.

matthewbschultz83 · May 8, 2009 7:40AM

After Reading that. It just reaffirms my original thought. I HATE CURT FLOOD.

What a baby. I don't want to play in Philadelphia, I want to play in St. Louis. Where else could a high school educated African-American make as good of living in the 1960s? (Which isn't right, but just stating a fact). Now we have higher ticket prices, very rarely does a player play his entire career with one team, higher sales tax to pay for stadiums that owners aren't on the hook for the city is, etc.

Not trying to high jack the thread, but I have more issues with the exorbunant (sp?) player salaries and as a result higher ticket prices than I am with players taking steroids.

I love baseball more than just about anything. Matt, I assume your September refrence was to football, which I like as well. But it doesn't compare to baseball. There are just as many steroid users in football as baseball. Again nobody seems to care? Where are people coming unglued about Shawn Merriman who goes to the Pro Bowl after missing 4 games for drug violation. Ty Law got busted for HGH! But if he baseball player does he should go to hell and every limb ripped from his body and beaten by them? This thread was originally dedicated to being a judge and jury on who's taken PEDs. Can we start a new one with the football players who take steroids, the NBA players who smoke pot, the Hockey players with alcohol problems? Baseball is still better, its the great game. Its better than football. It has no clock, no way to seal the victory by taking a knee. You have to pitch to the other guy, you have to beat him to win the game. And the team thats down still has hope until that last out. The pace and rhythm of baseball is unlike any sport.

I'll make the point steroids make more a difference in football than baseball. Again no one cares. Lets discuss which up and coming star who hasn't a good week just cycled off the juice.

lanemyer85 · May 8, 2009 10:05AM

"No comment on Jeter? I would like to think he is the gold standard but I would like to hear what others think"

no real reason to be suspicious of Jeter. His career numbers have a natural ebb & flow (hit .349 in 1999 then a couple years around .300-.320 and then hit .343 again in 2006) of up and slightly down years...and it's not like he came out of nowhere to be a great player or anything (like Piazza) he was the #6 overall pick in 1992. Plus if you look at his numbers over the last few years you'll notice his SLG and OBP are dropping off which generally tells you that his bat speed is slowing down and that he's likely "cheating" to get around quicker on certain pitches which is completely natural for a nearly 34 year old. His career path is completely natural for a star player his age. If he hits .350 again as a 40 year old then there's probably something up...

stown · May 8, 2009 10:44AM

Every 'Stro, from past to present, has and always been clean.

Edited to add except for Pettitte because he's a backstabbing pr!ck. With friends like that, who needs enemies.

lanemyer85 · May 8, 2009 1:14PM

either that or ground zero for many of the 90's juicers

Bagwell

matthewbschultz83 · May 8, 2009 2:08PM

<< either that or ground zero for many of the 90's juicers

Bagwell >>

Pure Fiction. Everyone knows ground zero for 'Roids was about 300 miles north of Houston on I-45...with guys like Raffy, Jando, Pudge, and of course Jose....

Also I can tell you two of those names are pure fantasy as I have met and spent 3 days with Robin Ventura and John Olerud and they weren't on the juice.

I will make the claim that Roger Maris took steriods. Came out of nowhere after a couple of mediocre years in KC, exploded in 1960 winning the first of 2 consecutive MVPs. We all know what he did in 1961. By 1963 he was on the decline, only getting 500 more ABs once in his career. After 12 years he was done, owning the most prestigious record in baseball history all while taking steroids.

Ernie Banks, Willie Mays, Clemente, Mantle, Kofax, Drysdale, name a star from the 50s or 60s that has a down year and they bounce back where they on juice??? C'mon people give this a rest. Tony Gwynn, REALLY.

