'09
Well that was fast. Only two days after Sports Illustrated ran a story accusing Alex Rodriguez of taking steroids while he was playing for the Texas Rangers, he gave an interview to ESPN admitting that he took steroids. Although he doesn’t play himself off as a complete victim, he does blame outside pressures for his decision to take steroids. He says that his huge contract with the Rangers made him feel like he needed to be the best, and that he thought the ‘roids would help get him there. He also admits that he didn’t know exactly what he was taking, and didn’t do any research.
Sources who know about the testing results told SI that Rodriguez tested positive for testosterone and Primobolan, an anabolic steroid. In his ESPN interview, which his ex-wife, Cynthia, attended, Rodriguez said he did not know exactly which substance or substances he had taken. In 2003, there were no penalties for a positive result.
“Again, it was such a loosey-goosey era,” Rodriguez said. “I’m guilty for a lot of things. I’m guilty for being negligent, naive, not asking all the right questions. And to be quite honest, I don’t know exactly what substance I was guilty of using.”A three-time AL Most Valuable Player, Rodriguez blamed himself and his $252 million contract he signed with the Rangers in 2001 for his decision to use PEDs.
“I felt a tremendous pressure to play, and play really well” in Texas, the New York Yankees third baseman said. “I had just signed this enormous contract … I felt like I needed something, a push, without over-investigating what I was taking, to get me to the next level.”
Rodriguez also said part of the reason he started using drugs was the heat in Texas.
“Can I have an edge just to get out there and play every day?” he said to himself. “You basically end up trusting the wrong people. You end up, you know, not being very careful about what you’re ingesting.”
Rodriguez added: “I am sorry for my Texas years. I apologize to the fans of Texas.”
Rodriguez, who joined the Yankees for the 2004 season after a trade from Texas, said his years as a Yankee “have been clean.”
“I’ve played the best baseball of my career since,” he said. “I’ve won two MVPs since and I’ve never felt better in my career. Of that I’m very proud of.”
But right now, people aren’t looking at his current record. They’re looking at the mistakes he has made and realizing the implications for the culture of baseball. Even Obama is disappointed.
In his first prime-time news conference, President Barack Obama called Rodriguez’s admission “depressing” news.
“And if you’re a fan of Major League Baseball, I think it tarnishes an entire era, to some degree,” Obama said. “And it’s unfortunate, because I think there were a lot of ballplayers who played it straight.”
Major League Baseball had no comment Monday. Rangers owner Tom Hicks said Rodriguez’s admission caught him by surprise.
“I feel personally betrayed. I feel deceived by Alex,” Hicks said in a conference call, according to The Associated Press. “He assured me that he had far too much respect for his own body to ever do that to himself. … I certainly don’t believe that if he’s now admitting that he started using when he came to the Texas Rangers, why should I believe that it didn’t start before he came to the Texas Rangers?”
[from ESPN]
I don’t care how naive you are, you have to be stupid to agree to take any kind of drug without doing some kind of research. Steroids are banned for a reason. You have to feel a little sorry for him, though. He also says in the interview that it “feels good being completely honest and putting it out there and realizing that the more honest we can all be, the quicker we can get baseball to where it needs to be.” It shouldn’t be too long before he’ll be making appearances and donating money to foundations to get kids to stay away from steroids. Hopefully he won’t get paid millions to do that, too.
Note by Celebitchy: Deceiver points out that in a 2004 interview Rodriguez denied ever taking steroids.
Alex Rodriguez is shown on 7/15/08 during a parade in NY for MLB All-Star Week. Credit: WENN
Written by SamHill
Posted in Alex Rodriguez
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16 Responses to “Alex Rodriguez gives emotional interview admitting steroid use”
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I can’t believe that reporter asked Obama the question during last night’s press conference. Don’t they get it? We have a president who can answer questions about stuff other than baseball - finally.
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Who gives a f*ck…I mean really. I hate the fact that ppl r always so hung up over non sense. EVERY SPORT HAS STEROID USERS! Stop putting so much pressure on them to be the best and just let them play the best they can and just maybe they wouldnt feel compelled to go the extreme later on risking their mental and physical health…GEEZIS!
