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Times: Manny, Ortiz tested positive in '03
MLB ^ | 30 July 2009 | Tom Singer

Posted on 07/30/2009 10:51:39 AM PDT by BGHater

Boston's erstwhile slugging duo reportedly on list of 104

According to lawyers who spoke to the The New York Times, and whose names were not revealed, David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez are on the list of 104 players who tested positive in Major League Baseball's 2003 survey testing for performance-enhancing drugs, testing that was agreed to and conducted only on the condition that the results would remain anonymous.

Ortiz and Ramirez were members of the Boston Red Sox at the time and helped the club end an 86-year streak in which they hadn't won a World Series.

Results from the 2003 tests, which met a threshold that led to the establishment of MLB's current drug policy that includes random testing, were never destroyed and have been the subject of spirited debate among fans and media about what should be done with the names from that period in which the substances were not yet outlawed under collective bargaining rules. The results have become a legal issue being contested by the MLB Players Association and the federal government.

Previously, other players have been linked to the list based on leaks: Barry Bonds, Jason Grimsley, Alex Rodriguez, David Segui and Sammy Sosa. There are 97 names that remain undisclosed.

According to the Times, new information on Ortiz and Ramirez -- the latter of whom, now with the Dodgers, returned earlier this month from a 50-game suspension for a subsequent violation of the game's drug policy -- sprang from interviews with persons connected to pending litigation.

Earlier Thursday, prior to the posting of the story on the newspaper's Web site, Ortiz responded to questions about the 2003 tests by telling a Times reporter, "I'm not talking about that anymore. I have no comment."

Michael Weiner, the current general counsel and executive director-elect for the players union, also declined comment.

"We, of course, would have no comment and refer all comments to Major League Baseball," said Dodgers vice president of communications Josh Rawitch.

"We have no comment because Major League Baseball has no knowledge of the names that are on the list," said MLB vice president of public relations Pat Courtney.

In its report, the Times points out that Ortiz had been let go by the Minnesota Twins following the 2002 season, and after signing a low-profile contract with the Red Sox, set personal highs with 31 home runs and 101 RBIs in 2003. Ortiz continued improving on those statistics, compiling 148 RBIs in 2005 and 54 homers the following season.

When his recent suspension was handed down on May 7, Ramirez said, "I've taken and passed about 15 drug tests over the past five seasons."

That five-year period would extend back to 2004.

When Rodriguez admitted to the report of his positive 2003 test, he said he hoped that the names of others who tested positive would not be revealed.

"I hope those names never come out," Rodriguez said. "There's so much negativity and sadness going on around the world and the U.S. ... people look at baseball for a savior or for inspiration, and I know that I've let a lot of people down."


TOPICS: Society; Sports
KEYWORDS: baseball; bostonredsox; drugs; manny; ortiz; steroids
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1 posted on 07/30/2009 10:51:39 AM PDT by BGHater
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To: BGHater

What a shock, they are all a bunch of frauds


2 posted on 07/30/2009 10:54:24 AM PDT by Sarah Barracuda
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To: BGHater

No word on how Manny Ortez did though......


3 posted on 07/30/2009 10:54:47 AM PDT by Corporate Law (<>< - Xavier Basketball: Perennial Slayers of #1 Ranked Teams)
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To: BGHater

ATTENTION! THE ANONYMOPUS RESULTS YOU HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR HAVE BEEN RECEIVED! THE FIRST TWO NAMES WE CAN REVEAL ARE MANNY RAMIREZ AND DAVID ORTIZ! THERE ARE 97 ADDITIONAL ANONYMOUS NAMES THAT WILL BE REVEALED IN THE DAYS AHEAD!


4 posted on 07/30/2009 10:59:22 AM PDT by ClearCase_guy
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To: BGHater

They should just release all of the names then the fans can have one big collective sigh of so what and then everyone can move on.


5 posted on 07/30/2009 10:59:37 AM PDT by Busywhiskers ("Every normal man must be tempted at times to hoist the black flag and begin slitting throats" -Henr)
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To: BGHater

In addition to being as exciting as watching grass grow and the least physical sport this side of golf baseball is rife with cheaters. I don’t blame kids today for wanting to play basketball, football, soccer, or whatever else over playing a sport that involves standing around for 95% of the time and whose “heroes” are a bunch of drugged out steroid abusers.


6 posted on 07/30/2009 11:02:38 AM PDT by DemonDeac
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To: BGHater

“I tell ya...Manny Ortez (sic)...Manny Ortez, DAVID Ortez...”

