Saturday, December 15, 2007

Latino Numbers in Baseball's Doping Scandal

While still waiting to see if the allegations that the biggest fish, A-Rod, might have been doping on steroids during his career, it is worth noting as one New York blog does in the wake of the Mitchell Report, that very few Latino players are named by witnesses relative to the higher numbers who play in the Majors. That comes as no surprise to the author, since steroidal pharmaceuticals banned in the U.S. are readily available over-the-counter at places like GNC in the Dominican Republic, according to Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz.

However, that explanation is tempered by the fact that the players who have been named so far were those who conspired with the specific witnesses who were willing to testify. I have a hard time believing that Latino doping use would not be at levels comparable to non-Latino use, especially if the former were using consistently and legally in their native countries. How many more witnesses are there out there who have just not come forward? And will we ever see witnesses who might actually testify to management's or an owner's collusion in the use of performance enhancing drugs to keep the Commissioner from leaving implicated players to twist in the wind on their own while absolving management?

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