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Then on top of everything else society is sooo extremely unforgiving abt this non sense yet so very forgiving to pedophiles like Michael Jackson, R Kelly and all the other famous perverts. So ridiculous
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I kinda liked that the reporter asked the question, and Obama didn’t skip a beat. He answered it with as much gravitas as the financial ones.
As for Rodriguez… it’s disappointing but not surprising. I don’t understand the continual mentions of denials in interviews from 2004 and 2007. Of course he was going to deny it then. He wasn’t ready to not deny it.
As disgraceful as it is I’m giving him points for eventual honesty. He should be admitted to the Hall of Fame when the time comes but with an asterisk and he should be subject to not completely random testing for the rest of his career.
Hopefully now MLB will start taking this shit seriously, because no, they haven’t been not even now, not IMO anyway.
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Is it me, or is this guy just repulsive on many levels?
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Injecting steroids or injecting Madonna - I think the steroids are less lethal.
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Can’t believe Madonna would date anyone with a smaller dick than hers.
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He is a major tool! He didn’t help the Rangers at all when he was here and then made disrespectful remarks about the players and the organization after he left. He is completely consumed with himself. Now I hear they want to use him as a “Steriods Bad” campaign while Michael Phelps is still catching heat for doing a bong hit. Get your priorities straight!
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Shelly Shellz:
Let it be known, I do not like him…not since he left Seattle so that “he could play for a winning team,” and then went to the biggest paycheck ever to a losing team. Yeah…he was a liar in more respect than one.
The reason fans are so bent out of shape over this is because he was on track to take the HR record from Bonds, who used steroids and broke the record not based on talent alone, thus tarnishing the record. Bonds broke Hank Aaron’s record, which was HONESTLY won. A-Rod was supposed to restore the honestly by being a naturally great player. He isn’t one, and that’s why people are mad.
And if you’re so against nonsense, why are you at this site? It’s not exactly hard hitting news.
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Gosh, the whole frakking league is drugged! This is it when managers avoid and excuse the lack of doping tests to raise bigger promotion budgets!! NFL is even worse, but no, no one would ever dope himself to stardome… how could he do such a terrible thing?? This is plain ridiculous!
The fish rots from the head down! Start a frakking national doping agency that won’t get disabled by managers and agents! Use international standards on doping. Use WADA standards! And lose the bigotry in pro sports, for crying out loud. That’s the kinda stuff that really pisses me off! (can you tell…? ;o) ) It’s all a frakking lie and everyone and their brothers make millions from it… Such a frak!
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He is ONLY sorry that he got caught. He was been whining ever since he got to NY that the people don’t love him as much as Jeter.
Please, Joe Torre called him A-Fraud. Now he knows why the people of NY love their Derek Jeter, a) he came up through their farm system, b) he gives back to the community and c) he doesn’t cheat.
There is the answer you spoiled overpaid Fraud. (loved the madonna comment about dick size, priceless)
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@ Hello
It might be “newsworthy” on a gossip site which might be appropriate for topics like these but at to ask the president abt this in a press conference???!! GIMME A BREAK!
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@ Shelly Shellz
I didn’t get that you were asking why this is newsworthy in the sense of the actual news, not this site. Sorry about that.
I do agree with you in that regard. It belongs on ESPN or FSN, but for some reason the reporter felt the need to ask. I cannot fault him though, seeing as Congress has felt it necessary to lead the MLB Inquisition in recent times. I don’t think I’m alone in thinking that there are more pressing issues for Congress to be dealing with at the moment, but what do you and I know? We’re just dumb common folk who weren’t elected to any position…At least it was a product of the Bush/Republican years. I still have some hope for the country.
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funny, if A-Rod (A-Roid?) used steroids over the past few years, i would have expected him to get a lot more “huge” like Bonds of McGuire
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I really dont blame alex rodriguez for using steroids haveing getting such a big contract he was under a lot of pressure
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guess he lied to his team,
he lied to the public,
he lied to his wife about Madonna.
guess he’s a big liar.
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