RYAN BRAUN EXONERATED
Ryan Braun will not be suspended 50 games for violating MLB’s PED policy.
Looks like he got off on a technicality.
Related posts:
Date: February 24, 2012
Categories: Sports
Leave a comment
Comments RSS TrackBack 33 comments
-
Niblick
in February 24th, 2012 @ 11:10Well, it looks like he got off on a technicality. The sample wasn’t sent to the lab the same day. The records indicate that his testosterone numbers were much higher than allowed. Something is real fishy here and he got lucky. He may have been ruled not guilty but this ruling doesn’t make him innocent. Just when you thought baseball cleaned this mess up you find out that the system failed.
-
Karen
in February 24th, 2012 @ 13:43Just disgusting. Any coicidence that Bud “Milwaukee” Selig doesn’t have the balls to stand up to the ‘technicality’ and uphold the suspension? If this was A. McCutchen what are the odds that suspension gets overrturned? Zilch.
-
Chuck
in February 24th, 2012 @ 13:47If this had happened to a player who only hit 220 or 225 this past season, or a pitcher who had a losing record and a high E.R.A., he would have gotten the 50 game suspension and very litttle would have been said about it. Wait a minute. I just realized I described half of the current Pirate roster…..
-
Pat
in February 24th, 2012 @ 13:59I heard ESPN do the outrage thing this morning. I have to place the blame squarely on MLB. They were a little lax on the tests. Just enough to let an offender be let off the hook. Personally I think it points to the greater problem that PED’s still exist in the sports world. Ryan Braun is small potatoes compared to that, but unfortunately nothing sparks the old outrage meter like a scandal.
-
Ken
in February 24th, 2012 @ 14:01Nice job by the lawyers.
He’s a cheater.
-
Mike V
in February 24th, 2012 @ 14:38I wonder how much his batting average will drop off this season. We still have a lot to learn about this case.
-
Dave
in February 24th, 2012 @ 15:19Apply a 10 pound asterisk to all things Braun.
-
Chris
in February 24th, 2012 @ 16:08I am sick of hearing everyone whine and complain as if 90% of the players havent been taking some form of PED since the start of baseball back in the 1800′s…..Ruth, Gerigh, Mantle, all probably did some form of illegal drug or PED….Personally i think the list of things that are illegal in sports is stupid….if the average person can walk down to a GNC and buy it, then it should be legal in all sports…period.
-
Bobzilla
in February 25th, 2012 @ 00:35Ruth was juiced alright.
The man would show up drunk halfway through many games, belt two home runs, then stagger back into the bar for more juice. Imagine if Ruth hadn’t drank…
Mantle was another drunkard.
-
Paul
in February 26th, 2012 @ 10:43“Ruth, Gerigh, Mantle, all probably did some form of illegal drug or PED” and you “probably” don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.
-
Arnie
in February 24th, 2012 @ 16:09And yet another reason on an already very long list why MLB is a complete joke. Pathetic on so many levels.
-
Mike from Boston
in February 24th, 2012 @ 16:57I have a question on this issue from a different angle. I work in the medical IT industry, so I’m getting briefed all the time about the importance of upholding HIPAA regulations regarding the privacy of people’s medical records.
If Braun had been taking a drug screening test for, say, a new life insurance policy, then the public disclosure of this information would be clearly illegal. What I’m wondering is, does that also apply to drug testing for sports?
Could the argument be made that the public disclosure of his test results be a violation of his medical record confidentiality? Maybe there’s a disclosure agreement players sign or something prior to the test, I have no idea. But the legal aspect of this issue in terms of his medical record confidentiality is something I’d be interested in hearing more about.
-
Vermonter
in February 24th, 2012 @ 17:52Look, this was not mishandled by Selig, or by MLB. They outsourced this to a group that is reputed to be state of the art. This was an egregious error. I hate to go all lawyer on the group, but the credibility of the evidence is zero if it spends 44 hours out of the loop, supposedly on a desk in a tupperware container.
When a person’s character, career and reputation are on the line, not to mention millions of dollars, the quality of the evidence challenging it must be beyond reproach.
Put it this way. Stand in Braun’s shoes, or anyone else’s whose career depends on the integrity of a testing protocol. How would you feel if it were ignored so blatantly? Probably just like Braun does.
