Posted on 02/07/2005 7:16:03 PM PST by Jenya
White House, Palmeiro Deny Canseco's Steroid Allegations Ex-Slugger's Book Reportedly Said Bush Must Have Known About Steroids
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Feb. 7) - President Bush was not aware of any steroid use by Texas Rangers players while he was a team executive, the White House said Monday.
In his upcoming book, Jose Canseco said he introduced Rafael Palmeiro, Ivan Rodriguez and Juan Gonzalez to steroids after being traded to Texas in 1992, the New York Daily News reported. Canseco said Bush, the Rangers' managing partner at the time, must have known about the drugs.
White House press secretary Scott McClellan said he spoke to Bush about alleged steroid use.
"If there was, he was not aware of it at the time," McClellan said.
"He has recognized, for some time now, that steroids is a growing problem in professional sports, particularly Major League Baseball," he said. "That's why the president has made addressing the issue a priority in his administration."
Canseco's book, "Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant 'Roids, Smash Hits, and How Baseball Got Big," is scheduled for release by Regan Books on Feb. 21. A company spokesman has said the date might be moved up.
Palmeiro, now playing for Baltimore, disputed Canseco's claim.
"I categorically deny any assertion made by Jose Canseco that I used steroids," Palmeiro said in a statement. "At no point in my career have I ever used steroids, let alone any substance banned by Major League Baseball.
"As I have never had a personal relationship with Canseco, any suggestion that he taught me anything, about steroid use or otherwise, is ludicrous. We were teammates and that was the extent of our relationship. I am saddened that he felt it necessary to attempt to tarnish my image and that of the game I love."
Gonzalez's agent, Alan Nero, said, "Our immediate reaction is we feel sorry for Jose, that he felt he had to do this for whatever reason. And we feel badly for everyone he implicated in this.
"Juan has never used steroids and has never been in favor of their use. And, in fact, in 2000, when Major League Baseball did its survey, Juan was in favor of testing and was one of only two players that volunteered to be tested at that time," Nero said.
Rodriguez signed with Detroit last season. Tigers president Dave Dombrowski said the team had no comment on the report.
Canseco also claims he injected former Oakland teammate Mark McGwire with steroids. McGwire has denied using steroids.
"I have always told the truth and I am saddened I continue to face this line of questioning," McGwire told the Daily News.
Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.
Well, when you're a scumbag looser like Conseco is, you want to drag as many down with you as possible. And the higher you can reach the better, in his opinion, I guess. What a complete looser.
Here we go again, a chance for the MSM to bombard us with this useless news, besmirching Bush's reputation.
Maybe he'll be invited on 60 minutes.
What's a team executive's role on a sports team?
Palmeiro is not a large man. But he has some of the fastest hands in baseball and a seemingly effortless swing. The key to his success is timing.
Gonzalez, on the other hand, was built like a god. A violent swing generated great bat speed and immense power. His understanding of the strike zone, however, was, er, shall we say, generous. All of this was true before he met Canseco. And remained unchanged thereafter.
It should be remembered that, while he was with the Rangers, a flyball found its way past Canseco's outstretched glove, careened off his noggin, and went over the fence for a header-assisted HR. Perhaps, Jose suffered some permanent damage in the process...
Didn't Canseco used to date Madonna? Do we need further proof of what an ass he is? I would certainly take the word of Palmeiro or McGwire over a certifiable headcase like Canseco. Then again, he wants to sell a book, and taking an absurd shot at Bush will get him the favorable publicity he needs.
How could Bush have known about the Juice? He's an idiot savant after all. End sarcasm.
Look; a managing partner is not the manager. He probably didn't participate in any minutae with respect to day to day activities of the Rangers.
Any true baseball fan with a brain in their head noted the upswing in Canseco's upper body and power hitting numbers during his days with the A's. Any true baseball fan with a brain in their head also noted the recent lightspeed upswing in long balls. A fool could figure it out.
Until MLB figures out a way to level the playing field with respect to past legends like Ruth, Aaron and Williams, their sport will continue to wither, and their new "records" will continue to be scoffed at by those of us who have figured things out.
McGuire used andro short for androsteindione.
I think that McGwire was juiced. No proof, just an observation.
Madonna? Yuck. Like a virgin indeed, that girl gets around.
Which is an anabolic steroid, IIRC. Banned in almost every other major sport.
McGwire admitted taking andro, which was legal at the time, so in that respect, he WAS juiced. But he was pretty adamant about not taking steroids. I guess being juiced can mean different things. All I know is, when hitting 40 homeruns is no longer a significant accomplishment, something is out of alignment.
Look for this to be all the rage by next Sunday's news shows.
Jose Cansenco must've dropped the soap one too many times in prison.
Wait a minute here. Bush is the one who said in a State of the Union speech that we need to do something about steroid use in sports. So Congress holds hearings and baseball does more testing, and they find out that one of Bush's "friends" (Palmeiro) is using the stuff. And on the day that news breaks, what is Bush's reaction? Bush said he believes Palmeiro's claim that he didn't take the stuff intentionally. Bush looks hypocritical and ridiculous on this issue.
No, the truth is this: Palmeiro needs little blue pills to make him feel like a man in the bedroom just like he needs Jose to inject him with steroids to make him feel like a man in the ballpark.
Palmeiro is both a cheater and a liar. He pointed his finger in our faces just like that other cheating liar we all remember.
I think you mean "loser" not "looser". Anyhow, why are you coming down so hard on Jose? Is it because the guy got a bum wrap, took the fall for the entire Major League and then got the shaft?
I look at any of the "super stars" with skepticism. I think that probably 75% of all Major Leaguers are juicin'. And, I belive Palmeiro almost as much as I believe that Sammy Sosa picked up the corked bat by mistake. Do I have "stupid" written on my forehead?
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