Paul Byrd: $25K of HGH from '02-'05

[brettac1]

LINK

Paul Byrd, the veteran pitcher who has helped the Cleveland Indians reach the brink of the World Series, bought nearly $25,000 worth of human growth hormone and syringes from a Florida anti-aging clinic that was targeted by law enforcement for illegally distributing performance-enhancing drugs, business records show.

Byrd made 13 purchases from the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center between August 2002 and January 2005, according to the records. During those years, he pitched for the Kansas City Royals, the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Angels.

Paying with a credit card, Byrd spent $24,850 to buy more than 1,000 vials of growth hormone, an injectable prescription drug with muscle-building properties, and hundreds of syringes.

Pretty much the typical user of PED's - middling player in his 30's, trying to eek out a few more years in the game and get that one big payday. Mission accomplished:

 

2002	Kansas City Royals	$850,000
2003	Atlanta Braves	$3,000,000
2004	Atlanta Braves	$7,000,000
2005	Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim	$5,000,000
2006	Cleveland Indians	$7,000,000
2007	Cleveland Indians	$7,000,000

[Oldcity]

So, helped him dial it up to 89?

 

I also enjoyed the headline at ESPN: "Kurkjian Shocked by Paul Byrd News"

[Brian the Automator]

I refuse to get too upset about these kinds of things until they can prove that someone took PED's during a period that they were banned.

[DHonks]

I love Paul Byrd's motion. Really, if this helped the guy come back from Tommy John surgery and his other injuries, I can't fault him too much. Illegal, yes. But to take care of his family, understandable.

[pogokat]

he's claiming he had a doctor approved use due to a pituitary gland deficiency...said the mlb will back him up on tis...

[sbrylski]

Shocking!

[Patrick425]

"I refuse to get too upset about these kinds of things until they can prove that someone took PED's during a period that they were banned." So, it's ok for a player to do anything that's not specifically prohibited by MLB. Do these players really need baseball to spell out that taking these substances is wrong and basically a form of cheating? Does baseball need to spell out in their rules that murder, rape, and robbery is wrong too? I'm completely for 0 tolerance when it comes to this stuff. C'mon, some of these guys may be the brightest, but whether or not it was "legal" at the time they were doing the substances, they knew it was wrong. Otherwise, why would they have been hiding it? Why not just have it sitting out in your locker (I know, McGwire did with andro..but that' one instance)? edit: and I don't buy the whole doctor's excuse thing. Yeah, half the league had some condition that required them to take some form of PED...give me a break.

[Brian the Automator]

So, it's ok for a player to do anything that's not specifically prohibited by MLB. Do these players really need baseball to spell out that taking these substances is wrong and basically a form of cheating? Does baseball need to spell out in their rules that murder, rape, and robbery is wrong too? I'm completely for 0 tolerance when it comes to this stuff. C'mon, some of these guys may be the brightest, but whether or not it was "legal" at the time they were doing the substances, they knew it was wrong. Otherwise, why would they have been hiding it? Why not just have it sitting out in your locker (I know, McGwire did with andro..but that' one instance)?

It was neither illegal nor banned, so I don't consider it a form of cheating, by definition. Why did he hide it? He probably didn't want the world knowing he had a pituitary tumor. Also, given the state of steroid/PED hysteria these days, I'm sure he also didn't want any negative attention towards himself.

I'm not sure why you put quotes around "legal". Something's either legal or illegal.

[brettac1]

If it was all on the up and up, why did he get his prescription from some quack dentist instead of a legit doctor?

[Patrick425]

If it was all on the up and up, why did he get his prescription from some quack dentist instead of a legit doctor?

Exactly

 

I'm not sure why you put quotes around "legal". Something's either legal or illegal.

I did that because the original story stated.."from a Florida anti-aging clinic that was targeted by law enforcement for illegally distributing performance-enhancing drugs", but apparently it was "legal" if you were a baseball player and apparently so is murder because neither of them were stated in the baseball rules. So, its all ok...and even it wasn't, you just claim you had a medical condition and that's why you need to get PEDs from a shady clinic in Florida. No one finds it unusual that a abnormally high amount of baseball players have medical conditions that require to take PEDs? How convienent!

[Brian the Automator]

I did that because the original story stated.."from a Florida anti-aging clinic that was targeted by law enforcement for illegally distributing performance-enhancing drugs", but apparently it was "legal" if you were a baseball player and apparently so is murder because neither of them were stated in the baseball rules. So, its all ok...and even it wasn't, you just claim you had a medical condition and that's why you need to get PEDs from a shady clinic in Florida. No one finds it unusual that a abnormally high amount of baseball players have medical conditions that require to take PEDs? How convienent!

Was it illegal for the purchaser to purchase the drugs, or was it just illegally distributed? Were all PED's they distributed done so illegally, or just some? There's still questions that need to be answered, and I always presume someone to be innocent until proven guilty.

Endocrine issues are seriously bad news. I know pretty much first-hand. So, I guess I have a little more compassion for a guy like Paul Byrd than I would for a guy like Barry Bonds.

 

[berniebrewer4life]

he's claiming he had a doctor approved use due to a pituitary gland deficiency...said the mlb will back him up on tis...

