LUGO Might Be Staying...MLB Amphetamine Testing Update

I know it's early and the winter meetings don't begin until the dark (for me) date of December 8th, but there had been hope that the Detroit Tigers, who need a shortstop, would be be interested in inquiring Julio Lugo in exchange for either Dontrelle Willis or Nate Robertson. All three players are in the same salary catagory but now "sources" say the chances are remote for such a trade. And that's too bad. Lugo's high annual income will prove to be a tough challenge for the Red Sox as they try to jettison him. Keep trying, Theo.

From the New York Times, I came across an article about the toothless MLB amphetimine testing program. In the past, only multiple offenders were identified to the public. There's a change a-coming...read this and I'll be back with a few syllables...

"Since Major League Baseball began testing for amphetamines in 2006, it has been difficult to determine the policy’s value as a deterrent. Players who tested positive for the first time were not identified or punished, so there was no way of knowing if 20, 30 or 100 players had been caught in a particular year. Only the identities of those who tested positive more than once were revealed. Only those players were suspended. That group has been small — two players in the last three years — which suggests that those caught once are not tempting fate and have stopped using amphetamines.
But what about first-time positives? Is that annual number substantial? If so, that means players are using amphetamines until being caught.
Baseball is about to provide an answer. In early January, the organization’s testing administrator will release the number of first-time positive amphetamine tests for 2008, along with other data about the testing program."

Peter here once again. Numbers but no identities, but I think this is a good idea, a policy that should have been implemented in the beginning stages of the testing program. Now players won't get a "free ride" if they are caught once. Amphetimines give a player or anyone the energy to perform beyond their abilities with a strong sense of power. The bad part is that they're highly addictive and eventually will kill you. That doesn't sound like fun, does it? Bravo, Major League Baseball, you're doing the right thing. But that's just step #1...identification of ALL will be step #2.

I hope every one of you had a happy and healthy Thansgiving with your family and friends. I sure did. There was a gathering of 18 (I think) loved ones including someone I had never met...15 month old August. She is beautiful There were cocktails and appetizers for an hour before a 3pm EST dinner that consisted of just about the best turkey I've ever had, golden brown and crisp on the outside and white and juicy on the inside. And it tasted better than it looked! Accompaning the main dish was wonderful wild rice, various vegetables and sweet potatoes with lightly browned marshmallos. And then...TADA...desert. Apple pie, pumpkin pie and an unidentified pie (I still don't know what it was) were brought out, still slightly warm, with five different flavors of ice cream. I skipped the ice cream but had a slim piece of pumkin pie, taking extra insulin to keep my sugar in the right range. About 6pm EST, I arrived home, turkey tired. It's true what they say about a big turkey meal making you tired. Believe it or not, I was watching TV in bed by 7pm EST and fell asleep scant minutes later. Geez, I must be getting old, but I loved every minute of Thanksgiving 2008. I really did.

That's it for this morning, my friends and Constant Readers. I hope you had a great day yesterday and I also hope the rest of your holiday weekend will be unforgettably unbelievable. There's nothing new about the Red Sox except for what you read here so there's no need to click on the title. I'll see you soon and as always, BE WELL. Shalom to one and all.