Selig: A-Rod shamed game
Punishment seems unlikely
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Unable to punish Alex Rodriguez for flunking a drug test that was supposed to be anonymous, Bud Selig could only chastise him.
"What Alex did was wrong and he will have to live with the damage he has done to his name and reputation," the commissioner said yesterday, three days after the Yankees star admitted using banned substances from 2001-03 while playing for the Rangers.
"While Alex deserves credit for publicly confronting the issue, there is no valid excuse for using such substances, and those who use them have shamed the game," Selig added.
Rodriguez's admission followed a Sports Illustrated report that he was on a list of 104 players who tested positive for steroids in 2003, when testing was intended only to determine the extent of steroid use in baseball.
The results were seized by the government in 2004 and remain under seal.
Because it was an anonymous test and because Rodriguez's confession involved years before the drug agreement took effect, there is little Selig can do in terms of punishment.
Players and owners didn't agree to a joint drug program until August 2002, and testing with punishment didn't start until 2004.
"It is important to remember that these recent revelations relate to pre-program activity," Selig said.
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said that because of Rodriguez's admission, "I'm not confident about anything, about anybody."
Manager Joe Girardi said he'll be keeping a closer eye on his clubhouse.
"Will I watch for signs of players that I have concerns about, you know, from now on? Yes, I will," he said. "I'll try to educate myself as much as I can."
He said he thought Rodriguez would be tough enough to handle repeated questions about his drug use.
Union head Donald Fehr declined to comment on Selig's statements.
Brian McNamee has told federal agents, baseball investigator George Mitchell, and a House of Representatives committee that he injected Clemens more than a dozen times with steroids and human growth hormone from 1998-2001.
McNamee's attorneys said Clemens's lawsuit should be thrown out because McNamee was compelled to cooperate by federal investigators.
US District Judge Keith Ellison agreed, but he left in McNamee's statements to Andy Pettitte, Clemens's former Yankees teammate. McNamee told Pettitte that Clemens had used HGH and steroids.
Ellison said Clemens must file an amended complaint within 30 days to pursue that claim further and provide specific information about how he was harmed by the statements.
Clemens has denied McNamee's accusations and sued last year. Prosecutors have asked a federal grand jury in Washington to decide whether to indict the seven-time Cy Young Award winner for lying under oath to Congress last year when he denied using steroids or HGH.
Bridgeport Bluefish catcher John Nathans is seeking $4.8 million in damages, saying the attack left him with permanent injuries that ended his career.
Offerman was batting for the Long Island Ducks against the Bluefish in Bridgeport on Aug. 14, 2007, when pitcher Matt Beech hit him with a fastball. Offerman charged the mound with his bat and swung at least twice, striking Beech and Nathans.
An All-Star infielder with the Dodgers in 1995 and Sox in 1999, Offerman had faced up to 10 years in prison on two felony assault charges. He was granted probation.
