Category Archives: MLB
List of 103 who tested positive in 2003 leaks out?
Who else is on the list of 103?
In the recent months both Alex Rodriguez and Sammy Sosa have been outed for violating baseball’s drug poolicy back in 2003.
They were not alone however.
In total, 103 players failed the drug test in 2003. Those players faced no repercussions as the test was implemented to determine if there was widespread use of steroids.
Rodriguez and Sosa have been the only names revealed from the list but 101 still remain.
Many people have been clamoring for the full release of the list saying they cheated and therefore should be outed while others believe they took the test with the knowledge that the results would never be made public so the document should be destroyed.
A few days ago rotoinfo.com posted the rumored list which may have been leaked. You can take the list for whatever you want but it is interesitng. The odds of this list being correct may be slim but some of these names have been linked to steroids in the past.
Check out the rumored list by clicking read more.
Interleague Play Starts Again
Last month we were teased with only 3 games of interleague play. Tonight starts the 17 day event and I wanted to re post what I wrote about
Interleague Play starts again tonight
interlague play last month.
The fans love interleague play as attendance increases 10% for interleague games. The players on the other don’t love it. In a recent survey approximately 70-75% of MLB players said they did not like interleague play. Interleague play started in 1997 but has the novelty worn off?
Interleague play gives rivals matchups that previously would not have existed. If you live in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, the Bay Area, or Missouri there are huge rivalries between the two teams in each city and interleague play gives us these matchups that we otherwise would not have seen. But with some of these matchups also comes some awkward matchups. No one is getting excited about a Rockies and Tiger matchups. Also each team plays about 18 games so they’ll have six games against a rival and the rest against another team that isn’t nearly as exciting.
Ibanez Steroid Use?
Earlier this week on miswestsportsfans.com they wrote an article about Raul Ibanez and tried to explain his torrid start to the season.
Ibanez lashes out about possible steroid use
To summarize the article briefly he brown down his stats and looked at what ballparks he hit the home runs and off what pitchers and also looking at his career statistics. After doing all of that he said speculation of potential steroid use, while unfair, is warranted.
After that the story blew up and not before long mainstream media was talking about it. The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote a story in which the author called it a cheap shot. Then Raul Ibanez lashed out about the allegations saying “I’ll come after people who are trying to defame or slander me.”
Ibanez went on to say “”You can have my urine, my hair, my blood, my stool — anything you can test, I’ll give you back every dime I’ve ever made if it’s positive.” He added “I’ll put that up against the jobs of anyone who writes this stuff. Make them accountable…”
Then on Outside the Lines the blogger, the columinst, and a writer for foxsports discussed it the issue. The discussion was mainly a two on one bashing of the blogger who couldn’t say anything without getting shut down.
Strasburg Goes Number One…Worth the Hype?
As expected the Washington Nationals selected San Diego State pitcher Steven Strasburg with the first overall pick in the MLB Draft. 
Strasburg absolutely dominated the opposition this season going 13-1 with a 1.32 ERA and 195 strikeouts with only 15 walks.
Strasburg has a fastball that reaches 100 mph, a nasty curve, and a good change up that he rarely used in college.
Strasburg is represented by Scott Boras who is certain to squeeze every penny out of the Nationals as he can. There have been rumors that he will demand $50 million to sign which would shatter the previous record. The Nationals need to meet his demands or it will be a huge embarrassment for the entire organization. Lat year they failed to sign thier first round pick and if they didn’t sign Strasburg the fans might revolt.
Many scouts have called this kid the best pitching prospect ever and some even said he could pitch in the majors right now. That is high praise for a kid who pitched in a relatively weak conference. I’m not saying he will fail but the expectations are outrageous.
Who else was on the Juice? Part 2
Yesterday I listed seven players whose stats were suspicious and may have used steroids. You can read that here. Today I’m adding to that list
and honestly you can go on forever throwing out names but these were the most obvious names to me.
I want to note again that I’m not accusing these players of using steroids but rather their statistics seems to show possible suspicious behavior. With that being said let’s get on to the list.
Nomar Garciaparra
In his first full six seasons in the league Nomar hit over 20 homers every years and hit over 30 twice. Then in 2004 and 2005 when testing got stricter Nomar hit only 9 homers in each season. Injuries played a part in his demise but he had a severe loss in power that can’t be explained totally by injuries.
