Major League Baseball officials said last Wednesday that during the early stages of its steroids-testing program, they did not call up players to their offices to inform them that they failed the drug test. The denial came as a response to a passage in the book written by Kirk Radomski, a confessed steroid dealer, entitled “Bases Loaded“. In this book, Radomski mentions a player, supposedly one of his clients, who told him that the commissioner’s office contacted various players in 2004 and asked them to come to the headquarters in Manhattan. According to what Radomski wrote, the commissioner’s office wanted to inform the players that they had tested for steroids last season, when testing had been initiated on an anonymous basis and without any penalties.

The significance of the passage is that it implies that officials might have been trying to lessen the number of positive tests in 2004 by warning players who had tested positive in 2003.

The player was quoted by Radomski as saying that he did not want to go to the headquarters, so he just kept asking the person who called him on what the meeting is all about until the person finally informed him that he had tested positive for steroid use.

Rob Manfred, baseball’s top drug-testing official, said in a telephone interview Wednesday that the passage in Radomski’s book was ‘categorically incorrect.”

According to him, they were by no means involved in that process; and any suggestion that they were involved is untrue.

What really happened in 2004, when steroids testing started in earnest, remains murky. In George J. Mitchell’s report on baseball and performance enhancing drugs, he stated that at least one player was informed in 2004 by the player’s union that he had tested positive in 2003 and will be tested again in the coming weeks. Mitchell also added that some other players who tested positive in 2003 might have received the same warning from the union. Mitchell did not mention any attempts by the commissioner’s office to tell players about positive tests or warning about coming tests.

Mitchell also brought up concerns about the union’s warning in his report because anti-doping experts have regularly mentioned that any advance notice can notably increase a player’s skill to avoid testing positive. The union has denied warning players since then.

Though the Mitchell report did not disclose the identity of the player who professed that he was given advance notice by the union, Radomski wrote that the player was in fact David Segui.

Segui could not be reached for comment. He has not denied the information in the Mitchell report about him buying performance-enhancing drugs from Radomski, yet he has never publicly said that he had received a warning from the union in 2004.

Manfred’s denial was the third time that contents in Radomski’s book have been contested. Mitchell said earlier this week that two important passages in the book were erroneous.

Those passage entail that Mitchell while on investigation, went fishing for information from high-profile players that he was suspicious about but had no clear-cut evidence against them. The passages also imply that he got the information from Radomski. However, Mitchell said that he and his investigators did not talk about any players with Radomski and that the dealer had not already identified his drug customers.

The book really has factual errors without considering the disputes. The Radomski book says that Jose Canseco and Roger Clemens were never teammates, but in fact, the two played together in Boston and in Toronto and with the Yankees.

It also claims that there was less of a family atmosphere around the Mets after Fred Wilpon bought out Nelson Doubleday’s share of the team in the early 90’s, when Radomski was still a Mets employee. Wilpon however, did not make the purchase until a decade later.

Radomski also wrote that after becoming good friends with Mets pitcher Dwight Gooden in 1988, he had allowed substituting his urine for Gooden’s twice, so that Gooden could pass drug tests. This was many years before steroid testing was enacted, though Gooden was being monitored for testing positive for cocaine during spring training in 1987 and then agreed to enter a rehabilitation clinic.

Radomski claimed that when he refused substituting his urine for the third time, Gooden tested positive and was suspended in 1988. Yet Gooden was not suspended for a positive cocaine test until 1994 which is six years after this anecdote seems to have been made.

Because of the steroid scandals permeating in the athletic world, a lot of athletes and bodybuilders are looking for legal alternatives to anabolic steroids, which will help them achieve the same results albeit for a longer period or perhaps with more effort. Of course, the most attractive benefit of these alternatives is that they do not produce the same unwanted side effects that anabolic notoriously do. Also, because they are legal, athletes won’t have a problem about steroid drug tests. Legal steroid alternatives are sold in supermarkets, health stores and over-the-counter. Some are designed specifically for bodybuilding while others are used for training. Some increase bulk and muscles while others help sustain endurance and increase strength.

