Wow - this is why I love lawyers. Notice how their statements do two things:

1) make it SEEM like there's just no way that Palmeiro named names or did anything wrong here

2) In no way refute the assertion that Tejada gave Palmerio B12 that "accidentally" had steroids in it

3) In no way refute the assertion that Palmeiro named names - they're fully within their right to be "disturbed" that news of Palmeiro's naming of Tejada got out

This is why law school takes 3 more years after college... these guys are with words what Ozzie was with a glove.

One thing I'm slightly confused about

Tejada said he was tested three times. I've read that they tested a sample of the B12 shot that Tejada gave them three times.

So was Tejada tested for steroids three times AND there were three tests on on the vitamin shots, or was Tejada just referring to the shots?

I have not heard about testing the shot. I don't see how they could test the shot. Do you have a link to the article?

Yeah - here's the link - http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=ArRPhZRhEyIMxLqzuReeDKg5nYcB?slug=ap-orioles-palmeiro&prov=ap&type=lgns

And a quote - " NEW YORK (AP) -- Rafael Palmeiro cited a vitamin he received from Baltimore teammate Miguel Tejada as possibly causing the positive steroid test that led to the first baseman's suspension. The Orioles said Major League Baseball absolved Tejada of any wrongdoing.

``They tested the stuff Miggy had and found out it was B12 and cleared it and that's the end of the story,'' Orioles executive vice president Jim Beattie said.

So they didn't test the actual shot, but the B12 vitamin Miguel Tejada had. I'm still trying to figure out if Tejada was actually tested himself though, i.e. had to piss in a cup three times this year.

I get the impression that the B-12 was tested three times. I'm sure Tejada had a test, but not sure how many.

This may be a dumb question (or three), but why take B-12 injections instead of just swallowing vitamins from a clearly-labeled bottle that you buy yourself at the store? Doesn't taking an injection of something that a teammate vouches for leave you open to this risk? Is the injectable B-12 that much better?

I would assume the injected B-12 would get in the blood stream faster and be more available for the body than a swallowed pill, which may not be absorbed by the body very well.

The scary things about this situation are the leaks and how fast some in baseball and the media have taken the leaks to be accurate. Lets step back for a minute and take another look at this. I'm not defending Palmeiro just playing devils advocate. He gets notified that a test came back positive. He is freaked because he honestly believes he never took steroids. He appeals the finding and as part of the process he is asked to identify everything he has ever injested. In this long inventory is one mention of another player supplying a "vitamin" that he says really helps him. He doesn't say that the teammate gave him steroids just says hey that is the only injectible "vitamin" he has taken. So the league tracks down the teammate and he gives them something to test which turns out to be just B-12. Problem is, how do we know for sure that is the same stuff that Palmeiro was injected with? Taking this a step further, most of the players caught have been Latin Americans who claim stuff from home caused the positive test. Is it possible that Tejada got bad stuff once and it was the stuff he gave Palmeiro? Most of the US born players get their supplements from better regulated U.S. pharmacies/nutritionists.

Not saying Palmeiro is clean, but that it may not be a clear cut as many are making it out to be.

When you take a pill orally, it goes into the stomach which is a very harsh environment. Protein, for example, denatures in low pH. If you inject straight into the blood stream or muscle, you get more bang for your buck. That's why when you have a really bad infection they put you on IV antibiotics.

I was thinking along the same lines LargeBill. I'd like to know exactly what Raffy said.

I wrote a long comment and then realized that largebill had largely said the same thing. I'd just add that Palmiero was providing information with a guarantee of confidentiality, and thus had no intention of publicly naming Tejada as even a source of b-12.

I don't think this "naming of Tejada" sheds much light on Palmiero, at least given as much of the story as we now know.

In case you guys do not know, B-12 is used as an injection for those on steroids. When taking steroids like Winstrol or others, you need to get 5,000 calories a day to properly gain muscle mass. That is a lot of food. In the beginning of a cycle, you can eat tons but after a few weeks you just get sick of food. B-12 makes you crave food all the time and with it you are able to eat the amount of food you need to for growth. The pill form just does not do it. Some steroids like EQ make you hungry by themselves. But others don't.

Many put the b-12 in the same shot as the steroid so you do not have to stick yourself twice.

B-12 injections are not just for those on steroids. Mid-century, a lot of Europe's upper crust used it as a pick me up.

rbj

you are right but how many people do you know that are going to stick a needle in their body for a pick me up.

and if you are sticking needles in your body for b-12, what else will you inject.

people do not have inectable b-12 laying around. I don't want to say b-12 is strictly for people on steroids, but come on.

John,
All I'm saying is that there are non-steroid users of injectable B-12. I've got no idea if Tejada used steroids or not.
Injectable B-12 is not illegal, so if you're determined you can get it. Heck, you can get illegal injectables too if you're determined.