StanTheManMusial · May 8, 2009 5:39PM

<< you've got guys on that list who have already been busted but Thome dirty? Have you ever heard a Thome interview? He's a total hick and a really spiritual family guy. I seriously doubt Thome has ever taken anything. The dude is just country strong as they say and his numbers are falling off as you'd expect from someone pushing 40. There is no change in body type and no spike in numbers. He was always a HR or Flyout or BB or K total uppercut hitter. I"d put Howard, Hafner, and Dunn in that same naturally big & strong category but I wouldn't be shocked to see Howard or Hafner turn up juicers.

I can see the questions with Chipper because of his late career spike in BA. His power numbers haven't really changed over the years but I"ve heard that the spike in BA is related to him finally actually making an effort to improve himself by watching extensive video on opposing pitchers which allegedly he didn't do before a couple years ago. Who knows for sure but I can see the questions with him based solely on the BA spike. If he were on something I could see perhaps HGH as opposed to anabolic steroids simply because HGH's greatest benefit is improved eyesight and you have this late career spike in BA...but I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt as of now.

For ELITE STAR players since the Canseco/McLiar era began I think the only four elite players who were clean were
Jr Griffey
Frank Thomas (dude was always huge and his numbers have fallen off at the appropriate age)
Maddux
Pedro
You would think to put the Big Unit in there as well but I'm a little suspicious of a guy who throws that many sliders and is still pitching in his mid 40's...I don't consider Glavine to be an elite player otherwise I'd put him on that list.

Star players who haven't already been officially busted that I'd bet my Banks RC are/were dirty
Bagwell
R. Alomar
Sosa
Juan Gonzalez
I-Rod (aka the human bobblehead)
Pujols
McLiar
Edmonds
Luis Gonzalez
Shawn Green
Bobby Abreu
Piazza
Bret Boone
Helton
Giles Bros

I wouldn't comment on current young players like Braun and Wright because there isn't enough of a career sample size to gauge effects of steroid use. They simply haven't played long enough to see a spike in any particular numbers or whether they tail off at the end of their careers like they should....except for Pujols because there's just too many smoking guns around him already with his trainer and JC coach getting pinched with HGH and basically I'm suspicious of anyone in the Cardinals organization given the history of guys LaRussa has around him like coach Dave McCay who was the "strength and conditioning" coach during the days of widespread juice in Oakland.

and I have serious questions on
R.Johnson
Delgado
Biggio (mainly because of the relationship with Bagwell & Caminiti and later career spike in power).
Jeff Kent
Andruw Jones (although I'm guessing his refusal to stay in shape plays a big part of the drop in production)
D.Ortiz >>

Let's stop telling lies, and make sure the info is accurate on Pujols.

Pujols' Trainer

<<A Myth Debunked; or Another Reason to Believe in Pujols

Since I am tired of seeing the ignorance of some, I feel the need to clear something up:

With the dark side of baseball still coming to light, the game and some of its hallowed records have been tainted, including Maris' record broken in 1998, a season and an epic homerun chase often credited with helping save the game from the after-effects of the 1994 strike. Some might say that baseball is in need of saving again. Because of the prevalence of steroid use in years past, and the ongoing revelation of this use, many of today's stars that have played through even a part of the Steroid Era will be targets of speculation. Not least among these is Albert Pujols. With the fall of A-Rod, Pujols has become, for many, the next in line to bring baseball out of the Steroid Era. These people believe in Pujols, and look to him to "reclaim" the Homerun Crown from "B*nds." There are others, though, that are just waiting for him to be revealed as the next big name to have juiced. Most of these people, convinced of his guilt, base their speculation on little more than the fact he can hit. Only one "fact" has been put forth that could cast doubt on El Hombre. Perhaps you have heard the name Chris Mihlfeld. He has been Pujols' strength trainer since the slugger was playing for Maple Woods Community College in KC. And in June 2006, Mihlfeld's name, and thus, Pujols' name, suddenly came front and center in the investigation of steroid use in baseball. It's time to set the record straight about Mihlfeld.