Some of the popular steroid alternatives used today are the following:

Ecdy-Bolin

Ecdy-Bolin is a combination of protein and ecdysterone, touted by its promoters to “increase lean muscles while reducing body fat.” A 1988 scientific study penned by S. Simakin and published in the Scientific Sports Bulletin showed that a combination of protein and ecdysterone increases lean muscle tissue by 6-7% and reduces fat by 10% in just 10 days.

Andro-Shock

Andro-Shock is one of the most potent steroid alternatives sold today. It composes of seven dietary supplement ingredients that work in synergy to help boosts the body’s natural testosterone levels—which is the main point of taking steroids in the first place. Increased testosterone increases strength, bulk, and energy, and speeds up muscle-healing. Because Andro-Shock is synergistic, the combination and proportion of supplements are imperative to its overall net effect.

Nitrobol

A lot of bodybuilders prefer Nitrobol because the body absorbs it in less than 23 minutes upon intake. Nitrobol contains all the essential amino acids that athletes need to build muscle mass. Because it metabolizes quickly, the muscle-building aminos contained in the supplements gets to the muscles fast and induces muscle growth or hypertrophy. Most dietary proteins take us much as three to four hours to be digested.

Herbal Fat Melter

The Herbal Fat Melter helps increase metabolism and aids in the burning of calories, letting the body burn fat more efficiently. It also works as an appetite suppressant, preserves muscle tissue, and helps increase energy for training and workout. It also helps carbohydrates to be used as energy rather than converted into fat. It contains natural ingredients such as Green tea extract, bitter orange peel extract, Yerba mate extract, Tyrosine, Black Pepper, Vitamin C, amino acid chelate, DMAE, chromium, and aspartyl-phenlalanine.

Pumped Extreme

Pumped Extreme contains 100% absorption creatine mixed with cell volumizers “patented creatine monohydrate Kre-Alkalyn complex. It helps the body absorb creatine faster and enhance muscle strength and energy as a result.

Even if you do not need any prescription to buy these supplements and steroid alternatives, it is still best to consult your physician before taking any of these supplements on a regular basis. There may be contra-indications with your current medications or it may cause complications if you have a particular medical condition such as heart or liver disease.

A powerful tool, capable of creating hundreds of undetectable, designer steroids in a short span of time is threatening the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the sports world. The pharmaceutical drug companies are currently using this technology and it won’t be long until designer steroid companies and chemists will utilize this same technology to create new designer steroids in minutes. Jason Thomas, graduate student from the City University in New York, in his research under the synthetic organic chemistry doctorate program, describes this powerful tool and cautions regarding its dangerous potential.

The technology, called Dynamic Combinational Chemistry (DCC), can potentially synthesize or simulate hundreds of new designer steroids. Steroid designers merely have to identify the desired features and biological activity for the drug design and the tool can synthesize the drug in minutes.

In “Designer Steroids: Speeding Evolution (and Filling Stadium Seats),” Thomas explains that attempts in the past to change the anabolic, estrogen, and androgenic properties of testosterone have been relatively slow because it has been done one at a time since there were no technologies available to do them simultaneously. Before, what a designer steroid does is to imagine a certain compound, synthesize it and then test its effectiveness.

This process can take weeks, some, even years. However, with the Dynamic Combinatorial Chemistry tool, steroid chemists can synthesize and test hundreds of new steroid compounds in a matter of minutes. Of course, they still have to invest time to figure out a chemical strategy for DCC. Once they do, everything will be as easy as cooking popcorn in a microwave. The whole process is orchestrated by computers as how pharmaceutical companies are currently employing the system.

The four ring carbon structure of steroids is very complicated to create thus synthetic chemists used to create most steroidal compound from a steroidal substance called ‘diosgenin,’ which naturally occurred in the Mexican wild yam. Because of the four-ring carbon structure, the number of undetectable designer steroids that rogue chemists could synthesize was rather limited.

Combinatorial chemistry can change all that, however. There is a new way to make the molecule and the steroid chemists will no longer be limited by its structure. They started with diosgenin and moved on to progesterone and on to different types of anabolic steroids. But they could only do so much due to the limited structure. In the near future, scientists would be able to put all these things together and create something such as pure testosterone but without the unwanted side effects. But for the moment, as long as they are using diosgenin as the initial compound, this won’t be possible.