Barry Zito
It’s very hard to tell with pitchers if they used steroids and I could be way off with this one and Zito is the only pitcher I put on this list. In 2002 Zito win the Cy Young award winning 23 games and had a 2.75 ERA. He pitched good the next few seasons but when he went to the Giants in 2007 in his prime at 29 he was awful. The NL is far easier to pitch in than the AL and the drop-off is shocking considering how good he once was.
Who else was on the Juice?
Manny Ramirez is the latest name being accused of using steroids joining the likes of Bonds, Clemens, and McGuire. With Manny being ousted it 
now begs the question of who else was on the juice? In the recent era of baseball it is impossible to say that someone was not on steroids. It’s guilt by association and while it’s unfair to the guys that were clean that’s just the way it is. The only players I can say I’m fairly confident never took steroids or any performance enhancing drugs are Greg Maddux and Derek Jeter. With A-Rod and Manny being the latest big names to be on steroids it’s only a matter of time before everyone starts accusing Albert Pujols of using steroids.
I want to note that I’m not accusing these players of using steroids but rather their statistics seems to show possible suspicious behavior. With that being said let’s get on to the list.
Brady Anderson
In 1996 at the age of 32 Anderson hit 50 home runs more than he hit in the previous three season combined. That season was perhaps the mst out of the blue power surge in MLB history. His previous career high was 21 and the most he hit after that year was 24.
Brett Boone
With the Seattle Mariners from 2001-2004 Boone hit 37, 24, 34, and 24 home runs. Those seasons were when Boone was 32-35 years old. Almost half of his career home runs came during those seasons. In 2005 when baseball had tougher steroid testing Boone hit just seven home runs and never played in the majors again.
Luis Gonzalez
Gonzalez was a below average major leaguer until he came to the Diamondbacks in 1999. He hit 57 home runs in 2001 at the age of 34 and never hit more than 31 any other season. Before coming to the Diamondbacks his career high for home runs was 23 and hit more than 23 home runs six times with the Diamondbacks.
Manny Ramirez in the All Star Game?
Currently Manny Ramirez is fourth in the National League outtfielder voting for the All Star Game. Manny is also currently serving a 50 game suspension for violating baseball’s drug policy. Since this news came out fans have put up mock websites to vote for Manny similar to what fans did a few years ago for Sanjaya on American Idol.
With the increased media attention it looks like Manny will get elected to the starting lineup and that will be quite embarrassing for the MLB. Manny is eligible to return on July 3 so there is no way he can’t play. Bud Selig might ask Manny to sit out due to the circumstances but I doubt he would risk the repercussions and most likely will pray that Manny declines to play.
The support for Manny means one thing. The fan don’t care about performance enhancing drugs and steroids. Manny is the biggest name to get suspended for violating the MLB’s drug policy yet the fans still love him. Fans want to see the most talented players and the biggest names play in the All Star Game. Can you really blame them? In the recent era of baseball you can’t tell who was on steroids and who wasn’t. The fans seemed to have moved on but its baseball writers who haven’t are are so outraged about this. But they have their own argument because they feel like they were cheated by the players during the steroid era.
Rays in Trouble?
The Tampa Bay Rays were the darling of the MLB last season advancing to the World Series in their first playoff appearance in franchise history. This year though, hasn’t been going so smoothly. They have lost two in a rwo and last night bloew a 10 run lead to the Cleveland Indians who are in last place in the AL Central. The Rays woke up this morning at 23-24 and in 4th place in the very completive AL East. So the question becomes are the Rays in trouble?
Interleague Play Kicks Off
Interleague Play beings tonight giving us a tease of what to expect when the 17 day event begins next month. There are some very good matchups including the Phillies vs. Yanks, Mets vs. Red Sox, and the Angels vs. Dodgers. There are also some pretty dull ones including the Rockies vs. Tigers, Pirates vs. White Sox, and the Athletics vs. Diamondbacks.
The fans love interleague play as attendance increases 10% for interleague games. The players on the other don’t love it. In a recent survey approximately 70-75% of MLB players said they did not like interleague play. Interleague play started in 1997 but has the novelty worn off?