I agree, chances are good that he really did juice. Problem is, just like the way the LA cops messed up with OJ, the drug cops blew this one. Blame them.
-
Ken
in February 27th, 2012 @ 14:06“Out of the loop” in this case was in the possession of the tester. A guy who has worked in drug testing. The samples were with him.
The samples were sealed and signed off on by Braun. If the seals were broken, it would have been obvious.
Seriously, you have to be either really stupid, or just a really intense Brewers fan to believe (or lie to yourself) that this guy is innocent.
-
Mike from Monroeville
in February 24th, 2012 @ 19:55How do you explain why he didnt gain any weight or speed and he doesnt look like a juicehead?
-
John Steigerwald
in February 25th, 2012 @ 08:44It’s not my job to explain it but testosterone doesn’t always change the look. It helps in recovery time and helps in speed and explosiveness.
-
mlvnsmly
in February 25th, 2012 @ 08:58Oh yeah? What about your “eye test?” (Please don’t make me go look up your quotes by denying it) All the sudden that doesn’t count anymore. we’re expected to believe that this guy had a test with so much testosterone, it was three times more than any other test ever in baseball. So he’s juiced out of his mind three times more than any player ever and shows no physical signs? Right.
-
John Steigerwald
in February 25th, 2012 @ 14:49Call a doctor.
-
mlvnsmly
in February 25th, 2012 @ 15:29Haha, good one. Resorting to a third grade mentality when you know you’ve been caught being hypocritical. Keep your chin up though, maybe the Pirates will still be bad this year and you’ll be able to rationalize your hatred for your hometown team at least one more year!
-
John Steigerwald
in February 25th, 2012 @ 19:48Not hypocritical at all. Perfectly consistent. Just like the Pirates, whom I don’t hate. I despise MLB because of what has happened to the Pirates. Try to keep up. You can pass the eye test and still be on he juice, but you can’t flunk the eye test and not be on the juice. That “eye test” method isn’t mine. It’s Dr. Charles Yesalis’. He’s one of the world’s foremost experts on PEDs.
-
Tattoo Rick
in February 25th, 2012 @ 15:39Have you even read any of the facts in this case JS? Once again you take a hard line stance on a topic you clearly know nothing about. The sample collection was botched by a part time employee.. Braun was perfectly willing to take a DNA test (he requested one) to prove that the sample did not belong to him. The response to the request ? NO…Hmm I wonder why MLB would not want a DNA test performed on the sample? They know that the idiot that was in charge of the sample F’d things up and there was a good chance the sample didn’t belong to Braun. The backlash would be an overhaul of the system, they can’t have that..Braun should sue the testing agency and the MLB.
-
John Steigerwald
in February 25th, 2012 @ 19:47I read that MLB VEHEMENTLY disagrees with the results. And I know as much about it as you do.
-
Tattoo Rick
in February 26th, 2012 @ 12:56What else do you think the MLB is going to say? The arbitrator explained that the reason he ruled for Braun wasn’t because of the so called technicality. The tipping point was the fact that MLB would not test the DNA of the sample they cliam belonged to Ryan Braun. Is this that hard to understand? MLB was not sure enough to test the DNA but they are sure enough to level a 50 game suspension cost a man millions of dollars and ruin his reputation. Your right JS to hell with proceedures that are set by the CBA just use the eye test. You can’t be that stupid.
-
John Steigerwald
in February 26th, 2012 @ 14:27Is everybody who disagrees with you stupid?
************************************************************************
The baseball officials, sources say, are incensed that Braun, his attorneys and the union successfully attacked the integrity of a collection procedure that is a “joint” procedure. The word “joint” in this context means that the union and the league agreed to the procedure, made a mutual decision to hire the collection agency and were both obligated to abide by the results. Any failure to follow the joint procedure, the league officials assert, is a “technicality” and had no effect on the integrity of the sample or the results of the test.
*************************************************************************Braun’s team suggested Friday that after learning of the positive test result, it requested the player’s sample undergo DNA testing to determine whether it was truly his urine.
MLB declined this request, according to Braun’s camp. While MLB agreed Braun’s camp requested the DNA request initially, a source with knowledge of the case said MLB told Braun and his lawyers it didn’t believe such a test was necessary but that they were welcome take up the issue with the arbitrator if they wanted the test conducted.
