David Ortiz hasn’t exactly had the most easy-going summer. Between his name being leaked from a 2003 list that indicated he test positive for a PED, being moved down as far as seventh in the order, and making a triumphant return as Boston’s muscle, Mike Mutnansky, Rob Bradford, and Kirk Minihane had plenty to ask him today on “Mut and Bradford.”

The Red Sox’ designated hitter’s initial refusal to comment on a New York Times report that he had tested positive for a substance along with Manny Ramirez back in 2003 made him an easy target for the media, but on such a hot-button issue, Ortiz made sure he knew all the facts before diving into the controversy.

“I was dealing with something that I had no clue about what was happening,” Ortiz said. “At the same time, I’m starting to hit well, starting to recognize pitches and all that kind of stuff. Then out of nowhere I’ve got to deal with this situation I was dealing with, and it kind of got me off because I was trying to look for information and things like that. I remember I was talking to a lot of people, and it was not a good situation, but I’m the kind of guy that I know how to deal with tough situations. Sometimes, things get out of hand, and it got out of control.

“Somebody comes out of nowhere, naming you with something that nobody knows about, and next thing you know, you have fans screaming at you, calling you names that nobody knows. I’m not a perfect human being and I’m not the guy that will tell you I’ve never made any mistakes, but I try not to, you know. I’ve been here in Boston seven years, and I know there’s a lot of kids and a lot of fans looking [up to] us and you know, when somebody just comes out of nowhere and tries to get your reputation down, and nobody steps up and makes a difference from what everybody has seen through the years, it’s a little frustrating.”

Though he was affected on the field by the allegations, Ortiz said he was able to return to form following the August 8 press conference in New York in which he and incoming head of the MLBPA Michael Weiner addressed the urine sample.

“Let me tell you, I was trying to get some good sleep afterwards,” Ortiz said. “I [didn’t] have to see nobody else, I don’t have to deal with no one. We came home […] and everything started heading in the right direction.”

Ortiz also voiced his opinion on his movement up and down the lineup throughout the season. Normally a middle-of-the order hitter, he has batted as low as seventh as recently as August 14.

“To tell you the truth, I don’t really like [hitting] seventh, and I haven’t told that to no one,” Ortiz said. “It’s because the back of my jersey still says ‘ORTIZ.’

“If a pitcher sees me hitting seventh he says ‘you know what, just go to first base. I’m not going to make a mistake with you and you’re not going to change my game. Because you’re hitting seventh I don’t think you’re going to hit the ball out of the park or do any damage.’ But, on the other hand, you know, I’m the kind of guy that I don’t like controversy. If we’re playing good with me hitting nine, I’ve got no problem with it.

“I think Terry’s been doing a hell of a job trying to move things around and trying to give everybody the chance to win a ball game and trying to take pressure off of everyone. I’ve got to try to keep on swinging so I don’t hit seven anymore.”

As for the team as it’s currently constituted, Ortiz applauded the acquisitions of the high-energy Victor Martinez and Alex Gonzalez. After admitting that mentally he doesn’t “have much room” for thinking about things such as slumps and steroid allegations of the past, Ortiz expressed confidence in the Wild Card-leading club going forward.

“I really believe that we’re going to be fine,” Ortiz said. “We just need to be focused and go day-by-day. Make sure we get our pitching all set. Try to give our bullpen some days off, and we can move from there. I really believe if we can have our [starting pitching and offense consistent], we’re going to be just fine.”

For the complete interview, click here.

The following are selected transcriptions of the MLB Network’s Harold Reynolds speaking with Holley and Frede today:

On Smoltz:

“I think he’d be really effective out of the bullpen. If you watch his starts, the one thing that he hasn’t been able to do is maintain. He’d be great getting through one inning. He’s still got good enough stuff to do that and he’s smart enough, but I think when you’re in the mindset of trying to extend yourself to pitch through six innings, you may not give that maximum effort.

“I’ve known John a long time, and I don’t think he came all the way back just to quit, so I can’t see him doing that. And he’s a team player. In Atlanta, the Braves said, hey we need a closer. He did that and became one of the best in baseball. I think he would go to the bullpen in a setup role if given the option. I think he’s a team guy like that, and I think that’s his personality. If not, he would clearly not want to be a distraction on a ballclub. That’s John Smoltz and I think that’s what’s so great about him. Sometimes we all need to come to reality and realize what we’re capable of doing and what we’re not. I think he’s one guy who can assess his own talents.”

