MLB Steroid Scandal

[sahyder1]

Thursday, December 2, 2004

ESPN.com news services

Jason Giambi admitted to a federal grand jury that he took steroids and human growth hormone in 2003, according to transcripts of testimony obtained by the San Francisco Chronicle and published in the newspaper's Thursday editions.

The New York Yankees slugger's admission in December 2003 contradicts denials he has made since then that he never took performance-enhancing drugs.

In the testimony obtained by the Chronicle, the former American League MVP told the grand jury investigating the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative steroids case that he used steroids obtained from Greg Anderson, the personal trainer for San Francisco Giants star Barry Bonds.

Jason Giambi was the AL MVP in 2000 with the Athletics.

Anderson's attorney, Tony Serra, declined comment to the Chronicle, citing a court order.

Giambi did not implicate Bonds in his testimony; he pointed out that Anderson was secretive about who he was working for and what he was doing to help other professional athletes.

In the transcripts obtained by the Chronicle, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Nedrow asked Giambi, "Did [Anderson] ever say, 'Don't be talking about getting stuff from me?' "

"That's what I mean by saying that he made it so, you know, private, that you know, 'Hey, don't say anything, don't talk about anything,' " Giambi told the grand jury. "You know, I assumed because he's Barry's trainer -- you know, Barry -- but he never said one time, 'This is what Barry's taking, this is what Barry's doing.' He never gave up another name that he was dealing with or doing anything with."

Bonds, a seven-time National League MVP, has denied using steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs.

Giambi's younger brother Jeremy, a former Oakland outfielder, also told the grand jury he injected banned drugs received from Anderson, the Chronicle reported.

Both Giambis said they had used steroids even earlier in their baseball careers. They were granted immunity from prosecution if they told the truth to the grand jury, but faced perjury charges if they did not.

Jason Giambi described to the grand jury how -- using syringes -- he injected human growth hormone into his stomach and testosterone into his buttocks.

Giambi called the products he obtained from Anderson "undetectable" steroids known as "the clear" and "the cream."

"The clear" is a liquid drug administered under the tongue a few drops at a time. "The cream" was described as a testosterone-based balm rubbed onto the body, the Chronicle reported.

Giambi said he obtained all the drugs -- and syringes -- except human growth hormone from Anderson. Giambi said he got the human growth hormone at a Gold's Gym in Las Vegas.

Giambi testified Anderson sent him several different drugs, including testosterone, "the cream" and "the clear." Giambi added Anderson gave him advice on the use of human growth hormone.

"Did Mr. Anderson provide you with actual injectable testosterone?" Assistant U.S. Attorney Nedrow asked Giambi.

"Yes," replied Giambi.

Then, in reference to an alleged steroid calendar from January 2003, Nedrow asked, "OK. And this injectable T, or testosterone, is basically a steroid, correct?"

"Yes," Giambi replied

"And did he talk to you about the fact it was a steroid at the time?" Nedrow asked.

"Yeah, I mean, I -- I don't know if we got into a conversation about it, but we both knew about it, yes," Giambi told the grand jury.

Giambi said Anderson described "the cream" and "the clear" as "an alternative to steroids, but it doesn't show on a steroid test.

"And he started talking about that it would raise your testosterone levels, you know, which would basically make it a steroid ... or maybe he said it's an alternative of taking an injectable steroid. That might be a better way to put it."

Bonds brought Anderson on a barnstorming players' tour of Japan after the big-league season in 2002. Giambi said it was on that November trip he met the trainer.

In his testimony, Giambi said he asked Anderson about the things Bonds was doing to stay at an elite level.

"So I started to ask him: 'Hey, what are the things you're doing with Barry? He's an incredible player. I want to still be able to work out at that age and keep playing,' " Giambi testified. "And that's how the conversation first started."

According to the transcripts obtained by the Chronicle, Giambi testified he called Anderson after their return from overseas and then flew to the San Francisco area in either late November or early December to meet at a gym down the street from BALCO in Burlingame, Calif.

Giambi said the two went to a hospital for Giambi to provide blood and urine samples, which were then taken to BALCO.

According to the transcripts obtained by the Chronicle, Giambi said he and Anderson then began discussing various performance-enhancing drugs Anderson could supply. Also, when Anderson received the results of Giambi's blood and urine tests, Anderson told him he had tested positive for Deca-Durobolin -- a steroid Giambi said he had obtained from the Las Vegas gym -- and that he should discontinue its use because it could stay in his system a long time.

Giambi said Anderson assured him the drugs he provided in baseball's offseason would be out of his system before Giambi was called for a steroid test.

Giambi, a four-time All-Star who played his first seven seasons in Oakland, has been unable to duplicate his 2000 MVP success in three seasons with the Yankees. Giambi signed a seven-year, $120 million contract with the Yankees after the 2001 season.

