Pettitte, Vina admit to using HGH; Latest - Clemens denies usage

[statman0007]

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story

 

Wow, didn't expect this so soon. I would imagine a lot of people will now be pressuring him to tell us if Clemens is telling the truth or not.

Also, I wonder if his admission will get Bud to act? HGH wasn't illegal in baseball back then, but he still illegally obtained it.

 

Linkification - b19

[jlau20]

This just makes Clemens look worse in my opinion. I can see these sorts of admissions continuing for sometime, and those who continue to deny it even with evidence against them are just going to look worse.

[Oldcity]

Yeah. Clemens really has no credibility now.

[PeaveyFury]

WOW. So, apparently this trainer dude might have actually known what he was talking about, instead of being some dude throwing around "unsubstantiated accusations" as part of a plea bargain, eh?

 

As with Bennett, good for Andy. Nice to see a pretty big-name current player come clean.

[logan82]

I'll be impressed if any players not named come clean.

[jtsteward]

I am really suprised he talked so soon. I don't really know what to believe. He only used it for 2 days and felt wrong about it. Seems fishy to me. I don't know anymore. I just love how Tim Kurkjian just basically said he wasn't in the wrong. It's totally wrong to even think that it's okay to cop to the "Injury" excuse.

[molitor fan]

I just got done watching that awesome UW-Whitewater win, and then subjected myself to that Tim Kurkjian interview. Wow - what an embarrassment - anyone that could have a shread of respect for that guy after he completely absolved Petitte and Clemens of any wrongdoing needs to explain it to me. ESPN, and its minions are so complicit in this lax attitude.

[RU Rah Rah]

I just got done watching that awesome UW-Whitewater win, and then subjected myself to that Tim Kurkjian interview. Wow - what an embarrassment - anyone that could have a shread of respect for that guy after he completely absolved Petitte and Clemens of any wrongdoing needs to explain it to me. ESPN, and its minions are so complicit in this lax attitude.

I had exactly the same experience. (Kudos to the Warhawks, by the way. And way to show class at the end of the game, Mount Union assistant coach.)

 

The only thing worse that Pettitte's non-apology apology was Kurkjian's complete and utter absolution of the Yankee pitcher. It was like he was somehow apologizing to Pettitte on behalf of the baseball public for the whole Mitchell Report mess.

 

[don1481]

I'd say that Kurkjian and Company continue to lose their journalistic credibility but... really, how much did they have to begin with...?

 

It was frustrating to listen to him blather on ESPN, all but blatantly covering for Pettitte. That's annoying.

 

Maybe Kurkjian's just trying to hide his own use of HGH...

[Weirdos19]

This is very smart on Pettitte's part.

 

He admitted to minimal HGH use. Whether he really is coming clean is anyone's guess, but you won't hear a ton of questions about Pettitte like you will Roger Clemens. Pettitte just turned the heat away from himself and put it right squarely on Clemens' shoulders.

 

This may end up being a Belichick-Mangini relationship come Spring Training.

[ccbrew]

"I wasn't looking for an edge. I was looking to heal."

 

But Andy, wait a minute. Isn't healing at a quicker rate than the normal human body would allow constitute 'an edge' over other players that are rehabbing the old fashioned way??

 

With that said, saying something is better than not saying anything at all..

[snyttri]

It sounds like it might be Pettite's lawyer talking (assuming a cover up of more PED use). By getting his story out early he can admit to the part people are going to believe anyway and change the inference that he was probably doing more PEDs to an inference that he probably wasn't. Since this is an investigation that might not be followed up on and there is only a little evidence to explain Pettite has a chance to put out a positive story that many people will believe with a chance of not having to explain anything else.

[Brian the Automator]

If I would award points for apologies on a scale of 1 to 100, I'd give Bennett's a 92, and Pettitte's an 8. Weak sauce.

[RU Rah Rah]

Yeah, you know what it reminded me of? When Ryan Leaf berated a reporter, and then the Chargers made him read a formal apology. He did it in the flattest, least sincere monotone imaginable -- and then sort of crumpled up and tossed the piece of paper into his locker. Figuratively, that's pretty much what Pettitte did.

[molitor fan]

Snyttri, Who is that in your avatar?

 

It reminds me a little bit of my alltime favorite sports picture - one that was in Bill James' Historical Baseball Abstract several years ago that showed an envious, and seemingly crazy-eyed Ty Cobb talking to the smooth Christy Matthewson at an all-star game. Love that picture.

[NYChez]

This seems a little too convenient to me. The only time that Pettite ever took HGH was when "the rat" observed it? Then he continued to use the rat as a trainer at the same time that Clemens used him. Then he and Clemens kept following each other around, to Houston and back to New York. Then, Clemens kept getting better and better even as he approached 45 years old as he continued to be Pettite's "training partner". But he hasn't touched an illegal substance other than that one time?

 

This "acknowledgement" is a brilliant move by Pettite, but I don't believe it for a second.

[snyttri]

Snyttri, Who is that in your avatar?

That's John Anderson, the hitting star of the 1901 Milwaukee Brewers of the American League.

[danzig6767]

If I would award points for apologies on a scale of 1 to 100, I'd give Bennett's a 92, and Pettitte's an 8. Weak sauce.

