Ryan Braun: "I'm a victim of a process"
Milwaukee Brewers' Ryan Braun speaks during a news conference at baseball spring training in Phoenix, Friday, Feb. 24, 2012. / AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
PHOENIX - Saying "my name has been dragged through the mud," NL MVP Ryan Braun reported to spring training with the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday and declared he had been vindicated, a day after his 50-game suspension for a positive drug test was overturned by an arbitrator.
Braun's teammates sat in the stands, in uniform, as he held a news conference on the field at the team's training complex. Braun said that, since what was supposed to be a confidential appeal was played out in public, "I've lived this nightmare every day for the last four months."
Braun detailed how the urine sample he provided on Oct. 1, the day the Brewers opened the playoffs, was not delivered to Federal Express until Oct. 3. Baseball's drug agreement calls for samples to be delivered to FedEx on the same day they are collected.
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"At the end of the day the truth prevailed," he said. "I'm a victim of a process that completely broke down and failed in the way that it was applied to me in the case. As players, we're held to a standard of 100 percent perfection regarding the program, and everybody else associated with that program should be held to the same standard. We're a part of a process where you're 100 percent guilty until proven innocent. It's the opposite of the American judicial system.
Braun said, because of the delay sending his sample to a lab, the testing was "fatally flawed."
"I don't honestly know what happened to it in that 44-hour period," he said.
Braun learned Oct. 19 his sample was positive for elevated testosterone, which he said was at a ratio that was the highest ever recorded in baseball's testing program. The positive test, had it stood up, would have caused him to be suspended for the first 50 games of the season.
ESPN reported the positive test in December.
"I tried to handle the entire situation with honor, with integrity, with class, with dignity and with professionalism because that's who I am and that's how I've always lived my life," he said. "If I had done this intentionally or unintentionally, I'd be the first one to step up and I say I did it. By no means am I perfect, but if I've ever made any mistakes in my life, I've taken responsibility for my actions. I truly believe in my heart and I would bet my life that the substance never entered my body at any point."
He criticized the media for leaking the positive test, saying there had been "many inaccurate, erroneous, incomplete and fabricated stories regarding this issue."
"My name has been dragged through the mud as everything I've ever worked for in my life has been called into question," he said.
Braun arrived at Milwaukee's facility at about 9:40 a.m. walking through the complex's front doors to avoid reporters and camera crews waiting in back at the clubhouse entrance. Braun kissed his girlfriend before joining his teammates.
Braun first met with manager Ron Roenicke, who suggested that the star outfielder also meet privately with Milwaukee's players.
"He's been talking to me all winter, so we know what's going on," Roenicke said. "But they needed to hear it. With the outcome of it, I don't think he needed to explain anything, but I think he wanted to and the players probably appreciated it, so I thought it was great."
Braun, who hit .332 with 33 homers and 111 RBIs last year, is the first Major League Baseball player to have his suspension lifted by an arbitrator for a drug-related penalty.
His suspension hung over the NL Central champion Brewers all winter, and Roenicke was relieved to know he'll have Braun in his lineup from Day One. Milwaukee lost slugger Prince Fielder to free agency and couldn't be afford to be without their other big bat for too long.
"We're a lot better," Roenicke. "Really, that's what it comes down to. This is not just a great player but he's a guy who we need in our clubhouse and we need him in the locker room. His presence means a lot. All of us have been waiting to hear one way or the other what was going to happen. We were certainly hoping this was the outcome."
Roenicke is confident Braun will be able to handle any criticism from fans who believe he may have been cleared on a technicality.
"He's happy and he's happy to have it over with," Roenicke said. "He'll be fine. He gets it. He understands what it's going to be like. His character was in question this winter and I don't think his character will be in question again."
Brewers reliever Francisco Rodriguez is pleased Braun was cleared and doesn't think his teammate needs to apologize.
"I don't think he owes anything to anybody," he said. "I believe, it's not like I'm taking his side, but the people that have to explain what exactly happened is the ones in charge about the test result.
"Once again, he proved he didn't take anything illegal."
Arbitrator Shyam Das threw out Braun's ban on Thursday. Das, who has been baseball's independent arbitrator since 2000, informed the sides of his decision but did not give them a written opinion. He has 30 days to do so.
MLB executive vice president Rob Manfred said management "vehemently disagrees" with Das' decision.
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He submitted the sample on 10/9. He was informed of the positive result on 10/19 - that's 10 days later. The story doesn't say a think about Braun "immediately submitting another sample," which he couldn't do anyway, because he didn't KNOW until 10 days later. So, who are YOU accusing of not reading the story, chump?
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If you're going to put quotation marks around something, at least put it around something I actually said. As soon as he got the results, he asked for and submitted another test, which was negative. You don't go from a highest ever recorded amount in your system to 0 in 10 days. And you know what? This story isn't the only one written about this incident since December. Perhaps you get all your "knowledge" from this site; I don't.
So, I'm "telling it true" - you're a chump.
You have not addressed the question of how someone could test 3 TIMES HIGHER than ever recorded, and then have a negative result 10 days later.
And, dear, I happen to work in a medical facility - I know samples can be tampered with.
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clearly ... the only solution here is that all fed ex employees should submit to steroid tests ... each time they deliver a urine sample.
congress should start working on this immediately ... since there are currently no other problems in the world to be concerned about.
You have no idea of how drug testing works. Does the rule specifically state that the sample must be delivered the same day? Probably not. More likely, the shipment was sent on Thursday for Friday morning delivery.
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Didn't read the article, did you? Typical. The article states, "Baseball's drug agreement calls for samples to be delivered to FedEx on the same day they are collected." The guy drove past TWO FedEx stores on his way home, then supposedly kept the sample in his own refrigerator all weekend. Braun's test was the highest ever recorded, and he immediately asked for another, which came out negative. Pretty impossible.
Plus, he had been tested 3 other random times last year, and all were negative - that's for Indi.
He also was a class act today - when asked if he thought the guy tampered with the sample, he said he's been dealing with being falsely accused, so the last thing he'd do would be to accuse someone else of anything.
MLB should not only keep its mouth shut, they should be sued for leaking this in the first place - totally breaking the rules again.
OK, Ryan that may seem a bit harsh but the fact remains your freedom was never on the line; you weren't likely to go to jail over this even if you were caught redhanded mainlining molasses and HGH. The due process you claim wasn't followed would cost you no more than your job, and only 50 days at that. Your right to any occupation you wish is not on the same level as your right to a presumtion of innocence when charged with a crime. You weren't in this case.
Presumtion of guilt is a given in any drug testing program. The only reason for having one in the first place is to allow the athlete to prove nothing unauthorized shows up in his/her system. The assumption is ALL players are druggies and even if you DO test clean, that doesn't mean you are. Hence repeated and supposedly unannounced testing.
Look, I don't have it in for you any more than I do for any other athlete suddenly up to his bald spot in controversey. In truth I am not sure that prohibiting athletes to gain a chemical advantage is all that good a thing. A lot of the junk players shoot surrepititiously probably isn't as health hostile as the same families of enhancers were even 10 years ago. Indeed, drug use goes back as far as there has been competitive athletics. Ty Cobb - as a for instance - took amphetemints (yep they were readily available then and used more frequently than today) and no one even cared.
But people do care today and the rules are very specific. You get caught with something you shouldn't have in your system and you did, then own it and move on.