He played with a knee injury in 2003 and missed more than half the 2004 season with an intestinal parasite and a benign tumor that reportedly was on his pituitary gland. The unusual ailments led many to question whether they were steroid related, but Giambi continued to deny ever taking steroids.

The Chronicle also reported Giambi testified he helped his younger brother obtain drugs from Anderson.

Jeremy Giambi told the grand jury Anderson described "the clear" and "the cream" as undetectable "alternatives to steroids."

"For all I knew, it could have been baby lotion," Jeremy Giambi told the grand jury.

Anderson, BALCO founder Victor Conte, vice president James Valente and track coach Remi Korchemny all have pleaded not guilty to the charges, which include steroid distribution.

Edited December 2, 2004 by sahyder1

[Cactus Drags]

Wow, it didn't even take a whole post for a baseball thread to turn into Yankee-hate fest.

[cthemason]

Now I wanna see Bonds and his enlarged head go down in flames.

Edited December 2, 2004 by cthemason

[The Hardcore Canuck]

I'm glad he got caught. Steriods take the fun out of sports. I say ban everyone that takes steriods.

[VinceMcMahonForPresident]

This is the shoe that baseball has been dreading, that is about to drop.

But how good could these steroids be cuz, Jeremy Giambi sucks

[reyrey619]

This is the shoe that baseball has been dreading, that is about to drop.

But how good could these steroids be cuz, Jeremy Giambi sucks

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[Guest Bluesman]

I'm just surprised they'd go to the trouble to use it. Baseball is more reliant upon skill than sheer strength, especially compared to a sport like (American) football.

[Mofoticon]

I read somewhere that if this is confirmed by giambi, that the yanks can terminate his contract due to some clause that states the use of illegal drugs means a player is not keeping himself in first-class shape

[VinceMcMahonForPresident]

I read somewhere that if this is confirmed by giambi, that the yanks can terminate his contract due to some clause that states the use of illegal drugs means a player is not keeping himself in first-class shape

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[thuganomic]

Silly Giambi......"cheeseburgers".....

That money was pretty much wasted, though.....

It's like Mike and the Mad Dog said, George needs to deal with this: the sooner the better.

[thatshortguy]

As with most things, there is a good side to this. Lately, the idea has been batted around that ol' Steinny may be getting a little soft. If he lays the hammer down on the richer Giambi, it could be a good sign that he's only going through a quiet spell.

The funny thing is, however, that everyone was hoping Giambi's health would improve after the tumor and parasite incidents. Now that he's admitted to his steroid use, everyone's essentially shaken their heads in a general sense of "sorry, but you've brought this on yourself."

[sahyder1]

Now that he's admitted to his steroid use, everyone's essentially shaken their heads in a general sense of "sorry, but you've brought this on yourself."

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[sahyder1]

Friday, December 3, 2004

By Buster Olney

ESPN The Magazine

Barry Bonds may end his career with many of the greatest records in baseball history, the most home runs and the most MVP awards. But in recent seasons, suspicion about steroids has enveloped Bonds, fueled by his exploding physique, his unprecedented dominance well past 35th birthday, and now, by Friday's San Francisco Chronicle story that Bonds used a steroid cream. Unknowingly, according to Bonds.

While Jason Giambi is thought to be sensitive, concerned about how he's perceived, Bonds has always led with his chin, forever defiant about whispered accusations.

Barry Bonds became the oldest batting champion in history, leading the NL with a .362 average in '04.

"Like I tell everybody, you want to be on top, you have to have broad shoulders to be on top, let me tell you that right now, because as fast as you get there is as fast as they try to knock you down. And so I have broad shoulders. I can deal with it," Bonds said previously.

Bonds never hit more than 46 homers in any season before his 35th birthday. But in 2000, with his body suddenly transformed into something a power lifter would want, Bonds slugged 49 homers, and in 2001, he launched a record 73 homers -- at age 37. Bonds credited his workout regimen.

"Anyone in San Francisco who knows me knows I train every day, five days a week," Bonds said. "You can even ask Gary Sheffield, who stayed with me ... You can ask everyone throughout the organization. You can ask the fans of San Francisco -- they go to Stanford at 7:30 in the morning, they'll see me on that track.

"And after December and January they'll see me every single day at Pac Bell at 8:30 in the morning, five days a week training. I've been doing this for 12 years."

But as Bonds grew older, maintained his massive physique and his bat speed, the questions about the source of his power have gotten louder. Pitcher Turk Wendell once suggested what many in the game have suspected: That Bonds is using steroids.