On a public relations level though, admitting using a PED beats lying and denying. In general people dislike someone more if that person does something wrong and then instead of admitting their wrong doing, they tack on to it by lying to everyones face with a denial that nobody believes anyways.

 

That's why i don't really understand why so many of these guys don't just come clean and at least minimize the public relations damage to some degree. If you instead choose the lie and deny route, but nobody believes the denials, what's being gained by it?

 

Look at Raffy and McGwire. Both look so much worse now after the route they chose in front of Congress. After their long storied careers, the first thing many people will remember about Palmeiro is him wagging his finger denying his steroid use and McGwire squirming in his chair and dodging questions like a politician. I'm sure if both had instead come clean that day, they'd still have suffered some damage to their reputations, but likely to a lesser degree.

[Big Reed]

I believe pettitt. i believe he took them when injured. i believe he also took them in other years besides 2002. i believe he could be the guy buying Clemens' steriods. his admission and the year he chose to include were both very conveinent. I believe bud will do nothing , and if he does, it will be appealed and Pettitt will not be suspended. pettit broke no MLB rule. and no police agency is going to waste their time filing a charge against him for purchasing the drug. Petitt is smart. He knew exactly what he was doing when he admitted his use.

 

now for a really creative admission by Clemens that he bought all of his steriods and HGH for his wife in order that she could keep up with him. I'm positive that what raffy's wife was doing as well. I can just see the new players' union research and revelation that HGH and steriods can be transmitted by having sex.

 

Or, it's one of the previously unknown side efects of taking Viagra. After those 4 hours of human manliness improvement, the Viagra breaks down and gives the outward appearance on drug tests as an anabolic steriod with HGH implants.

 

a creative and funny commercial would be clemen's wife calling him after he picked up her phone and left his at home by mistake and having her asking him who all these odd numbers are on his contact list and then the phone cutting out.

[Tbadder]

Spin Doctors Unite! Truth Is The Enemy!

[Thurston Fluff]

it will be appealed and Pettitt will not be suspended. pettit broke no MLB rule.

Absolutely untrue this is one of those falsehoods that got repeated so long it eventually became accepted as true.. It was covered in the Mitchell report.

...they had been covered since the 1971 drug policy prohibited using any prescription medication without a valid prescription, and were expressly included in the drug policy in 1991.

Somehow I don't think an athletic trainer, clubhouse attendant or conditioning coach have the ability to write valid perscriptions. Thus he absolutey broke not only the law but also major league baseball's drug policy.
I know you weren't using the misinformation to defend him Reed but the only way for the truth to take hold is if everyone stops repeating something that is factually wrong but widely accepted as fact.

[RU Rah Rah]

Meanwhile, this from the NY Post about Clemens' response to the Mitchell Report

 

"I'm not talking to y'all about it," Clemens told The Post, outside his child's elementary school. "We'll handle this our way."

 

"Our way" apparently means sweeping it under the rug completely.

[Big Reed]

pettitt says he took the HGH to help heel his arm. he never said he acquired it from the trainer. he didn't call the trainer a lier, and didn't try to refute the trainer's story. pettitt was smart. he never said where he acquired it from. I'm confident if taken to task, pettitt will find a copy of a doctor's prescription for the Hgh he used. it's not that hard to write a prescription and then write the year 2002 on it and then crumple it up and make a copy of it.

 

Ankiel's claim about using HGH was that he did indeed have a doctor's prescription for it. I'm quite certain pettitt uses that same doctor. he's kind of like that Dr. Andrews guy. Only his last name is Dr. Androids.

 

in a related matter, Fernando Vina admitted to using HGH, but denied he bought or used any steriods from that NY mets guy. I guess tha t canceled check he gave him was for a couple of pizzas. I think we can see a trend developing. Admitting to using HGH is ok, admitting to buying and using steriods is bad.

 

the problem I have with that drug statement in the mitchell report is that it doesn't state what the punishment should be. If pettitt used LSD or cocaine or other prescription drugs and admitted to it, what would his punishment be? I doubt seriously if any police agency would file charges against him. And under the major league drug policy, the only thing that would happen to him is that he would be identified as a first time offender. So if pettitt admits to using a drug without a prescription, i would believe that would not warrent a suspension.

 

I also don't like the words Bud used when he stated he would look into this matter on a case by case basis. Does that mean if the guy is a star he gets a 1-4 game suspension inbetween pitching starts? or he is suspended for 15 spring training games? or does Bud go the Tim Kirchun route and say well, he sounds very sincere and remourceful, and it was over 5 years ago, and he was doing what he thought was best in the team's interest, i think he's suffered enough, and give him 0 days suspension?

 

I'm anxiously awaiting clemen's story. I' m sure it will prove to be very creative, but sincere and remorseful at the same time. I'm sure he'll include something like I took steriods because it was done in the best interest of baseball, and then he'll say, God Bless America . And I fully support our troops. Thousand points of light! and then he'll break down and cry and say I really love this game and my fellow teammates ( at least those that didn't sqeal on me). It's America's pasttime. and then perhaps he'll close by saying, HGH and Steriods and those who sell them are what we thought they were , and we let them off the hook. And then he'll say how he unknowingly took steriods and HGH thinking they were intravenious shots of gator aide.

[Oldcity]

"Steroids is bad."

[PeaveyFury]

With Vina 'coming clean' now as well, that makes three of the 'wild and random' accusations that have ended up being true so far.