Reports are swirling that Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Manny Ramirez has failed a drug test and will be suspended 50 games.
Update 12:25 p.m.- A 50 game suspension will be handed to Manny Ramirez as early as this afternoon according to multiple reports. The Los Angeles slugger has tested positive for a substance on Major League Baseball’s blacklist of banned substances according to a first report by the LA Times.
Scott Boras, Ramirez’s agent, told ESPN’s Peter Gammons that his client did not test positive for steroids, but for a drug that was prescribed by a doctor for a medical condition.
Whatever the case, the suspension will cost Manny approximately 7.7 million dollars from his new contract.
Triple-A outfielder Xavier Paul has been told by the Dodgers that he will be promoted later today to fill the empty roster spot that Manny will leave open.
The Dodgers set a record last night against the Washington Nationals as the first team in history to start a season with a home winning streak of 13 games.
Update 1:58 p.m.- RBI Magazine has learned that Manny Ramirez denies any involvement with performance enhancing drugs. The positive test is being blamed on a perscription drug issued to Ramirez by his doctor.
The Dodgers organization has scheduled a team meeting to take place this afternoon to discuss the matter.
More updates to follow**
honestly, maybe I am an idiot for not expecting this…..
I’m with you, Aaron. Why am I not surprised that this happened?
Even if it is medicine and not a steroid, his name is still going to be tainted.
The league needs to correct what is and isn’t legal or this isn’t going to stop.
Next thing we know, David Eckstein is going to fail a test after switching from Colgate to Crest.
He took a testosterone booster, taht was prescribed by his personal doctor. The drug is called HCG and is typically used by steriod users coming off of a use cycle to jump start the bodies testosterone production.
That is the report I have right now.
That being said, I will have my thougths for you in full be late tonight or early tomorrow.
Thanks David, I found a similar report…ESPN’s T.J. Quinn and Mark Fainaru-Wada say the drug was HCG – “a women’s fertility drug typically used by steroid users to restart their body’s natural testosterone production as they come off a steroid cycle. It is similar to Clomid, the drug Bonds, Giambi and others used as clients of BALCO.”