http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070906/SPORTS12/70907002 PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. ? St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Rick Ankiel, baseball?s feel-good story of the season, received a 12-month supply of human growth hormone from a Florida pharmacy that was part of a national illegal prescription drug-distribution operation, the New York Daily News has learned.
If Ankiel comes out and says, "Yeah, I took HGH in 2004 when I was trying to get back to the bigs. It was a stupid move, but I was desperate. When baseball banned it, I stopped taking it," I would have zero issue.
Yes it's okay. But I'm also in support of the guys you listed above (just not the fans who cheer Clemens and get all over Bonds) :wink:
Do people still really care? Lets move on. Barry broke the record, Giambi is accepted back. Who cares. It happened, its over.
I'm a Cards fan, and I admit to having something of a developing man-crush on Ankiel the last few weeks. He's like a poor-man's Arod right now, the stats make that sound a tad less silly to say. But, should he keep up with this hot streak, and the Cardinals not only make it to the playoffs, but actually win a series or two, the whole thing is just going to look so tainted. I haven't even gotten over the pain it caused me to face the McGuire record being more or less a sham. Now this, it just sucks for me. I'm a purist along these lines, I don't accept cheating, from anybody. But I'm not ready to renounce my support for Ankiel just yet. The main reason being that the HGH was purchased (and no doubt, used) well before the ban was imposed, but not only that, well before this season. I doubt the effects of HGH taken 3 years ago would really have any bearing on what he has done this season.
It was while he was still trying to make it as a pitcher, and coming back from Tommy John surgery, and it wasn't banned from the MLB yet. But fuck the Cards anyway.
To me there's a big difference between HGH and steroids.. I don't think the use of HGH is ok, but it's legal and it wasn't banned in the league until after he apparently bought it. In my opinion it isn't worth vilifying him over.
I hate the little jerks that snoop around and find old news/secrets and bring it up -- this is probably going to ruin the best baseball story of the year.
hGH is no more legal or illegal than steroids - they are legal with a doctor's prescription, and he apparently didn't have one. Edit: I now see that this is not quite true. While anabolic steroids are considered a controlled substance under federal law (and hence possession without a prescription is illegal), hGH is not under federal law (it is under many state laws, however). It is, however, illegal under federal law to distribute hGH or possess it for the purpose of distribution. Edit edit: It now appears that Ankiel had a prescription for the hGH. If that is true, this was a complete non-story from the very beginning.
