Comments on: Weird Column of the Day

By: Ralph Malph

Ralph Malph — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 21:07:23 +0000

Not HGH. The story was not that Bell was using HGH. It is that he was using hCG, which is not (as far as I can tell) performance enhancing. It is used, as I understand it, to conceal steroid use but it is not, in and of itself, performance enhancing.

It also has legitimate uses in the treatment of both female and male infertility. So let’s not jump to conclusions just yet.

It is, of course, slightly suspicious that he got the prescription from some sort of aging clinic in Arizona and ordered the stuff from an Internet pharmacy in Alabama when he is from Cincinnati, lived in Philadelphia, and trained in Florida.

By: terry

terry — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 20:49:49 +0000

Baseball Between the Numbers essentially argues that marginal/developing players have a more compelling motivation to use performance enhancing drugs than a guy like Bell who is well established.

David Bell is on record as stating he has a medical justification for GH. His being linked to HGH, reveals absolutely nothing about the scope of illicit drug use by professional baseball players.

By: Johnny Slick

Johnny Slick — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 19:42:34 +0000

…except that David Bell using HGH to maintain longevity is exactly the kind of thing that shows that perhaps the illicit-drug issue is getting bigger. It’s no longer about high-profile guys juicing to get an extra few homeruns a year or a mile or two on their fastball, it’s relatively minor players doing it too.

Granted, given Ryan Christensen and Mike Morse, it may never have been just about the Barry Bondses of the world. That being said, I am much, much more wary of scrubs and semi-decent players doing this stuff than guys like Bonds or McGwire or Canseco, who presumably could stop using and still be a solid player. When you see guys start to do it for their own livelihood, I think that’s when you start to get real abuse.

By: Typical Idiot Fan

Typical Idiot Fan — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 09:11:55 +0000

I’d have a pretty hard time believing David Bell was taking HGH to try to improve his game. I think he knows he’s a no power slick fielding third basemen. If anything, it’s only helping him to maintain some form of longevity, which I have a hard time believing is a crime.

By: David J. Corcoran I

David J. Corcoran I — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 07:08:01 +0000

that, and he’s David Bell. He would never do evil.

By: terry

terry — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 03:12:18 +0000

There are alot of valid reasons to take GH (none of which reflect upon his manhood) and since he is upfront about it, Bell deserves the benefit of the doubt.

By: msb

msb — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 02:27:00 +0000

#13– or he is a long-married ballplayer who, unusually, has not yet reproduced?

By: msb

msb — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 02:26:34 +0000

#12-- Geoff Baker did.

By: Ralph Malph

Ralph Malph — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 01:49:44 +0000

I’m guessing this won’t stop people from saying the M’s would win the World Series if they would only bring back David Bell.

By: Johnny Slick

Johnny Slick — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 01:36:21 +0000

Maybe David Bell’s undisclosed medical condition is that he’s a 30something 3rd baseman with marginal power who needs every little edge to stay in the major leagues?