Ultimately, the source said, the DNA issue was not raised during the hearing by Braun’s team.
***************************************************************************
According to multiple sources with knowledge of the hearing, possible tampering of the specimen was not raised as a defense, and Montreal lab director Christiane Ayotte testified that she saw no signs of tampering when the lab received the specimens.“Neither Mr. Braun nor the MLBPA contended in the grievance that his sample had been tampered with or produced any evidence of tampering,” said MLB executive vice president Rob Manfred in a statement released Friday afternoon.
The collection process would have played out this way: Braun would have urinated into a sample cup, in full view of the doping control officer or DCO. The DCO would have then taken the cup and poured the sample into two other sample cups, one marked “A,” and one marked “B.”
A lid would have been placed on both cups, with forensic chain-of-custody tape used to seal both cups, while Braun watched. The cups would have been turned upside down to show no leakage. A source with knowledge of the case and doping issues told “Outside the Lines” that if someone tried to lift the tape or tear it off, it would be reflected on the bottle because the tape sticks.
“There’s no way to replace it without that showing,” said the source. “You can bet that if there was suggestion this guy intentionally sabotaged the sample, the case never would have gone forward. If that were the case, MLB’s 13-man investigative unit and the FBI should have been called in.”
Catlin also said that if the sample had been tampered with, it would have been evident when the sample itself was tested. “[Ayotte] would have caught that,” he said.
**************************************************************************************************************************
How stupid can you be?
-
Tattoo Rick
in February 26th, 2012 @ 16:01Braun’s team suggested Friday that after learning of the positive test result, it requested the player’s sample undergo DNA testing to determine whether it was truly his urine.
MLB declined this request, according to Braun’s camp. While MLB agreed Braun’s camp requested the DNA request initially, a source with knowledge of the case said MLB told Braun and his lawyers it didn’t believe such a test was necessary but that they were welcome take up the issue with the arbitrator if they wanted the test conducted.
Ultimately, the source said, the DNA issue was not raised during the hearing by Braun’s team.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Key word is the source said. You believe the source and MLB I believe Braun. The arbitrator beleved Braun. Whos stupid..You believe Not guilty until proven innocent it IS innocent until proven guilty. You cant have it both ways. If the system fails the result is innocent like it or not.
-
John Steigerwald
in February 26th, 2012 @ 19:53I didn’t see a judge or a jury. The government and the jurors are required to presume innocent until proven guilty. And when the jury is asked for a verdict, the foreman doesn’t say, “We find the defendant innocent.” He says we find the defendant not guilty. Big difference. I’ll take my chances on being right more often than not with my presumption of guilt when it comes to steroid use.
-
metalslam
in February 25th, 2012 @ 01:12He`s innocent & so was O.J.
-
ISteve Roissy
in February 25th, 2012 @ 18:23Why are the Pirates not making up for that lack of talent by juicing?
-
Mike from Boston
in February 26th, 2012 @ 01:35For the same reason they won’t put real talent on the ballfield.
$$$
talent ain’t cheap, and neither are PEDs
-
Paul
in February 26th, 2012 @ 10:45Really? What’s the going price?
-
ISteve Roissy
in February 26th, 2012 @ 15:05PEDs are expensive but we need an edge. We had the amphetamines on the ready in the ’70′s, time to adapt to the times. Maybe hire that slimeball assistant Bill Belicheck has and steal signs too.
-
Dan
in February 26th, 2012 @ 15:44Speaking of Juiced, how about Joel Zumaya? He broke his elbow THROWING A BALL. How stressed were his muscles???
-
Joe
in February 27th, 2012 @ 12:14I fbRaun were to claim his sample was tampered with, he would have to prove it to the arbritrator. However, he wasn’t there when the screw up occur. He can’t prove it. If he could get the sample DNA tested, he might be able to prove it, but he couldn’t do it. Thus, his only recourse is to attack the procedure as being botched.
He had 25 tests beforehand that were negative. Then, 3 more afterwards. So, he was clean until he took that one test? He just started using and they caught him? Why?
Technacality? Maybe. But that is the only way you can fight a positive test. You have to show that the procedure wasn’t followed leaving it open for the sample to be tampered with.