On Ortiz:

“Well number one I love him to death and I think to anyone who’s been around him his personality is infectious. I was disappointed. I’m saddened by it. The thing about it that’s so puzzling is, and I don’t care what players say, they knew. They were all told in 2003, hey you’re on this list… if you go back, and it’s not necessarily that guys were taking steroids, or knowingly I should say, but there are so many substances that have been banned since that time. That’s his only out, that this was something that got banned later on and at the time it wasn’t a banned substance.

“As far as I know, and I could be wrong but I doubt it, they were alerted by the Players’ Association… I believe that all hundred and whatever guys there were were told and probably also asked what they were taking so that the union could gather the information and say, this is what’s causing the positive tests.

“There’s been a lot of grey area, and the public has this perception that there’s no grey area with sticking a needle in you. Well that’s not always the case. Guys are taking different supplement packages, amino acids, creatine, different stuff like that that are part of your daily regiment of vitamin supplements so to speak, so that was a big problem. The other thing that happened is that a lot of guys have personal trainers… so they have been banning a lot of the personal trainers, there has been a serious strictness of this is what’s going to happen because of the research.

“I think the education is getting there and I think guys are starting to understand it.”

In 2002, one of the most vocal opponents of the concessions made by the Major League Baseball Players Association was then-Red Sox shortstop Nomar Garciaparra. The shortstop expressed concern about whether or not testing that was supposed to be confidential would truly remain so. That concern seemed to gain further credence on Thursday when former Sox teammate David Ortiz’ positive test in 2003 (which was used to determine whether enough players tested positive to create a permanent testing program with penalties) was reported by the New York Times, citing lawyers familiar with the results.

Garciaparra was livid about the disclosure. Here are some of his comments:

“It’s so hard to even understand, I mean what is that list? This has become an absolute joke, I think it’s just a crock, I don’t even believe the list, it’s kind of ridiculous when you have a list like that and it doesn’t go through the proper channels. What is the truth about something like that? That’s just unfair.

“I know David and I know the guy is just so solid as an individual and cares about the game and what he does, I just hope he’s doing alright.”

“There’s a lot of guys having to deal with accusations and that’s unfortunate. I don’t know the truth. The only thing for me is that I don’t agree with people taking them at all by any means.”

“You have guys who are taking regular supplements at GNC and getting 50-game suspensions. That’s unfortunate. There’s a big difference between being a cheater and being irresponsible, they seem to put the same label on both.”

“There are flaws but it’s getting better. It’s not perfect but I think it’s headed in the right direction for sure. I think we all as individuals and fans of the game have to be aware of that, it’s not going to be perfect and we shouldn’t cast somebody a certain way until we hear the whole story.”

“There’s process that’s supposed to go on, if there’s a suspension a guy can appeal it and there’s a big process to see what happened, did any of those guys [listed] even have that chance? I guarantee they didn’t. It was a list that was supposed to be anonymous and now they’re saying it’s not. They didn’t have a process.”

“There was supposed to be just a number. I knew guys who didn’t take the test just to be positive because they wanted testing. Are those guys on the list? I don’t know. There are literally guys who said, ‘I’m not taking it, go ahead and put me on there because I want the number to be above [five percent], if those guys are on the list?’ How about that? People don’t talk about that.”

“I think there’s a bigger issue about a grand jury and stuff being leaked like that, I think we have a bigger problem there than steroids in baseball, that’s a lot bigger than stuff that’s supposed to be sealed and confidential. It’s not anymore. That hurts in all walks of life.”

“Then you’re going to have 100 guys trying to tell a story, but is this [list] even legit? I don’t know, that’s what you question. It’s one of those things where if it was in court it would probably be tossed out and not allowed.”

The New York Times is reporting that both David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez were on the list of 104 Major League Baseball players who tested positive for performance-enhancing substances in 2003. The report cites lawyers familiar with the results of the tests.

