The walls are starting to close in on the Roid Boys. Like I have been saying for some time, its just not Tony B. Tony B will be corroborating it all and obviously adding more and identifying more names. Speculations is there are 2 more huge names that will come out. They are going to get all these guys for lying, buying and dealing with these people and clinics. The new agreement in February allows for all these players to get suspended for this type of behavior. There is also the criminal aspect that these players will have to consider. It is illegal to buy, use and distribute these drugs. Will the players ask for MLB's help on the criminal side if they cooperate, possibly. MLB has been talking to the Feds and State people all along and its not unreasonable that Tony B and others will get some protection on the criminal side. There is some speculation that some players may try and claim Bosch presented himself as Doctor and they thought they were not doing anything illegal. That washes possibly on the criminal side, but not with MLB in terms of using PEDS. There are also whispers of lifetime bans might be on the table if some players like Melky and Colon don't cooperate or have found to have lied further.
Also as has been discussed previously, there are numerous people that have been cooperating for quite some time. Not everyone will end up being a liar or dirtbag as some have said. Even if people think Tony B has creditability problems, so do the players when and if it's proved they dealt with him. Selig's small statement yesterday at the draft makes it seem he feels confident MLB is in the right on this matter and probably has the Unions cooperation, as they have been seeing all the evidence right along.
Comparing this unfortunate mess to single cases like Clemens, Bonds, Braun is different. This has at least 50, if not more people involved on both sides, from players, workers, agents, advisors, lawyers, family members, other companies, substantial money and there is no way everyone is going lie, not to mention the Hard proof that appears to exist. It's not Tony B's word against the word of 25 players. MLB has been talking to Bosch for weeks already, they already know most of what they need to know from him, that's why all the subpoenas have been issued for weeks now and are still being issued. It's also not just Tony B who is singing, it's also his partners Carlos Acevedo, Ricardo Martinez, Marcelo Albir and Paulo da Silveira who also were named in lawsuits and are cooperating.
The ESPN story from 2 days ago was really nothign new, they just put together what has been going on the past 2 months and almost all the information in thier report had already been out there. Its amazing what you can find out when lawsuits are filed.
Don't forget the pictures either, it might be kind of hard for players to say they never dealt with Tony B or only met him in the past year or two when pictures exist, some from years ago. Once a few players admit and cooperate the rest will fall like dominoes. It could be the suspensions come over a period of time, but they do appear to be coming, and soon most likely.
Nice article today from Frank Thomas on his take on the current mess and how some of the living HOF players feel:
http://espn.go.com/chicago/mlb/story/_/ ... fame-entry
As for Fantasy, I post this information for info purposes only and it's nothing that is not reported and I dont pretend at all to say any or all of it is true, its just what we have in front of us. Everyone can form thier own opinions on whether to use it, read it, ignore it, see how it might affect thier fantasy team. I believe its relevant, because of the scope and possible impact. This is not some small story or problem and in many ways its a shame it even exists. As Tom said, thier will be good days and bad days for both the players and MLB the next few weeks.
Bosch meeting today:
Friday’s meeting, in the works for weeks, is believed to include Bosch and his lawyer, Ribero-Ayala, as well as MLB executive vice president Rob Manfred, MLB department of investigations senior vice president Dan Mullin and other baseball investigators. MLB attorneys and lawyers from MLB’s outside counsel, Proskauer Rose, are also expected to attend, as well as a court stenographer.
MLB officials have worked for weeks to secure Bosch’s cooperation, including long sessions this week with his attorney, as they move toward suspensions of players they believe were involved with Bosch and Biogenesis.
MLB is in possession of documents that came from Bosch’s clinic, having purchased them after the publication in January of a story in the New Times citing documents and notebooks belonging to Bosch that detailed drug regimens and schedules with players’ names next to them.
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NEW YORK (AP) - Major League Baseball's lawyers issued subpoenas to Federal Express, AT&T Mobility and T-Mobile USA in an attempt to gain records for its investigation of players suspected of using performance-enhancing drugs.
