UPDATED: 16 former Texas Rangers linked to steroids, HGH

by Alex Bentley

16 former Texas Rangers were named as being linked to steroids or human growth hormone (HGH) in a report issued by former Senator Majority Leader George Mitchell today. Mitchell had been hired by Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig to investigate the so-called Steroids Era. Active players Eric Gagne, Gary Mathews, Jr., Mike Stanton, Jerry Hairston, Jr., Chad Allen, and Gregg Zaun, and retired players Jose Canseco, Juan Gonzalez, Rafael Palmeiro, Kevin Brown, Ken Caminiti, Ismael Valdez, David Segui, Randy Velarde, Steve Woodard, and Mike Judd were among 75 current and former baseball players named in the report. Barry Bonds (surprise!), Roger Clemens, and Andy Pettite are among the notable non-Rangers named. You can read the entire mondo report here. Six of the former Rangers are either suspected of or have admitted to using or receiving steroids or HGH during their time with the Rangers.

The report notes that Sports Illustrated reported earlier this year that records show that Hairston, Jr. was sent a shipment of HGH (among other substances) in May 2004, while he was with the Rangers, a report Hairston, Jr. denies. New York Mets trainer Kirk Radomski also says that he sent Hairston, Jr. HGH in 2003 and 2004. Matthews, Jr. was mentioned in the same SI article as having been shipped a package of HGH in August 2004, when he was also with the Rangers.

Allen admits in the report to using steroids sent to him by Radomski during the offseason between the 2003 and 2004 seasons. Allen played in 41 games for the Rangers over the 2004 and 2005 seasons.

The report links Gonzalez to steroids through his trainer, Angel "Nao" Presinal, who was questioned in 2001 about a bag containing steroids, syringes, and clenbuterol, a veterinary drug that has been known to have been used by steroid users to drop body fat. Presinal denied ownership of the bag, saying "that it belonged to, and had been packed by, Gonzalez," who was then with the Cleveland Indians. Presinal later admitted packing the bag after Gonzalez denied packing it, but Presinal then said that he had been carrying the bag for Gonzalez and had helped inject the steroids to Gonzalez. Records show that Presinal visited Gonzalez in 2002 in the Rangers clubhouse many times, and he was escorted from the clubhouse later that year by MLB security.

The report documents Palmeiro's well-known link to steroids. He was suspended for 10 games in 2005 for having used the anabolic steroid stanozolol. He also famously went before Congress earlier that year and declared, "I have never used steroids, period." However, Canseco claimed in his book Juiced that he personally administered steroids to Palmeiro and two other players shortly after Canseco joined the Rangers in 1992.

The report names Velarde as one of the players who was given supplies of designer steroids “the cream” and “the clear” by trainer Greg Anderson, who spent time in prison for steroid distribution stemming from the investigation into the Bay Area Laboratory Company, or BALCO. James Valente, BALCO’s vice president, told investigators in 2003 that Velarde was among a group of players for whom Anderson had procured the substances. The report says that Velarde cooperated with the Mitchell investigation by saying through his attorney that he did use substances he received from Anderson in spring 2003 in an attempt to prolong his career.

UPDATE: The report notes that a San Francisco Chronicle article on Nov. 6, 2007 reported that Valdez had a shipment of HGH sent to him at the Rangers ballpark in September 2002, although Valdez had been traded to the Mariners earlier that season. Valdez would come back to play in 22 games for the Rangers the following season.