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Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers is most famous in Los Angeles for starring in baseball at Granada Hills High School and beating the Dodgers' Matt Kemp for the MVP award in 2011, despite suspicions about performance enhancing drugs. Braun challenged the chain of evidence on a positive drug test the following year and beat the rap on appeal. Perhaps he should not have been quite so sanctimonious about getting away with it back then. On Monday, he agreed to be suspended without pay for the rest of this baseball season for a violations of baseball's drug policy. He will miss 65 games. It's believed that he was nabbed in baseball's investigation into reports of PED transactions at Biogenesis, a clinic in Florida. Braun apologized for letting down his team and apparently will be eligible to resume his baseball career next season.
According to ESPN, Braun refused to answer baseball's questions about Biogenesis at a meeting on June 29. But after realizing that investigators had a lot on him, he asked for another meeting and this suspension — which feels more like a plea bargain — is the result. Incidentally, ESPN says that the evidence is greater against Yankees star Alex Rodriguez and that he will eventually be suspended, along with other top players.
As I have acknowledged in the past, I am not perfect," Braun said in the statement. "I realize now that I have made some mistakes. I am willing to accept the consequences of those actions. This situation has taken a toll on me and my entire family, and it is has been a distraction to my teammates and the Brewers organization.
"I am very grateful for the support I have received from players, ownership and the fans in Milwaukee and around the country. Finally, I wish to apologize to anyone I may have disappointed -- all of the baseball fans especially those in Milwaukee, the great Brewers organization, and my teammates. I am glad to have this matter behind me once and for all, and I cannot wait to get back to the game I love."[skip]
Braun has been among the more than one dozen players under investigation for ties to Biogenesis, a closed anti-aging clinic in Florida linked with the distribution of performance-enhancing drugs. MLB officials have been interviewing players, who have been represented by the union and their own lawyers.
This is not the first time Braun has run afoul of the league's drug-testing policy -- the 29-year-old outfielder tested positive for elevated testosterone levels in 2012. However, he successfully appealed his 50-game suspension.
