Blue Jays catcher Zaun responds to Mitchell Report

DUNEDIN, Fla. - It's usally pretty quiet around the Blue Jays organization, but this afternoon catcher Gregg Zaun addressed being named in the Mitchell Report and the e-mail interview he gave to John Lott of the National Post. Zaun also met with reporters a little while ago to address many of the same issues he addresses in his Q&A.

Note in the interview that he contends he paid off a $500 bet he had made with Jason Grimsley on a basketball game with a blank check. The story is that the blank check eventually went to former Mets clubhouse attendant Kirk Radomski, who has been accused of supplying baseball players with steroids and human growth hormone, with Zaun's name on it.

The check appears in the Mitchell Report and therefore links Zaun to use of performance enhancing drugs. It's taken Zaunn many weeks to respond.

National Post: How and when did you learn that the Mitchell Report contained allegations against you? What was your immediate reaction?

Gregg Zaun: I learned my name was in the report the same day the rest of the world did, and my initial reaction was complete shock. Then the phone started ringing and Jay Stenhouse (Blue Jays vice-president of communications) told me what was in the report and I had better take a look.

NP: That evening, you issued a statement of denial through Jay Stenhouse. What brought you to the decision to respond in that manner?

GZ: I usually have a lot to say about things, but in this case, my breath was completely taken from me at that moment and I needed time to completely digest it all. I was rendered speechless and completely caught off guard. I responded in an uncharacteristic manner because I wasn't at all prepared for some of the things that were written about me. I'm used to answering tough questions about a game I've just played in, but I was not prepared for any of that.

NP: Let's move to the tip I received and check its accuracy. I was told that you and Jason Grimsley had a bet on a basketball game, that you lost, and that you wrote a cheque to pay off the bet. Grimsley asked you to leave the name of the recipient blank. He then wrote Radomski's name on the cheque and gave it to Radomski, presumably to buy steroids. This happened in 2001 when you and Grimsley were teammates with Kansas City. Is this an accurate summary of what really happened? Please elaborate.

GZ: I can tell you that it's almost a certainty that I wrote him a cheque for $500 to pay off a bet we made or to loan him money. He and I were friends back then. When it comes to my teammates, friends and family, I am, without a doubt, very trusting and generous. Someone needs money? No problem. How much? I will almost always hand it over no questions asked. I've done exactly what you've said dozens of times where I am too busy, don't care enough or too angry to finish writing out the cheque. I wrote $500 on the cheque and signed it. I was giving the money to Jason. I can't say with 100% certainty whether I owed him, he was borrowing from me, or that it involved a bet on a basketball game. Chances are your source is right about that and I owed him money. It's more than likely, I was still mad about losing the bet, so I wrote $500 in the box, signed it, then bitterly flipped it at him in disgust. I can say, with 100% certainty, that the cheque was not to buy performance-enhancing drugs. It's obvious to me what parts of the cheque are my writing.

NP: When did you first discover that this cheque had gone to Radomski?

GZ: I found out the day the Mitchell Report was released. Then I found out what pages my name was on and read them.

NP: The Mitchell Report says Radomski believed Jason Grimsley referred you to Radomski. But Radomski also says it was someone other than Grimsley who called him on your behalf to order steroids. Why would Radomski assume the steroids were ordered for you?

GZ: He couldn't say for sure because it never happened. Jason may have mentioned me in polite conversation. That would not surprise me. We were friends. We spent time together off the field. I made him laugh a lot.
It was a surprise to me when he got in trouble because I had no idea. I never heard him talk about any of that stuff. After games, we drank beers and talked about baseball and martial arts.
I don't have any idea why he would link my name to one of his sales. Jason was a reserved guy. He used to get fumed when guys would violate clubhouse sanctity by telling outsiders about the nonsense that went on in there. It was the principle to him, not the content. Jason isn't a rat and he never ran his mouth about people.

NP: Radomski said he sent a package containing Deca-Durobolin and Winstrol to you at the K.C. Royals clubhouse. Did you at any time receive a package from Radomski in the Royals' clubhouse? If so, assuming you opened it, what did it contain? Please elaborate on any context/facts you can add in response to this accusation from Radomski.

GZ: I never received any such package. If something was sent there in my name, it wasn't ordered by, or for me. I never got it, not did I have any knowledge of it being there.

NP: According to the Mitchell Report, Luis Perez said he supplied steroids to you and seven other players prior to January 2003. Please respond to this accusation. (Did you know Luis Perez? Did you know he was dealing steroids?)

GZ: I'll answer this in a couple parts for you because it's important people are clear on this.
I don't know Luis Perez. If he worked in our clubhouse in Florida, I don't remember him. I can remember every guy of significance that worked in our clubhouse and some that worked for the visiting side and the umpires.

If he was there, and selling stuff to players on that team, it's news to me. I wasn't even aware of his presence in our clubhouse.

I can understand the situation very well, however, if it went down the way I was told. There's a scared kid, who just got caught in Canada with a bunch of drugs. [Perez had been arrested in Montreal for possessing a pound of marijuana.] He's in a jail somewhere scared out of his mind. He's being threatened with federal jail time and his mother is sitting across the table telling him he better give them someone. What would you do? My guess is he made up eight names of guys he could remember that were probably still playing. Active players are obviously juicier targets.

In all honesty, I was aware of this situation as far back as the spring of 2003. I was contacted about these allegations by a member of the players' association. I subsequently denied any dealings with Luis Perez and voluntarily submitted myself to random drug screening in order to provide Major League Baseball and MLB security ample opportunity to test the veracity of my side of the story. They came to my apartment several times throughout that spring and took urine samples. I passed every single test and every single test since then.