The tests were administered as part of an agreement with the Players’ Association with the provision that positive tests by at least 5 percent of the players would trigger a testing program with penalties. The results were supposed to be kept confidential and subsequently destroyed as part of the agreement with the Players’ Association. But they were not, and the federal government seized the results.

Ramirez was suspended 50 games earlier this year for testing positive for a female fertility drug that can be used as a masking agent for steroids. At the time, he said that he had passed several tests over the previous five years during the time of mandatory drug tests (though perhaps conveniently omitting any 2003 tests).

Ortiz has never been suspended for the use of performance-enhancing substances. A Times reporter asked Ortiz about the report today.

“Ortiz shrugged,” the article said. “’I’m not talking about that anymore…I have no comment.’”

The Red Sox clubhouse was closed prior to the game by the time the report was published.

Ortiz has said repeatedly that his success has been achieved “the right way,” especially when he set a Red Sox team home run record in 2006 with 54 longballs.  Indeed, unprompted, he commented on that very thing on Sept. 21, 2006, the night that he hit his 51st homer to set a new Sox record.

“This is something that might change people’s minds and let them know that there are still a lot of good athletes still playing the game and still working hard and preparing themselves to play the game the way it’s supposed to be,” he said. “A lot of people out there, a lot of players, that have a lot of respect for the game. I know there are some guys that have been caught using illegal things, but people should know that not everyone is like that.

“Somebody does whatever they do for a reason, but the most important thing is knowing that there are guys out there capable of hitting homers and doing everything in the right way.”

This spring, his association with Dominican trainer Angel Presinal came under scrutiny. Presinal had worked with Alex Rodriguez of the Yankees after being banned from MLB clubhouses for his association with steroids.

At the time, Ortiz stated that Presinal is a trainer at the facility where he and several other baseball players work out in the Dominican Republic, and that while the trainer offers guidance about exercises and conditioning, that Presinal has never pushed him towards steroids.

“No, no, no. Not at all,” Ortiz said when asked whether Presinal had steered him towards PEDs. “I’ve known him for a long time. He teaches how to keep our body ready, working out, teaching you how to do the right exercises, things like that. He’s not just teaching baseball players. He’s got guys that run in marathons, volleyball players, basketball players, everybody….We all work with him, a group of guys that wants to be ready in spring training. That’s about it.”

As Ian Browne of MLBlogs pointed out on his excellent Brownie Points blog, Ortiz also spoke out strongly this spring on the need to penalize PED users in an effort to clean up the game.

“I would suggest that everybody get tested, and not randomly,” Ortiz said on Feb. 16. “You go team by team and you test everybody, three, four times a year, and that’s about it. You do what you’ve got to do … ban them for the whole year [if they test positive]. You’re going to get respect from the players when they know they’re going to get tested. Let’s test the whole team, three or four times a year. I know they can do that. Believe me, if someone was using steroids, it would show up. Because the way they test you, it’s not a joke.”

Yet while he came out strongly against the use of PEDs, Ortiz also spoke during that spring training media session about the need to move on from the past.

“There’s been a lot of players who have been in federal court and being judged like they just killed somebody or they robbed somebody,” Ortiz also said on Feb. 16. “I don’t think all that is supposed to be happening. If you admitted that you’ve used stuff [in the past], boom, don’t use it anymore. It’s not good for you. You know it’s not good for the game. Let’s move on, you know what I mean? All the drama of bringing guys to court and acting like they are serious criminals, it doesn’t look good for the game. What is happening right now is about something that happened in the past. It’s not something that is happening right now. Everything was banned in, what, 2004?”

We will have more from Fenway Park as information becomes available.

Roger Clemens spoke publicly for the first time since his Congressional testimony in 2008. The former Red Sox, Yankees and Astros pitcher talked on ESPN’s “Mike and Mike in the Morning” show on the day when “American Icon: The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America’s Pastime” was released.

Clemens reiterated his prior stance that he never took steroids or other performance-enhancing substances. He did say that he had supplied prosecutors with DNA to test against the drug paraphernalia that trainer Brian McNamee says that he used to inject Clemens.

“It’s been a game of piling on,” said Clemens. “It’s completely false.”