—John Kerry, asked about what Red Sox players he liked


7 posted on 07/30/2009 11:03:12 AM PDT by raccoonradio
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To: BGHater

When the World Series ends we call all shout out, hooray! Our steroids-laden players beat YOUR steroids-laden players!”

What the heck, MLB should pass out steroids to each and every player. Make it an even playing field.


8 posted on 07/30/2009 11:05:54 AM PDT by raccoonradio
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To: Busywhiskers

I had heard that Magglio Ordonez and Nomar Garciaparra are on the list too wouldn’t shock me. All of these baseball players take roids, no name on that list would shock me at this point


9 posted on 07/30/2009 11:06:28 AM PDT by Sarah Barracuda
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To: BGHater

Shocked /s

Considering Ortiz was an skinny opposite field slap hitter with hardly any power with the Twins I don’t know how anyone could have thought otherwise when his body got that big.


10 posted on 07/30/2009 11:06:31 AM PDT by MNlurker
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To: DemonDeac
In addition to being as exciting as watching grass grow and the least physical sport this side of golf baseball is rife with cheaters. I don’t blame kids today for wanting to play basketball, football, soccer, or whatever else over playing a sport that involves standing around for 95% of the time and whose “heroes” are a bunch of drugged out steroid abusers.

Baseball players are steroid users and football players aren't?

LOL!

11 posted on 07/30/2009 11:06:49 AM PDT by FreeReign
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To: Sarah Barracuda

Only a few guys I can think of who are clean.

Griffey Jr, Chipper, Ichiro[Player of the Decade], Pujols, etc.


12 posted on 07/30/2009 11:10:52 AM PDT by BGHater (Insanity is voting for Republicans and expecting Conservatism.)
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To: FreeReign

note ticket prices in an ad next to NYT article. This is where your money is going: Thu, Aug. 6th, 2009 7:05 PM Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees From
___$30-$19500___ (I’ll take a $19,500 seat please.)


13 posted on 07/30/2009 11:11:04 AM PDT by raccoonradio
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To: BGHater

Vlad Guerrero anyone?


14 posted on 07/30/2009 11:11:48 AM PDT by Retired Greyhound
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To: BGHater

BWa ha ha. Hence the “big” in Big Popi.


15 posted on 07/30/2009 11:34:10 AM PDT by stanz (Those who don't believe in evolution should go jump off the flat edge of the Earth.)
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To: DemonDeac
I like most all team sports. But there is a beauty about baseball that no other sport has. Those that want more "action" in baseball have attention spans of gnats and don't see the inner workings of a complex game.

And every sport gets the 'hero' BS thrown around. Not just baseball.

16 posted on 07/30/2009 11:34:42 AM PDT by LimaLimaMikeFoxtrot ("The rights of the people have been bartered for promises of office". ~Andrew Jackson)
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To: MNlurker

explains his non existent bat now that he is off the juice...


17 posted on 07/30/2009 11:45:15 AM PDT by tatsinfla
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To: BGHater; GOPsterinMA; IndyTiger; henkster; JerseyJohn61; TennTuxedo; Mr_Moonlight; BatGuano; ...
BASEBALL PING LIST

If you would like to be on the ping list let me know.

This will be a medium volume ping list during the baseball season and a low volume ping list when all life stops in late October.

18 posted on 07/30/2009 11:46:35 AM PDT by Artemis Webb
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To: LimaLimaMikeFoxtrot
I like most all team sports. But there is a beauty about baseball that no other sport has. Those that want more "action" in baseball have attention spans of gnats and don't see the inner workings of a complex game. And every sport gets the 'hero' BS thrown around. Not just baseball.

Just chiming in to say AMEN.

And I'm also getting sick of this 2003 report. If it was legally agreed to be an ANONYMOUS test with ANONYMOUS results, then why are we hearing about SPECIFICS and NAMES ??

And why NOW as opposed to years ago?

Why one or two names at a time?

And most importantly, why at all ? To my understanding, these were findings related to substances that hadn't even been banned YET in 2003. They were the findings that led MLB to increase the list of banned substances LATER, once they had determined what other substances were becoming popular among these players.

But bottom line, if these substances hadn't been banned yet, what's is all this sensationalism over?

19 posted on 07/30/2009 11:46:57 AM PDT by holidayidol
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To: BGHater
"Only a few guys I can think of who are clean. Griffey Jr, Chipper, Ichiro[Player of the Decade], Pujols, etc."

I think there are a lot of players who are/were clean. I think there were a lot who were dirty too. Jose Canseco thought the number of steroid users was around 40% at it's peak.

I do pretty much agree with those on your list though.

20 posted on 07/30/2009 11:50:20 AM PDT by Artemis Webb
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