MLB Suspends Phillies P Romero 50 Games For Violating Drug Policy
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Romero Insists He Did Not Know
Supplement Had Banned Substance |
Phillies P J.C. Romero has "vehemently denied wrongdoing" that resulted in a 50-game suspension for using a banned substance, but MLB Exec VP/Labor Relations Rob Manfred yesterday said Romero is "responsible for what goes in his body," according to Jim Salisbury of the PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER. Manfred said of Romero, "The guy tested positive for a steroid banned under the program. ... As far as intent -- 'I didn't mean it,' is not a defense. If that was the case, every player would be saying, 'I didn't mean it.'" Romero, who has hired a PR specialist to "help deal with the matter," last summer used an over-the-counter supplement that claims to boost testosterone, and he said that he "did not know the supplement contained a banned substance." Salisbury notes some reports have blamed the MLBPA for "allegedly advising players that over-the-counter supplements made in the United States were unlikely to cause a positive test." MLBPA General Counsel Michael Weiner: "Some press stories have stated that the association advised players that the particular supplement J.C. took was safe. Others have suggested that the association knew, in advance of the positive tests, that this supplement contained a banned substance. Neither is accurate. The association knew nothing about the particular supplements involved here prior to learning of these positive results." Weiner added, "There has also been a suggestion that the MLBPA misled its members about the potential dangers of nutritional supplements. That suggestion, too, is inaccurate. We have and will continue to do our utmost to counsel players with regard to compliance with our program" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 1/7). Manfred said that Romero "should've phoned an 800 hotline that MLB and the union provides players to answer questions." Manfred: "If he had called, he would've been told that this product was a problem" (Camden COURIER-POST, 1/7). But L.A. Times columnist Bill Plaschke said, “Shame on the (MLBPA) for leaving the players out to dry like this. This is not the first time this has happened where they haven’t gotten the information out to players about a banned substance” (“Around The Horn,” ESPN, 1/6).
MLB COMPENSATING FOR PAST? In Philadelphia, Bill Conlin writes, "Welcome to Bud's Brave New World, J.C. That's the one commissioner Bud Selig and the Lords of Baseball stonewalled for so many years of rising home-run totals and attendance it took a room filled with congressmen and serial liars ... to alert America to the extent of the taint in a sport where the only advantage to being skinny is not being a suspect." But Conlin also writes Romero, who was offered a 25-game suspension during the postseason, which would have included the rest of the '08 playoffs, cost MLB officials "the big win they were looking for." Conlin: "Had you admitted the guilt you still deny, had you taken 25 days instead of 50 and admitted wrongdoing in the shadow of a World Series that would have been played without you and your two relief wins, MLB would have had a trophy conviction to brandish as proof that the new testing plan not only was working but had sharp teeth" (PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, 1/7). The PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER's Sheridan writes if Selig "cared about baseball, he would step aside as commissioner and allow a new leader to implement the drug policy." But as long as the "people who looked like buffoons in front of Congress are in charge, there will be a lingering sense that baseball is overcompensating for previous sins by appearing to be tough on players who make mistakes" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 1/7).
FIX THE SYSTEM: In DC, Tim Lemke writes there are "two things ... that might prevent future cases of players unwittingly cheating." First, the procedure for "determining whether a supplement is allowed must be crystal clear." Second, MLB could "continue to allow players to buy whatever over-the-counter supplements they want from a select group of vendors, as long as all orders are processed through a system monitored by the league." Lemke: "Stores like GNC and Vitamin Shoppe could agree to such a system in exchange for the ability to promote themselves as official partners with the league, and they would therefore be encouraged to sell only products that are compliant with baseball's drug policy. The league only would allow players to buy products once they have passed a test for banned substances" (WASHINGTON TIMES, 1/7).
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