Bonds got steroids, feds were told Slugger's trainer said to have given substances...

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | March 2, 2004 | Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams

[PBRSTREETGANG]

San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds, New York Yankees stars Jason Giambi and Gary Sheffield and three other major league baseball players received steroids from a Burlingame nutritional supplement lab, federal investigators were told.

The baseball stars allegedly got the illegal performance-enhancing drugs from the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative through Greg Anderson, Bonds' personal weight trainer and longtime friend, according to information furnished the government and shared with The Chronicle.

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Sad for the game.

[ECM]

I'd tend to think that a signifigant, unattainable by natural means, increase in fast-twitch muscle fiber (ergo, a quickening in reflexes) would give one a decided edge in bringing the bat around fast enough to make contact with lightning-fast pitches that someone like Hank Aaron or Babe Ruth would have some difficulty matching.

[doosee]

If baseball wants to maintain any integrity whatsoever, the records of these people need to be purged from the books. Baseball should go back to Roger Maris - 61, with no asterisk. Justice for the fans finally, the fans who respected the game.

[bluefish]

Sad for the game.

Perhaps. Then again, I'd like our athletes to take more steroids. Let them get freaky huge (as if they aren't already). It might bake for better entertainment (I admit it, some comedian had a routine on this). Plus, as a bonus, we get to let them serve as guinnea pigs for all the new things companies like BALCO comes up with, before choosing to use anything ourselves. Speeds up the testing process.

Why is the government wasting so much time on this? Why is it the government's business if Barry Bonds wants to inject Human Growth Hormone, or THG or any other steroid for that matter? If a sports organization wants to ban performanance enhancing drugs as a rule for participation, so be it. But why does the government care, and why should anybody go to jail over a personal health decision?

[Dane]

Sheffield's attorney Paula Canny said, "Gary Sheffield has never knowingly ingested a steroid ... and Gary Sheffield has never knowingly applied an anabolic steroid cream to his body."

How Clintonesque. Here Mr. Sheffield have this gatorade, you do not need to know what is in it. This reminds me of the time when Ben Johnson was stripped of his gold medal and he said he was given spiked gatorade that made him test positive for steroids.

[Dane]

If a sports organization wants to ban performanance enhancing drugs as a rule for participation, so be it. But why does the government care, and why should anybody go to jail over a personal health decision?

I don't see Bonds or Giambi going to jail. What's the use of banning the stuff if it is not going to be enforced.

Bonds and Giambi don't want to admit they take steroids, because they will, IMO, rightly be criticized that their feats and records are phony and not due to natural ability.

It is a controversy and I am one on the side that taking steroids do taint records.

Maybe they should just make two sets of records. Drug enhanced and non-drug enhanced and the arguements can go from there.

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Then again, I'd like our athletes to take more steroids.

Couldn't disagree more. The athletes using steroids are putting pressure on other athletes to use these damaging substances just to keep up.

[bluefish]

So? Like I said, if an organization wants to ban them to preserve some sort of athletic integrity, fine. That should be enough for you. If pro-baseball bans steroids and any player that uses them, your concern is addressed.

I'm questioning government involvement and criminalization of the substances. Should the substances be illegal and other individuals not involved in the sport be subject to criminal prosecution for a personal health-care choice, in order to meet the needs of a game?

[doosee]

Selig said in a statement. "We will do everything in our power to get to zero tolerance as soon as possible."

This is the same baseball mgt. leadership that watched people over 30 gain 45 pounds of solid muscle and go from hitting 20 homers to 60 and never said a word. What a joke.. soon as possible. This could have been stopped a long time ago...

[bluefish]

Then again, I'd like our athletes to take more steroids.

- Couldn't disagree more. The athletes using steroids are putting pressure on other athletes to use these damaging substances just to keep up.

By the way, I was trying to be funny here. Some comedian did a whole routine on this once.

[bluefish]

I don't see Bonds or Giambi going to jail. What's the use of banning the stuff if it is not going to be enforced.

Maybe not, but someone might. The government is wasting a lot of money, investigative and prosecutorial resources that could be invested in something more important. If Baseball or the NFL or the IOC wants to do an investigation for their own purposes, fine. People here seem to be mixing up games and government.

[PBRSTREETGANG]

I understand that your statement was tongue-in-cheek. I have not advocated government intervention and I think baseball should have addressed this on its own long ago. Just from the standpoint of fundamental fairness and pure competition, I think this stinks.

[MMcC]

They may help,you hit more HR's...but so nothing to help your batting average..Bonds hit .370 and .345 the past 2 years.

Sure they do. Deep fly ball outs become homeruns and plays where the infielder can just reach the ball now get through the infield too fast.

If the allegations in the article are proven to be true it will be a serious blow to the game.

[Mr. Bird]

And gambling on baseball would not affect your ability to get over 4000 hits. Obviously, the steroid situation is not perfectly analgous to Pete Rose's, but it does raise some questions.

Rose broke the letter and spirit of the rules, so he stays out of baseball. It's quite easy to defend that position. But with Bonds et. al., what is MLB to do? I don't think the use of steroids or other performance enhancing drugs is specifically prohibited in the rules. It may be now, but the horse is out of the barn, so to speak. MLB has a history of giving people with cocaine habits a second (or third, or fourth) chance, but should that stance be the same for performance enhancers?

I think the use of steroids is cheating, but if MLB never specified it, there's nothing they can do.

[Wolfie]

"Gambling in Casablanca? I'm shocked!"

Seriously, kids, why else do you think a grown man's skull would begin to get bigger. Must have been taking some nasty stuff.

[Wolfie]

No need for baseball rules to apply. Let the criminal justice system handle it.

[uncbob]

They may help,you hit more HR's...but so nothing to help your batting average..Bonds hit .370 and .345 the past 2 years

NO
Well when a normal 350 ft fly out becomes a 375 foot home run what does that do for your average

How about an extra 25 homers a year where half or more would be fly outs

How about line drives with more zip find the gaps a lot quicker so the out fielders can't get to them etc etc etc

[driftless]

If you are hitting the ball on the average just a little harder, what would have been ground balls to the shortstop turn into line drives to left field. I don't know how much harder steroids lets you hit the ball, but the sudden jump in homer totals in the nineties always did look very suspicious to me. Many people thought the ball was being juiced. It turns out that it was the players who were juiced.

[Jhensy]

Sheffield's attorney Paula Canny said, "Gary Sheffield has never knowingly ingested a steroid ... and Gary Sheffield has never knowingly applied an anabolic steroid cream to his body."

Yep. Here comes the next line of defense! Ga-ron-teed.