Report Connects A-Rod to Miami Doping Clinic

Added by Gina Sorce on January 29, 2013.

Once again, Alex Rodriguez has been brought up in doping allegations.

The Miami New Times reported that Melky Cabrera of the San Francisco Giants, Bartolo Colon of the Oakland A’s, Nelson Cruz of the Texas Rangers, and Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees are all listed in records from Biogenesis, an anti-aging clinic located in Miami, and are the apparent few of many clients of Anthony Bosch. The alleged records were given to the New Times by an employee prior to the closing of the clinic last month. The clinic sold substances such as human growth hormone, testosterone and anabolic steroids; all substances that athletes use to get an edge over the competition.

I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of reading about baseball players being linked to steroid abuse. What’s even more disheartening than the accusations is that A-Rod swore he stopped abusing performance enhancing drugs over a decade ago when he confessed after the infamous Mitchell Report was released in 2007, which started the uproar and controversy of steroids in Major League Baseball.

According to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com, A-Rod’s spokesman released a statement denying the accusations.

“The news report about a relationship between Alex Rodriguez and Anthony Bosch are not true. Alex Rodriguez was not Mr. Bosch’s patient, he was never treated by him, and he was never advised by him. The purported documents referenced in the story–at least as they relate to Alex Rodriguez– are not legitimate,” A-Rod’s spokesman stated, as reported by Bryan Hoch.

Although A-Rod denies the claim, there is evidence of a relationship with Bosch. In the startling article found in the New Times, A-Rod is listed in a notebook labeled “2012”. It reads, “He is paid through April 30th. He will owe May 1 $4,000..I need to see him between April 13-19, deliver troches, pink cream.”

As the story unfolds, more clarity will be inevitable. A-Rod is currently recovering from hip arthroscopic surgery which took place earlier in the month. Although the Yankees believe A-Rod will be back after the All-Star break, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said that it is possible A-Rod could miss the entire season.

Cashman’s statement brings up the underlying question: Is A-Rod’s career as a Yankee over? Was his pitiful performance in the 2012 postseason the last we will see of him in pinstripes?

I, for one, hope that’s the case. A-Rod had a strong start to his career in the Bronx, and had an impressive slugging percentage of .610 in ’05, .645 in ’07, and .573 in ’08. Keep in mind, however, that this was during the time he was using performance enhancing drugs. After getting his first and only World Series ring with the Yankees in ’09, A-Rod’s performance started to rapidly decline. His lowest point, in my opinion, was during the 2012 postseason when he batted .120 and was benched several times during the ALDS and ALCS.

A-Rod has the highest salary in Major League Baseball, worth $275 million.  After all the drama, steroid allegations, injuries, and money that A-Rod cost the Yankees over his nine years with the franchise, I must as this question: was it worth it? That’s something you can decide for yourself.