Bingo. Kinda seems like a none issue to me. The quack doctor is a little weird, but i think it's on the up and up.

[TooLiveBrew]

he's claiming he had a doctor approved use due to a pituitary gland deficiency...said the mlb will back him up on this...

*gasp!* MLB enabling PED use! This would be the first time!

[mothershipconnection]

Yeah, I'm sure plenty of guys actually need these substances, but like Brett alluded to, it kinda smells a little rotten that he didn't get them from someone who specializes in his problem. It's not like a millionaire baseball player can't get a real doctor and has to just get "whoever" down at the free clinic. I mean, I know I personally would want to go to a legit doctor before deciding I should take a substance that could possibly have awful side-effects.

[biedergb]

Yeah, I'm sure plenty of guys actually need these substances, but like Brett alluded to, it kinda smells a little rotten that he didn't get them from someone who specializes in his problem. It's not like a millionaire baseball player can't get a real doctor and has to just get "whoever" down at the free clinic. I mean, I know I personally would want to go to a legit doctor before deciding I should take a substance that could possibly have awful side-effects.

Just to play devil's advocate -- sometimes specialists will monitor these things but patients see them from far away and get their meds from closer to home. HGH is not something that most Walgreen pharmacies have in stock. Still it seems odd, but if he does have a pituitary deficiency, then this is part of the treatment, but usually GH-deficiency alone is pretty rare, and full pituitary deficiency often has associated steroid and thyroid deficiency as well.

 

[brettac1]

Just to play devil's advocate -- sometimes specialists will monitor these things but patients see them from far away and get their meds from closer to home.

 

Correct, but that specialist would also write the prescription, right? I don't know of any reasons why dentists should be writing out prescriptions for HGH, nor any reason why if Byrd had a legitimate reason to attain a prescription he would get it from the dentist. That doesn't add up.

 

I will say that he seemed believable in his press conference yesterday, and that his explanation is certainly feasible, but the dentist (who later lost his license) thing is what doesn't pass the smell test for me.

 

Another thing that doesn't add up for me is - if he was in need of these hormones - why did he get his last shipment shortly before the '05 season (when they were to become illegal in baseball) and then stop?

 

EDIT: Will Carroll had a blog post on this where he answer some of the very questions.

[TooLiveBrew]

Another thing that doesn't add up for me is - if he was in need of these hormones - why did he get his last shipment shortly before the '05 season (when they were to become illegal in baseball) and then stop?

Free doctor's samples?

[WV Brew]

One thing nobody has mentioned. George Mitchell is a part owner of the Red Sox. The story came out during the ALCS. Conspiracy buffs beware! Mitchell is denying that he leaked the information to torpedo the Indians.

[chowyo123]

I heard on espn a minute ago that Paul Byrd did not have permission to use HGH as he had stated so I did a little search on it to find a article, and here it is: mlb_denies_allowing_paul_byrd_to_use_hgh . I could only find one article of it on google and it came from the NYdailynews.com.

[TooLiveBrew]

said the mlb will back him up on this...

 

Oops. Paul, here's a napkin for that egg...

[brettac1]

Yeah, that article is a pretty good rebuff to the idea that Byrd's using HGH was cool with MLB. Maybe he just figured he'd give the presser, lie through his teeth, and disappear McGwire-style.

[fondybrewfan]

I wouldn't be so quick to judge Byrd on the report that MLB never gave him permission. It is not like MLB has a ton of credibility at this point. Atleast sorrounding PED's. I wouldnt put it past the MLB to cover stuff up, not saying they are this time

 

I find it highly questionable as well that this was leaked when the Red Sox were down 3-2 coming back to Boston when Georg Mitchell is heavily involved in the Red Sox. I believe he is a director or something like that. Of course he denied that he didnt leak the information but the timing of the supposed "leak" are very iffy.

[TooLiveBrew]

I wouldnt put it past the MLB to cover stuff up, not saying they are this time.

Me neither.

[biedergb]

That was a good blog by Will Carroll.

 

Correct, but that specialist would also write the prescription, right? I don't know of any reasons why dentists should be writing out prescriptions for HGH, nor any reason why if Byrd had a legitimate reason to attain a prescription he would get it from the dentist. That doesn't add up.

 

It depends -- if that specialist is in another state, then his/her prescription may not be valid in another state. Also as Carroll pointed out a lot of folks use similar internet set-ups for all kinds of pills on the internet.

 

Another thing that doesn't add up for me is - if he was in need of these hormones - why did he get his last shipment shortly before the '05 season (when they were to become illegal in baseball) and then stop?

 

If he had definitve treatment for this disorder (usually pituitary surgery or radiosurgery) than the growth hormone level could return to normal which may have coincided with the '05 ban -- or he planned to have this treatment done so that he would not require the HGH once the ban was in place. Personally my gut reaction is that it doesn't add up, but from what I can read, the facts do add up.

[wallus]

I wouldnt put it past the MLB to cover stuff up, not saying they are this time.

 

Me neither.

http://forum.brewerfan.net/viewtopic.php?t=4208/t/Rules-of-Conduct.html

one-liners (e.g. "Kapellusch with a single") are unnecessary.

Don't mean to just point you out but it's been annoying me.