26 to 6

If there's room I'm in. I was active pretty much daily last year so that's not going to be an issue with me. Let me know. If there's no room no biggie.

Are you serious dude? OK, first off Papi, if he used, is not the only Red Sox player to have used steroids. I believe there were 12 in the Mitchell Report. And that's not counting those that we don't know about. It really isn't fair to compare the number of players when we don't know exactly who was using. And if the Sox fans want to make the argument, as they've done for years, that we don't win game 7 in 2003 without Giambi's steroid-enhanced bat, then it's only fair to say the same thing about games 4 and 5 in 2004. Let's be real here. I honestly can't say I'm shocked at some of the responses from you guys here in this thread.

Wrong thread pal. Bud is crazy if he does this. I've always been a Selig supporter, but this is ridiculous.

Yeah exactly. It's a perfect fit and I'm surprised it's taken this long. They're not going to contend anyway.

He went wrong a lot of places in that interview, including that question. Aside from the first two minutes of the interview where he said "yes, I did it" the whole thing was ridiculous. Made me sick, especially having to see it 300 times on SportsCenter within a 24 hour period.

Millar to the Blue Jays on a Minor League deal is finally done.

Great post. Thanks for the insight.

I was planning on going up to Toronto for a few games, but the money I had saved for that now has to go to a new car, unfortunately. There's always 2013 I suppose.

And you believe every word he says? Lets look at things from the flipside. If we take A-Rod or Clemens or even Pettitte at his word we're being stupid and nieve. You really think a f***ing protein shake could have that effect of Ortiz? Dude juiced, he knows it, we know it, you know it. You can just tell by reading his quotes, just like you could just tell the other day that A-Rod was lying. Hop off his dick buddy and face reality/

Guilty. I can't wait to see how some of the sox fans who have relentlessly bashed the yankee orgnaization react to this. The way I look at it is that this is just another indication of just how rampant it was. Everyone was doing it. But with that being said I hope this marks the end of all the talk about how we should be ashamed that our championship teams were comprised of Performance Enhanced players, because if not for Papi and his steroids there is no 2004 championship in Boston.

wow this is pretty crazy. first i ever heard of Alomar having AIDS. Pretty nuts story

So what is your point? They both require that you physically play the game. I bet you just as many, if not more injuries occur this spring in big league camps than in WBC camps. Wow I must have missed the Traber signing, I was completely unaware. He broke camp in the Yankee bullpen last year but eventually struggled in the bigs and was up and down all season. He's got a good arm, maybe he can do something for you guys.

The way I see it a player can just as easily get injured in his team's spring camp as he can in the WBC.

That would be the optimum goal. That was sort of the purpose of the Mitchell Report, to provide closure. Everyone should have known that having the 2003 results still under wraps would only lead to a situation like this at some point. They need to release every known name so everyone can move on and put this to rest.

Mike was right to kill him today. I didnt hear much of it today, only about 30-40 mins, including the spot with Al Leiter, but I'm so sick of hearing about it I couldnt bear any more than that. Also, I wanted to point out an interestign point that Al Leiter made. There's a misconception that 104 players (including A-Rod) tested poitive in the 2003 survey testing. That's not in fact true. Most players were given multiple tests throughout the year and it's actually 104 positive SAMPLES. So a lot of them can be the same player testing positive 2 or 3 times. We would need to see the list of names to know for sure, but I figured I would just throw that out there. I found that interesting.

I never heard him say he used since High School, but if he did say that I would believe it. You certainly aren't stupid. And yes we are both in agreement that he made a conscious decision to use. Absolutely. I can see the pressure of that contract getting to him and him feeling the need (it wasn't really a need, he could have been a top player without them) to use to "Keep up with the Jones's." Like I said that doesn't justify or make it right, but that was the mind-set of many of the players who used. I do believe that his use began in 2001, and not when he was in Seattle. many disagree, and I don't blame them. But just by looking closely at pictures I do believe that. Whether it ended in Texas as well, like he stated, who knows. I know that since a testing policy was first put in place in 2004 he has not failed a drug test, and he has slimmed down a little bit from the monster he was in texas. Is it possible he's been using HGH or some other hard to detect substance since being with the Yankees, yes. but it's not fair to speculate. I really think he may have felt guilty and may have stopped altogether. Maybe. Maybe not. I agree, I want to see the rest of the names as well. And I think after seeing the interview 7389429 times that it was a weak job by him. he took the right approach and came otu about it, but there were tons of holes in what he said and he tip-toed around the issue completely. He bullshitted Peter Gammons the whole time. But I expected that from a guy as conscious of his image and the media as him. I wish he would just be honest too, but I'm sure the union and his lawyers advised him to respond how he did. Absolutely. That GNC over the counter ******** is a load of crap. He is very conscious of what he puts into his body, as he even said in the interview (the same interview in which eh said he didn't know what he used). There is no way he didn't know what he was using. He absolutely did.