It started with a report from the online sports site "Deadspin." At the time, one of the big stories was Jason Grimsley, an Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher that admitted to using performance enhancing drugs and gave investigators the names of other players that had also used PEDs. He also named a "personal fitness trainer" that "once referred him to an amphetamine source." From his statements came an affidavit. The affidavit initially hit the media with the names blacked out, and on June 8, Deadspin published a report claiming to have a source that knew some of those names. One of those was supposedly the name of that trainer, and in the report Deadspin named Chris Mihlfeld.

Naturally, other media outlets picked up the story and ran with it. Keith Olbermann did a particularly scathing piece on Mihlfeld the following day on his show "Countdown" (the piece appears about midway down the page on the link given). Mihlfeld, meanwhile, vehemently denied the report and defended himself and Pujols, even stating that Grimsley, and Grimsley's lawyers, told him he was not named in the affadavit. The denials did nothing to dissuade the masses.

Obviously, the news was huge, but what it seems Deadspin, Olbermann, and the others in the media failed to do was check the source and actually confirm the information given. Fast forward to October 1 of the same year. The LA Times published an article that essentially shredded the claim that Mihlfeld was named in the Grimsley affidavit. The report got a few things wrong, but it was dead on about Mihlfeld. He was not named in the affidavit. What name did they reveal as the trainer mentioned by Grimsley? Brian McNamee. Yes, the same Brian McNamee currently embroiled in the Roger Clemens debacle. The same Brian McNamee that has admitted to injecting Clemens and others with steroids. Brian McNamee, not Chris Mihlfeld.

The day after the LA Times article, Deadspin issued an apology to Mihlfeld.

When the Grimsley affidavit was unsealed by the court in December, Mihlfeld was unequivocally vindicated, as there was no mention of his name anywhere in the document. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done, and to this day, it seems, Mihlfeld is still dogged by the accusation. I see it frequently here. Usually by people that don't know what they are talking about. But, once or twice, I've seen normally well-informed members of FN propagate the erroneous report. It's false, people.

Which brings me back to Pujols. I realize there will be those that will always have their suspicions. I can't change that. But let it be clear now that those suspicions are merely that--suspicions. There is no factual basis for any of them. The solitary "fact" that could have cast doubt on whether Pujols is clean has been debunked. The suspicions that remain are nothing but baseless conjecture. So, if you are one of those people that believes baseball needs a some sort of hero to bring baseball out of the Steroid Era, Albert Pujols is as good as any.>>

StanTheManMusial · May 8, 2009 5:43PM

There ARE some good guys still playing, and I am here to tell you Albert Pujols is one of them. All the people that enjoy bashing him, or the fans that stand up for him, just want him to be guilty of something so they can tear him down. Sadly, that's what a lot of society enjoys doing these days. If the haters took half the time they use to tear Pujols down, to learn what the guy is truly about, they would know where he stands. If you stand up for a player on this board, then you get bashed or accused of juvenile stuff like being brainwashed. Hardly the case..

You know what, there ARE genuine people who live their life by principles, morals, and faith in God. It's cool in the mainstream of society to knock people of faith these days, but I will say it again, Albert Pujols IS/HAS BEEN clean, and I will enjoy every at bat of his career, because we are seeing one of the greatest hitters to ever play the game. I guarantee you that he will never be found to have been a PED user, because that's not Albert Pujols. He is a good man, not perfect, who serves God, loves his family, and cares about the kids/fans who look up to him. As Albert has said, he IS a clean player, and he appreciates what God has done for him too much to ever do anything that silly, because it could all be taken away from him in the blink of an eye. Albert is living for God, and you can see what God is doing in Albert Pujols' life, by blessing him with a great family and career.

Imagine if you came home and your wife had receive calls from numerous people that you were sleeping around on her, when you truly was not? Imagine if your wife starts to doubt you or actually buy into the lies? How can you restore your good name, or trust from your wife? How can you get back what was stolen from you? How would you feel if that caused problems/torment in your life, when you truly were innocent? Think about it, people. If a player is caught, then I have no problem with someone saying their piece about that player, but until then, it's absolutely pointless/classless to toss out cheap speculation.

Learn who Albert Pujols really is

Who is clean?

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