Photo: tsminteractive.com
- Adam Parker
Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun, in his first public comments since testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug, told the packed Manhattan ballroom crowd in attendance Saturday night to see Braun accept his National League MVP award, "Everything I have done in my career has been done with the appreciation and respect for the game of baseball."
Although he never directly addressed the allegations against him -- that his MVP season was accomplished with the help of a banned substance -- it was clear Braun's comments were pointed at the legal battle he is currently involved in to clear his name amid his P.E.D. allegations.
"You know, sometimes in life, we all deal with challenges we never expected to endure," Braun said. "We have an opportunity to look at those challenges and view them as either obstacles or as opportunities, and I've chosen to view every challenge I've ever faced as an opportunity and this will be no different. I have always believed that a person's character is revealed through the way they deal with those moments of adversity."
Braun, who was the NL's Rookie of the Year in 2007 and an All-Star in each of his first four major league seasons, garnered NL MVP honors while batting .332 with 32 home runs and 111 RBI's, 109 runs scored and 33 stolen bases.
But his accomplishments have been tainted somewhat since December, when word was leaked that the Brewers' left fielder had failed a drug test and was facing a likely mandatory suspension at the start of the 2012 season.
Braun tested positive for an elevated level of testosterone in a urine test taken in October, a story initially reported by ESPN's "Outside the Lines." There are conflicting reports about what caused the positive result, and the New York Times quoted a source as saying a later test showed Braun to have normal testosterone levels.
Braun is appealing the result but faces a 50-game suspension at the start of the 2012 season under Major League Baseball's drug policy if he loses his appeal and the test is upheld. He will miss the first 57 days of the regular season and wouldn't see the field again until May 31, resulting in the loss of approximately $1.87 million of his $6 million salary.
But I severely doubt that Braun is really worried about money, after all, the cash he'll potentially be losing is chump change to a guy making the kind of dough Braun is. No, he's much more concerned with the principle of being deemed guilty and how that will effect his public image long term.
My advice?
Stop fighting it, Ryan. I can't recall the last time a player in Braun's situation actually won their appeal against the league, and ultimately they're only prolonging the inevitable. You don't want to end up a social pariah in baseball like Barry Bonds or Roger Clemens.
Don't try to hand me that crap about you didn't "knowingly use steroids". That's probably the least believable excuse I've heard since the 'juicing' era began in baseball. I mean, let's be real here. You're a professional athlete. You get paid to play a sport you love. Your body is your temple and 'moneymaker' in every sense of the word and it's a slap in the face to try and make us believe that you don't know what goes into it. It's time to answer for what you've done, Ryan.
Come clean. Take your medicine. Move on.
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