Me too. He'd be a good fit in St. Louis. The Dodgers invited Jeff Weaver to spring training to compete for a spot in the bullpen. http://hotstove.mlblogs.com/archives/2009/02/dodgers_sign_jeff_weaver.html Nice to see him and Torre reunited

Possible Sheffield and Giambi were there, true. Andy and Roger were not when A-Rod came to town.Aand with the testing I doubt either of the 3; Sheff, Giambi, or A-Rod were "juicing." HGH is a possibility, but there's really no way to prove anything. What the f*** are you talking about man, I'm just relaying the quotes and putting into perspective the enormous amount of pressure he was under and the exposure he had to it in Texas. Nobody has been harder on A-Rod than me here, NOBODY. You're stupid if you think most of the users weren't pressured into it over the years. Most of them felt they had to do it so thye could stay afloat in the league. Not that I'm trying to justify their actions, but pressure is a significant contributor to the problem.

Wow listen to you. Since he first came into the league huh? Stfu. When eh came to NY in '04 regular testing was implemented for the first time. And if you look at any pictures of him in Texas compared to now he does look smaller. Not much because he's such a strong guy anyway but you can detect the characteristics. si.com has a year by year gallery of A-Rod pictures, go take a look at it. His veins were big and bulging during his Texas years, not so much now. Now like i said, I'm not saying there's no chance he used here; but I do believe him because of the testing being implemented, the pysical appearance, and the fact that he wasn't exposed to the culture of steroids here in NY in 2004 that he was in Texas. Look at the guys on those teams. He was obviously being influenced in some way. Not that that justifies what he did, but he didn't even know what substances he was taking, just that they were illegal. He says "honestly i couldn't tell you what I tested positive for." I believe him. When you have guys like Juan Gonzalez, Palmeiro, Pudge, etc., etc., etc. in your clubhouse running wild with the s*** and exposing you to ti it's more likely you'll give in. Most of the Yankee's steroid users were gone by the time A-Rod got here, testing was in place, and you saw hsi numbers slightly decline. Plain and simple though, no matter the duration of his use he was WRONG. I don't even think A-Rod needed to use, he's such a great player anyway. Like he said he was "stupid." And he'll be judged for this mistake for the rest of his career.

At least he's not hiding and denying it. He admitted to Peter Gammons and ESPN that he did in fact use during his tenure in Texas. Starting in 2001 after he signed the contract until he got hurt in Spring training of 2003. He claims he stopped using after that. He claims that all of his time in New York he has been clean. I have no reason not to believe him, but of course the possibility exists that he isn't being 100% truthful. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3894847 Interview will air on Sportscenter at 6.

I think the Hall of Fame should consider adding a mark or branding of sorts to the plaques of players who used steroids. If a player who was proven to have used steroids gets inducted, add a notation of some kind to the plaque. And if a player who is already in, or gets inducted and is later proven to have used add the notation at that point. You could even take it a step further and include it for all players who broke or violated a rule, that way guys like Shoeless Joe and Pete Rose can get in, but still have their infractions recognized. Idk maybe a black plaque or some kind of mark. That's opening up Pandora's box though, and the Hall of Fame debate is a whole other conversation in itself. Just an idea to throw out there though.

Of course there's an issue of the other 103 names not coming out and the fact that this anonymous information was made public, but I don't really care. No Yankee fan should be more about that than the fact that our best player used steroids, for whoever brief or long a period. I'm still angry, I don't see those feelings subsiding anytime soon.

Yeah but they're above par compared to everyone else's numbers, many to most of whom were also benefiting from use. Look at the hundreds of guys named in the Mitchell Report as well as these various other reports and "lists" that have come out over the years. Only a microscopic percentage of them have put up these numbers. Guys like Clemens and Bonds, as well as some others in the discussion were putting up great HOF numbers even before the suspected periods of their use. They're still significantly better than everyone else making up the playing field. Sure, the numbers are skewed, but thats just a fact that we have to accept with this era, all of the numbers are skewed, ALL OF THEM. There's nothing we can do about that but accept it and take it into consideration when looking back on the books. They were still above their peers during the duration of their careers, just like every other Hall of Famer. I'm just making a point regarding the HOF debate. Sure I think it's understandable to skip them over during their first few years of their eligibility and not send them in on their first ballot, that's more than fair. But eventually I feel these guys should get in.

Yeah seriously please. Exactly my point when considering guys like Clemens and Bonds, maybe to a lesser extent McGwire, as well as some others both current and former, who now apparently include A-Rod for the Hall of Fame. I understand the feelings of those who want to keep them out 100%, because what they did tarnished the game. But they were and still are extraordinary players who were forces in the game and put up HOF numbers, and even though significant portions of of their careers (some longer than others) were assited by PED use, they were still great players in their own right especially considering that every other Joe's who used Steroids or other PEDs didn't put the freak numbers that Bonds and Clemens and A-Ro(i)d have put up. 762 HR in a career, 7 Cy Youngs and 4672 strikeouts. Well above what everyone else was putting up at the time, many of whom were being assisted by the same drugs.

You have Griffey listed in there. In my eyes in light of todays revelations Ken Griffey Jr. is the greatest player of our generation, period. I really don't think he used, he has too much respect for the game. It's not like he got any assistance in the injury recovery department. If it weren't for his injuries, which wouldn't have caused him to miss nearly as much time as he did if he were on roids, he would be in the debate for best player ever. That's just my opinion though.