Former Senator George J. Mitchell released a blistering report yesterday, that tied 89 Major League Baseball players, including Roger Clemens, to the use of illegal, performance-enhancing drugs. The report used informant testimony and supporting documents to provide a richly detailed portrait of what Mitchell described as “baseball’s steroids era.” Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner, was the most prominent name on a list that included seven other former most valuable players as well as players from all 30 teams. The list included more than a dozen players who have had significant roles with the Yankees, and more than a dozen Mets, too. It also included 11 players alone from the 2000 Los Angeles Dodgers.Of all the active players tied to the use of steroids and human growth hormone, which are illegal without a prescription and banned, only Jason Giambi of the Yankees cooperated with Mitchell’s 20-month investigation. The Toronto Blue Jays’ Frank Thomas, widely known for his antisteroids stance, was the only other active player who agreed to talk with Mitchell’s investigators.Key evidence was provided by Kirk Radomski, a former Mets clubhouse attendant, and Brian McNamee, a former trainer for Mr. Clemens and Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte, who was also named in the report.In the report, McNamee is quoted describing how he injected Clemens with illegal drugs at least 16 times from 1998 to 2001. Clemens, 45, adamantly denied it.Mitchell acknowledged that his report was inhibited by limited cooperation and the absence of subpoena power, and that there was still much about drug use in baseball he did not know. The report was critical of the commissioner’s office and the players’ union for knowingly tolerating performance-enhancing drugs.Bud Selig, the commissioner of baseball, praised Mitchell’s 20 recommendations, which included the adoption of a more independent drug-testing program. Despite Mitchell’s general recommendation that the players in the report not be punished, Selig said he would review each player’s case and was inclined to discipline them.Donald M. Fehr, the executive director of the Major League Players’ Association, said he did not think the investigation was fair. Mitchell said “baseball’s steroids era” started roughly in 1988. It took 15 more years for baseball to start random testing. He noted that testing has reduced steroid usage, but players have switched to human growth hormone, which cannot be detected in urine tests, which baseball’s program administers. “Everybody in baseball—commissioners, club officials, the players’ association, players—shares responsibility,” Mitchell said.The report revealed that baseball secretly suspended drug testing for part of the 2004 season, for fear of criminal prosecution, after federal authorities seized the 2003 drug results as part of the BALCO case. The suspension, of unclear length, was kept secret by agreement of the commissioner’s office and the players’ association.