Just so we're clear, I voluntarily submitted to random drug screenings for both performance enhancing drugs and recreational drugs. I was under no obligation to, but I did so a full year prior to MLB's adoption of our first drug policy. I voluntarily submitted myself to recreational drug screening as well because Perez got caught with a bunch of marijuana.

I co-operated fully with their investigation at that time. They said they were satisfied and so I considered the matter closed. I never thought I'd have to deal with it again.

NP: Please respond to the Mitchell Report section about you and Tony Muser. [The report said Muser, then the Kansas City manager, discussed the dangers of drug use with Zaun on the bench one day. Zaun told Muser he did not use drugs, the report said.]

GZ: By Tony and me, you mean a conversation that allegedly took place. It absolutely took place. Tony was, and still is, a favourite of mine. He was a concerned manager who cared about his players. He saw me working my tail off to get stronger and warned me of the dangers of drug use. I work harder today. I just work a little smarter.

NP: Mitchell says he asked you to meet with him to discuss the allegations. How did Mitchell contact you and what was said in the ensuing conversation?

GZ: I was never contacted personally by Senator Mitchell. Someone from his staff called the [players] union. Then they started mailing out medical history release forms to everyone I ever played for in an attempt to learn private personal medical information about me.
When they asked to interview me, I asked about what. I assumed it was about the Luis Perez situation. They were unwilling to tell me why they wanted to talk, just that they wanted to talk. They would not share any information with me. I didn't feel the need to rehash the Perez situation so I said, no thank you. I'd already been through that and the investigators seemed satisfied in 2003. Why would I go through it again for them if they weren't going to at least be courteous and tell me the nature of their forthcoming questions?

They didn't write about my full co-operation in regards to this matter or my voluntary, random drug screenings in the Mitchell Report.

Had I known anything about the Radomski situation, you can believe I would have met with them to discuss it. But they wouldn't tell me or any of the other guys they named in the report anything. I would have told them what I've told you and maybe avoided this mess.

NP: Why have you waited until now to tell your side of the story?

GZ: Senator Mitchell and his staff had over a year to research their findings and then spring them on the world. The only thing they told us was that they wanted to talk to us. I considered the Perez matter closed and knew nothing about an alleged connection between Radomski and me. I never worried that my name was in the report. So, when I found out my name was in it, I needed to be careful what I said in a very unstable time. I had no idea what legal ramifications could be out there. The last thing I wanted to do was to go off half-cocked and say something I'd regret later when I didn't have all of the information. I was literally sitting there stunned, thinking to myself, What just happened? I needed time to gather the facts.

Then, members of the media, who I've been really good to, started taking cheap shots at me because I needed time to think. So I decided to wait until the time was right for me. You seemed to be a guy who wanted to do more than pile on. Seemed to me like you believed there could be a reasonable explanation for all of this. When you brought your tip to me, I decided, now was the time to act. I'm sorry it took me so long. I know people misunderstood my silence.

NP: Do you know, or have you ever met, Kirk Radomski? If the answer is yes, please elaborate on the nature of your relationship with Radomski.

GZ: I do not know him and until recently, had never heard of him. That's not surprising to me considering what I do know about Jason. If he was indeed involved with Radomski the way it's being portrayed, he would have never mentioned him by name. I don't remember hearing him speak of such things.

NP: How would you describe your relationship with Jason Grimsley? How did it evolve over time?

GZ: Jason and I were friends. Still are, I imagine, but we haven't seen or spoken to one another since he last played for Baltimore [in 2005]. I think our last conversation had something to do with him beating me up if I hit any more line drives at him.

We met when we played together in Kansas City. He's a pitcher. I'm a catcher. Our relationship evolved the way any other relationship among teammates would. We spent a lot of time around each other. We both had a great passion, baseball and martial arts. We were both old-school when it came to clubhouse hierarchy and the way the game should be played. We believed in the same things about the game. We saw eye to eye on a lot of things. Not to mention, Jason's a nice guy and he's easy to be around. I enjoyed his company. End of story.

NP: Have you spoken to Jason Grimsley about the references to you in the Mitchell Report? If so, please elaborate. If you have not spoken to him, why not?

GZ: I haven't spoken to him since Baltimore about anything. We've never had the kind of relationship where we'd call each other daily. Our families never hung out. We played together and socialized. Not too different than anyone else's relationship in the game.

NP: Have you undertaken, or are you considering, legal action against Jason Grimsley on this matter?

GZ: I'm not angry with him. I know he would never intentionally hurt me or any of his friends. He did not mean for this to happen, so why should I be calling him about it or litigating? Why would I? I still count him as a friend. Always will. I don't bail on friends or throw them under the bus.
He never knew about Luis Perez and I'm sure he never expected any of this. There's no intent there. People make mistakes. My friends never have to ask me for forgiveness. There's nothing to forgive here. Jason has obviously retired to a private life and rightfully so. We all need to move on.

NP: Have you ever used a performance-enhancing substance that is now on MLB's banned list?

GZ: I have never violated MLB's drug policy or failed any drug tests.

NP: Back to the cheque shown in the report: After the cheque went through the banking process, did you retrieve it from your bank? If so, would you be willing to provide a copy of the cheque to accompany the story?

GZ: That cheque was written six years ago. It's most surely been shredded. We keep bank records for five years and then destroy them. I don't handle the day to day accounting. So it's easy to see why it went unnoticed. I always have a rough estimate of how much money is in the bank, but I rarely check my statements, and I used to just fire them in a box when I got them. I'd know if something major was wrong. I knew I wrote the cheque for $500, so I was never worried about where the cheque was going because I gave it to Jason. Once I gave it to him, it was his money.

I would gladly produce the cheque if I knew where it was. The photocopy in the Mitchell Report is clear enough. I knew right away I hadn't finished writing that cheque when I saw it.