The subpoenas were issued May 23, according to a civil case file in Florida's Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, where MLB sued Biogenesis of America, anti-aging clinic head Anthony Bosch and five others in March.
MLB asked Federal Express to turn over shipment records for Biogenesis, Bosch, the other defendants and a long list of individuals who appeared to be affiliated with Bosch.
MLB asked the phone companies for call records, texts and subscriber info for the phones of Juan Carlos Nunez, an associate of outfielder Melky Cabrera who was banned from big league clubhouses last year, and Porter Fischer, who was affiliated with the now-closed clinic.
In addition, a subpoena was issued for Biogenesis and related entities in March, seeking records involving major leaguers and 70 banned substances. No players were mentioned by name.
MLB hopes Bosch will provide information implicating players in the use of banned performance-enhancing drugs, and Bosch agreed this week to cooperate. Because any discipline could be challenged by the players' association in grievances before an arbitrator, MLB likely would want records to corroborate any testimony.
There was no indication in the files whether the companies planned to challenge the subpoenas.
"FedEx complies with all valid subpoenas, and we are unable to comment further,'' company spokesman Scott Fiedler said.
Said AT&T spokesman Marty Richter: "We respond to all lawfully issued subpoenas.''
T-Mobile spokeswoman Anne Marshall said the company is looking into the request and has no comment.
MLB opened its latest drug investigation following a Miami New Times report about Biogenesis in January. Alex Rodriguez, Ryan Braun and Cabrera are among the players whose names appeared in Biogenesis documents, according to various media reports. All have denied any wrongdoing.
Newsday reports Major League Baseball’s investigation into players using illegal performance-enhancing drugs through the former Biogenesis clinic has accumulated testimony and evidence from many witnesses.
The report follows news that the anti-aging clinic’s founder, Anthony Bosch, has agreed to cooperate and testify in MLB’s probe. Bosch’s reliability as a witness has been brought into question.
MCCANN: MLB’s deal with Biogenesis director raises many questions
The report also says MLB won’t rely on testing results and intends to significantly punish players for lying to investigators.
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From Newsday:
According to the source, interviews with “tons” of people will help frame the basis of MLB’s investigation. [Alex] Rodriguez is among those scheduled to be interviewed by MLB as part of the next phase of the investigation.
What the players say to MLB investigators could determine what, if any, discipline they may face.
According to the source, if players are found to have lied to investigators, that could result in a more significant penalty.
It appears that much of MLB’s case will rest on what is called a non-analytical positive, meaning evidence other than a blood or urine test to detect banned substances.
The source said that while a positive test would be beneficial to investigators, the lack of a test would not necessarily clear a player.
Major League Baseball has "tons" of witnesses who will help frame the basis of their investigation into the South Florida anti-aging clinic Biogenesis and performance-enhancing drugs in the region, reports Stephen Marcus of Newsday.
It's unclear if the witnesses are former Biogenesis employees or people who would have more damning information, such as those who allegedly supplied PEDs to players directly. Former Biogenesis chief Anthony Bosch agreed to cooperate with MLB's investigation recently.
Richard McLaren, an arbitrator who has assisted MLB with previous PED issues, believes the league will be able to build a strong case despite the lack of failed drug tests. The Joint Drug Agreement allows for discipline bases on "non-analytical positives."
"You want to have as much corroborative evidence as you can find," [McLaren] said. "So to the extent that there were employees, receptionists or whatever at the clinic who might have knowledge of what's going on, then you want them to testify, verify, corroborate someone else's testimony, like Bosch.
"So they would certainly be looking to obtain that type of information, and I would suspect they have some of that kind of information available to them and are prepared to call that at arbitration."
At Thursday’s MLB draft in Secaucus, N.J., Selig declined comment on A-Rod’s statement or the investigation, but when asked about the current MLB drug agreement and the strides baseball has made in drug testing, the commissioner said: “I don’t want to comment on that except that I’ve said that I’m proud of our agreement. I’m proud of the fact we have the toughest drug testing program and you know what? This proves it.”
If you say so. 