"I have a lot of respect for Turk Wendell, I have a lot of respect for every baseball player in this game," Bonds said last spring. "Just to disrespect other people like that, or talk through the media, I think that's chicken s---. You've got something to say, you come to my face and say it and then we'll deal with each other. But don't be a b---- and go talk to the media like you're some tough guy."

According to the latest report, Bonds was informed during his grand jury testimony that the cream and the clear were, in fact, steroids. Yet two and half months later, Bonds denied using any illegal substances in this interview with ESPN's Pedro Gomez.

"My family and the people around me know the truth," Bonds said last February. "I really don't think we're gonna have to talk about it much when all the testing comes out. It's going to come out and you'll be able to see it and there won't be any questions after that point."

Question from Gomez: "Do you think it's possible you may have, without your knowledge, ever been given an illegal steroid, or a human growth hormone?"

Bonds' reply: "One, that's still an illegal question and its something that I won't answer. Two, I don't think it's something that we need to be discussing at this time."

Gomez: "How much testing do you welcome in baseball?"

Bonds: "They can test me every day if they choose to."

Gomez: "I mean for the game."

Bonds: "I think it's fine. I don't see anything wrong with that at all."

But now that Bonds has acknowledged using a cream -- though he testified he didn't know it was a steroid -- there will be more questions about his late-career success, his records, his legacy. He is the best player in an era in which there have been steroid whispers about many stars.

"I know who I am. I know what I stand for and what type of ballplayer I am and I'll prove that on the field," Bonds has said.

When Commissioner Bud Selig gave Bonds the Henry Aaron Award at this year's World Series, there was no standard press conference, no question-and-answer session -- probably because this would have evolved into a steroid debate that will undoubtedly follow Bonds into retirement.

Buster Olney is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. His book, "The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty," is a New York Times best seller and can be ordered through HarperCollins.com.

[Ol' Spanktooth]

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=1937594

^^^Article on espn.com

Bonds has been lying for years. Unknowingly my ass.

[VinceMcMahonForPresident]

Barry Bonds did steroids. Look at my shock.

How could he not know? So he just puts anything into his body thats given to him. Come on. Barry Bonds is alot things, stupid is not one of them. BUSTED!

[sahyder1]

Barry Bonds did steroids.  Look at my shock.

How could he not know?  So he just puts anything into his body thats given to him.  Come on.  Barry Bonds is alot things, stupid is not one of them.  BUSTED!

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[VinceMcMahonForPresident]

Barry Bonds did steroids.  Look at my shock.

How could he not know?  So he just puts anything into his body thats given to him.  Come on.  Barry Bonds is alot things, stupid is not one of them.  BUSTED!

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correct me if I'm wrong but Bonds and Sheffield got some kind of cream or something. You can pass that by for a balm. Giambi was getting something injected into his ass.

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[sahyder1]

ok, I'm gonna elaborate more on this when I get back from work.....but I'm pretty sure Bonds will retire this offseason. First of all I think it's been a witch hunt to begin with and you can tell that by the guys they chose to go after. In all seriousness, if they had found out that Miguel Cairo and Pedro Feliz were on steroids....would anyone care? Power #s have been up throughout but they've made it out to be that it's just Bonds. Why haven't there been more acqusations made against pitchers? Why not go after Clemens? Randy Johnson?

[jonnycomelately]

Yeah, seriously I hate Bonds anyways so this just adds fuel to my fire but in the original whole BALCO schpiel, Marvin Benard was named as one of the people in the investigation. For those who don't know who Marvin Benard is, with good reason, he was a fourth outfielder for the Giants as well as a couple of other teams up until two years ago I believe. He didn't do jack squat as a player so nobody cared. Giambi and Sheffield take twice as much as heat because they're on the Yankees and Bonds takes even more because he's a pompous assfuck. For a so-called health food nut, how do you not inquire/and/or/know what your trainer is giving you, even if it is a fucking cream? "Hmmm... I can lift 65 more lbs. in two days out of nowhere, man that cucumber salad with a protein shake really helped." C'Mon Barry you aren't fooling anybody. Just nut up and say that you cheated. Anybody that says that this is worse than Pete Rose though is going a little too far. Both are equally bad in my book, but Pete gets the nod as the worse infraction because he bet on his own team, and through large amounts of evidence, he bet on them to lose and that is basically throwing a game. He was getting paid two-fold (The Reds and his bookie) to lose. That's so much worse than juicing up to WIN! It's still cheating but it was in an attempt to put butts in the seats and win. All people involved in this, from baseball all the way to track and field, are all scumbags and what Giambi did was a stand-up thing even though he just shit away his career. Hope you can sell that 2000 AL MVP trophy on eBay buddy.

[Jester of Death]

As much as I like Gary Sheffield, I hate Barry Bonds more

I think that if gambling can get you a lifetime ban from baseball, using "performance enhancers" should get you kicked out as well