Here are some of Clemens’ answers in the roughly 15-minute interview: Read the rest of this entry »

The Red Sox clubhouse was barraged with questions about the 50-game suspension of Manny Ramirez. Mike Lowell offered pointed commentary about “another black eye” for the game, expressing disbelief that in an era of testing, and in which there is a clear list of acceptable substances that can be consumed by players, that news of further violations of MLB’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs continue to occur.

DAVID ORTIZ

David Ortiz initially refused any comment about the suspension of his longtime teammate.

“I play for Boston. Manny plays for L.A.,” said Ortiz. “Go ask him.”

He repeated that notion a few times, but he did allow that he was saddened by the news about Ramirez using a banned substance.

“Of course,” he said. “You don’t want nobody to be involved in a situation like this, but what can I say?”

He said that players get “a lot” of advice about permissible substances in spring training. He did suggest that the list “is a little confusing sometimes,” particularly with over-the-counter substances.

“I try not to buy anything,” said Ortiz.

MIKE LOWELL

“It’s just another black eye for the game,” said Lowell. “Guys that are playing the game trying to maximize the talents they’ve been given naturally, everyone is linked in that category. I think that’s what’s a shame. I understand that it’s hard for Major League Baseball to glorify guys who they think are doing it right because we don’t know. That’s where we’ve gotten to. I think that’s very unfortunate. We keep finding these guys, and the message is terrible, especially for young kids who aspire to play Major League Baseball.

“I don’t put (expletive) in my body … I don’t understand why now anyone would even come close to taking anything that could remotely result in a positive test,” he added. “In the past if guys did it, they had the crutch that they weren’t testing. Maybe there’s some secret society that maybe I wasn’t invited to. I don’t get it. I don’t. I wish I could, but I don’t.”

Lowell said that he had “no idea” whether Ramirez used anything in violation of MLB rules while in Boston, but he did say that he never saw Ramirez taking any substances. In Lowell’s eyes, there was nothing tainted about the team’s 2007 championship (the only one for which Lowell and Ramirez were teammates). Even so, the Sox third baseman was clearly upset with the news.

“It hurts me because I think he made a personal choice and I think it was the wrong one. I think it sends a terrible message,” said Lowell. “But each person has to look in the mirror in the morning. If you can live with it, that’s up to you.”

JOHNNY DAMON

In New York, Johnny Damon had some fairly pointed remarks about his former teammate’s suspension. He played with Ramirez, and is currently a teammate of Alex Rodriguez in New York, and so he has been front-and-center with the two largest figures to be ensnared in the PED scandal.

“These guys want to be the best and to us they did look like the best and now they’re paying for it,” Damon told reporters. “I’m just surprised somewhat but every thing that comes out with baseball it seems like it’s mostly negative stories and unfortunately, Manny’s one of them, a former teammate of mine and it’s disappointing to hear.

“I’m not sure if you can be surprised by anything now I think. I was surprised when A-Rod’s allegations came out, so I think that was the biggest surprise to me in the baseball world.  Now another one of our great players has gotten in trouble,” Damon added. “He was such a talented hitter that I would not think he would need an edge.  That’s how good of a hitter he is and he made things look easy. He did his homework on his pitchers, the videos that he watched, the hard work that he put in on the field and off the field.  I didn’t think he needed an edge.”

(On the state of the game) “This game has been able to withstand the test of time and this game has been able to I believe thrive so far this year.  This is another black cloud and hopefully we can weed all this stuff out of the game in the upcoming years.  Unfortunately, some very good baseball players have to go down with it.”

DUSTIN PEDROIA

Dustin Pedroia not only played with Ramirez from 2006-08, but also spent time with him at Athletes’ Performance in Arizona. Given what he had seen of the slugger’s training habits, he was shocked to learn of the positive test.

“I was a little shocked. I wouldn’t have suspected that,” said Pedroia. “I played with him for a year and a half. I think that was the furthest thing. Obviously I worked out with him at the beginning of ’08 and I know his work ethic and he knows what to put into his body, the good things. It’s a little shocking.”

