Rrrrrroid Rrrrrrrage

Sorry so busy lately. Promise it will get better shortly.

In the meantime, here’s a really interesting article in today’s Boston Globe written by Nick Cafardo about Minnesota Twins relieve Juan Rincon, the fifth major leaguer to be suspended by Major League Baseball under their new steroid policy.

Cafardo’s unique take focuses on the reaction of the Red Sox’ David Ortiz, Ricon’s former teammate with the Twinkies. Papi seems to think that some players, especially those from Latin countries that may have a limited understanding of the nuanced language of the steroid policy. As Cafardo shows, Ortizzle’s concern is not entirely unwarranted and many Latin players have not been fully instructed as to what products (not just specific ingredients) are banned. Maybe not so coincidentally, four of the five caught under MLB’s new policy are Latin players.

I wish I had more time to rant on this, but needless to say I wouldn’t be surprised to see some clarification in the coming months as to whether a guilty player tested positive for steroids or for another banned substance found in over-the-counter supplements. In the meantime, a dutiful agent who wants to keep raking in big commissions would be wise to go over that steroid policy with a fine-toothed comb and make damn sure that his clients aren’t accidentally ingesting a banned substance. And these players might want to start thinking about paying more attention themselves to what they put in their bodies, lest a 10 game suspension snowball into 50 at the hands of Bud the Destroyer.