Red Sox: David Ortiz blames Yankees for leaked 2003 PED test

Blaming the Yankees may be a stretch, although assuming Ortiz is guilty to begin with is as well. We’ll probably never have any definitive proof confirming if Ortiz used PEDs, but here’s what we do know:

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• Ortiz never tested positive after Major League Baseball implemented drug testing, passing more than 80 tests since 2004. Skeptics will say that Ortiz simply found a way to fool the tests to avoid getting caught, but if it’s that easy then why are players still getting caught today? How did his friend Manny get caught twice?
• MLB commissioner Rob Manfred is on record stating that Ortiz’ denial may be valid because there were at least 10 questionable positives included in the results that wouldn’t hold up under today’s strict policy. The list of 104 players almost certainly included some false positives and it’s impossible to determine if Ortiz was among them.
• We have no idea what substance Ortiz allegedly took. He claims he’s never been told what caused the positive test and he was never made aware of the results until his name was leaked years later. How can you judge how much of Ortiz’ performance was fueled by PEDs – or if it had any effect on his body at all – if you don’t know what he allegedly took?
• The 2003 testing was supposed to remain anonymous, with no repercussions for players who tested positive. The intent was for MLB to determine if drug testing was necessary, which it clearly was given the results of this survey. Even if Ortiz did test positive during this trial, can it really be considered cheating if there were no rules being enforced against it at the time? There’s no witch hunt to tarnish the image of decades worth of players who boosted their performance through the use of amphetamines. Getting caught using “greenies” will earn you a suspension these days, but nobody cares about the fact that there was rampant use of these performance enhancers up until about a dozen years ago when they were outlawed.