“Obviously playing with him for a couple of years, that’s the furthest thing you think of. It’s definitely unfortunate for him,” he added. “But I think, for all of us, it’s really not our issue anymore. Manny has moved on to LA. It’s unfortunate for him. Obviously he’s one of the greatest right-handed hitters ever. It’s just tough to look up there as a fan of the game, just like anybody else, to see a superstar like that go through something like this.”

“Obviously he knows how to get into shape, he knows how to take care of his body and stuff like that, so that’s obviously surprising. I don’t really know. I’m not familiar what happened, or know all the details. The only thing I know is I played with him a couple of years and he worked hard. I didn’t suspect this stuff.”

(Does it tarnish his legacy?) “I don’t know. The two years I played with him, the year and a half, shoot, we won the World Series, he was kind of injured both years. He missed time in both years. I don’t think … it’s not like we wouldn’t be the world champions if, whatever this is that’s going on. I don’t think it tarnishes any of that stuff.”

(Do you anticipate a time when MLB will be clean?) “I hope. That’s what everyone is rooting for. Everyone that plays this game wants little kids to look up to all the Major Leaguers and know that this game is clean and we play the game the right way and hopefully those kids will look up to us. Hopefully all this stuff goes away and they can just watch us all on TV and enjoy it…Obviously the game is changing in a different direction. You see a lot more speed guys. You look at the Indians. Grady Sizemore, he’s a younger player, he’s very exciting in the outfield. He hits a lot of triples, does a lot of things. That’s the player that I think the game is going to and it’s exciting. I think there’s a lot of vsay this game is changing in the right way.”

(How careful are you about what you take?) “Obviously guys are careful. I take centrum multi-vitamins every day. That’s it. I think the careful route is the best so you don’t have to worry about anything like that.”

“Obviously everyone is not doing it. It’s unfortunate that those guys are talented enough, it’s unfortunate that this happened. I think the game needs to move on and turn the page on all of this. I think everyone is tired of hearing about it, to be honest with you. I don’t think anybody wants anybody to get in trouble or get suspended for games or whatever it is. Everyone just wants to move on and play baseball.”

“The thing is, for me, I’m trying to move on and not worry about that. I know when I was a kid, I looked up to a lot of guys. Some people do bad things, some people don’t. People have to make their own assumptions. My thing is, just go out and play baseball and hopefully kids enjoy what you are and who you are.”

JONATHAN PAPELBON

(On whether he was surprised) “I was. I’m not going to say I wasn’t.”

“We weren’t really the best of friends…He’s not in our clubhouse anymore, so this is something we’re not even worried about”

“Hopefully we can get to the point where there aren’t even accusations of steroid use (in the game).”

Asked if 50 games was a reasonable penalty, Papelbon responded, “That’s the rule, man. You’ve got to stick to ‘em.”

(On how difficult it is to understand the rules) “It’s really easy…(MLB) makes a pamphlet for you in Spanish and English.”

JASON VARITEK

Like most of Manny Ramirez’ former teammates, Jason Varitek seemed a bit stunned and unsure of how to react to the news of the slugger’s suspension.

“This is the real big one right now…Everybody is still trying to find out exactly what’s going on and what’s happened. I don’t know how to react at this point,” said the Sox captain. “I still think for everybody there has to be clarity of what’s going on before you can pass judgment. And before you can pass judgment everybody has to find out what’s going on. It’s changed about 900 times today since you first probably heard at noon until now. I haven’t heard anything the last couple of hours, I’ve been doing my work…You hate to pass complete judgment until you know the whole story.”

Varitek was less concerned with Ramirez’ specific case than he was with the broader issue of performance-enhancing substances in the game.

“I don’t know if I’m going to talk to Manny myself because we have enough things going on to worry about here. The important thing is for the game, which goes beyond every one of us as players,” said Varitek. “This game is much bigger than the players itself. It’s generations and generations so for that fact and that alone is why the program is put into place and I have to see exactly what’s gone on and if that’s a benefit to having the right program in place.”

JOHN SMOLTZ

“I don’t even know enough to comment…Certainly any news like that is never good news…I was surprised a long time ago. I’m numb now. I just hope, I really hope, that nobody gets falsely accused.”

“If this becomes another one, then certainly it’s another shot at baseball’s attempt to clean it up…I’m on the tail end of my career, and I hope they clean it up. I really do. I hope it gets back to the greatest game on earth. I’m confident it will. Unfortunately, you’ve got to go through stuff like this…Sooner or later, enough guys will get wake-up calls and guys will do whatever they can to make sure their names are not on the news for stuff like this. I’m sure that nobody in their right mind wants to be dealing with it.”

The Major League Baseball Players Association issued a press release to confirm that Manny Ramirez has been suspended 50 games for the use of a performance-enhancing substance. The press release, which featured a quote from Ramirez, stated that the substance was not a steroid, but was on Major League Baseball’s banned substances list, and said that Ramirez will not appeal the suspension.

The release reads:

“The Commissioner’s Office announced today that Manny Ramirez has been suspended for 50
games under Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. That
suspension was issued pursuant to Section 8.G.2 of the Program. Manny, after consultation with
the Players Association and his personal representatives, waived his right to challenge that
suspension.

“Manny has requested that the Players Association release the following statement on his
behalf.

“Recently I saw a physician for a personal health issue. He gave me a
medication, not a steroid, which he thought was okay to give me.
Unfortunately, the medication was banned under our drug policy. Under the
policy that mistake is now my responsibility. I have been advised not to say
anything more for now. I do want to say one other thing; I’ve taken and
passed about 15 drug tests over the past five seasons.

“I want to apologize to Mr. McCourt, Mrs. McCourt, Mr. Torre, my teammates,
the Dodger organization, and to the Dodger fans. LA is a special place to me
and I know everybody is disappointed. So am I. I’m sorry about this whole
situation.” – Manny Ramirez

The L.A. Times first reported the news. Last month, former baseball player Jose Canseco told a crowd at USC (as reported by the L.A. Times) that he was “90 percent” certain that Ramirez’ name was on the list of 104 players who tested positive for steroids during the 2003 series, before Major League Baseball had any penalties for positive tests.

The revelation is a bombshell, as a suspension for Ramirez would be the most prominent player to be punished under the current MLB penalties. (Rafael Palmeiro, a member of the 500-homer and 3,000-hit clubs, was suspended for 15 games for steroid use in 2005.) While Alex Rodriguez has admitted to using steroids, and MLB’s Mitchell Report cited use by Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, a positive test for Ramirez would mark the first time a superstar has been snared and punished by the current MLB testing program.

Obviously, the issue resonates across baseball, and particularly in Boston. The reputation of Ramirez, widely regarded as one of the greatest right-handed hitters of all time, would take a major blow in the eyes of the public. Although this positive test comes at a time when he is a member of the L.A. Dodgers, he would be the most significant player on either the 2004 or 2007 championship teams to test positive for a performance-enhancing substance.

(ESPN’s Peter Gammons said during a SportsCenter broadcast that one member of the Red Sox front office was shocked by the revelation, saying, “I don’t believe it for one second.”)

A 50-game suspension would sideline Ramirez until July 3. Ramirez, who signed a one-year, $25 million contract with a $20 million player option for 2010, would not be paid during the suspension, meaning that he would forfeit between $7-8 million.) He is hitting .348 with a .492 OBP and .641 slugging mark with six homers for the Dodgers this year, after having hit .396 / .489 / .743 with 17 homers in 53 games after being traded to Los Angeles last year.

In an interview on ESPN’s SportsCenter during spring training, Ramirez said multiple times that he had never used or thought about using steroids.

“No, it wasn’t tempting,” he said at the time.

Ramirez is not the first player to insist that he was suspended after unwittingly using a banned substance. Former Sox reliever J.C. Romero, who was with the team early in 2007, also failed a test for what he told WEEI.com was a substance in an over-the-counter supplement:

“First of all, I definitely want to make sure [people know] that I did not use steroids,” he said. “I think that’s one thing that I want to clarify because it means a lot to me. I honestly agree with cleaning the game of baseball so we can be better role models for our youth, our kids. We have a bunch of high school, college players that look up to us as baseball players and I think it’s our job, our duty to make sure we keep the game pure.

“With that being said, I also want to make sure that people realize that we’re being targets right now. We’re being targeted by outsiders. We’re pretty much becoming a hot topic right now and baseball is in flames right now because of what’s going on with the game right now, which is very unfortunate.”