Thomas further predicts that in the future, instead of making 50 different molecules, scientists will be able to make 50 million different combinations and it will be like evolution all over again. Patrick Arnold, steroid chemist of Ergopharm and part of the BALCO steroid scandal, says that this is the method that pharmaceutical companies are employing to create a new class of steroids called Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs). These are technically not steroids but potentially have major performance-enhancing effects.

The concern that most athletes have about taking anabolic steroids is the effect that the drug will have on their health, particularly their liver. While it is a fact that anabolic steroids can cause liver damage, the likelihood of this occurring will depend on a number of factors including genetic predisposition, the person’s health in general, and the type, frequency and the length of time of the anabolic steroid-use.

The liver can get stressed and damaged for a number of reasons. Misuse and abuse of drugs can increase the amounts of certain chemicals in the bloodstream which can stress and possibly damage the liver. Chemicals such as SGPT and SGOT, which are measured in liver function tests to determine the liver’s stress levels, are found to be present in the blood levels of anabolic steroid users twice as much compared to non-users.

SGPT and SGOT are released in the bloodstream while the liver is being injured. These chemical levels can return to normal if the person ceases anabolic steroid-use. However, the damage done to the liver may continue even after the chemical levels return to normal since the body stops releasing SGPT and SGOT after the damaging process is over. It is not certain whether the injured liver will repair itself thereafter.

Oral steroids are also more damaging than injectable steroids because they are harder to metabolize and therefore stress the liver a lot more. Liver cells are potentially damaged when they attempt to break down something that is hard to metabolize such as oral steroids. With continued use of oral steroids, changes in the structure of the liver occur and the ability of the liver to excrete waste is decreased.

There are different types of liver toxicity. One situation that can happen with the use of steroids is that pockets filled with blood can open inside the liver—medically termed as “peliosis hepatitis.” This condition is quite rare, however, but is not restricted to long-term use of high doses of steroids.

Injectable steroids are found to be less likely to cause liver damage because they are easily metabolized. The likely problem it can cause has to do with the administration of the drug—which is through a needle that can possibly be infected with various kinds of viruses and bacteria and is transmitted to the bloodstream. One example of a liver disease transmitted through dirty needles is infectious hepatitis. This type of disease can be life-threatening.

Anabolic steroids can also promote tumor growth or the growth of liver cells into nodules, which are similar to tumors. These nodules can disappear with the stopping of the use of steroids. While there is no conclusive evidence regarding this, at least three people have died from tumors that are allegedly caused by their abuse of steroids.

Some researchers also believe that “gynecomastasia,” the medical condition where males develop breasts because of hormone imbalance usually due to steroid-use, is a sign of liver damage. Development of breasts in males usually happens when the user also consumes alcohol, which slows down the processing of anabolic steroids which changed into estrogen (the female hormone), called aromatization.

Russia’s Continental Hockey League has banned Avangard Omsk team executives and doctors, four of them indefinitely, for their roles in connection with the death of New York Rangers prospect Alexei Cherepanov last October.

The men, which includes former team president and general manager of Omsk, the team for Cherepanov was playing for, as well as two team doctors were banned after a KHL investigation concluding that the parties involved have “exhibited criminal negligence” in their duties and deliberately tried to treat Cherepanov’s life-threatening heart condition on their own.

The League then clarified that what the media reported as sytematic doping was in fact an attempt to treat Cherepanov’s heart condition. However, Jay Grossman, Cherepanov’s agent did not gave any comment when contacted by the ESPN.com.

The prospect, 19 year old Cherepanov, collapsed last October 13 while on bench of the Avangard Omsk and died shortly after. The league claimed that Cherepanov had suffered from chronic myocarditis and what caused his death was an acute heart failure.

KHL vice president of hockey operations Vladimir Shalaev claimed last Friday that they are convinced that the following participants have exhibited criminal negligence in the performance of their duties. The sanctions they gave were harsh, but they are confident that prosecutors both from the Omsk region as well as Cheklov district will also come up with their decision on the case. Shalaev also believed that those responsible will not only receive sanctions with regards to their future participation in sports, but they will also be indicted on criminal charges.

According to KHL, former Avangard president Konstantin Potapov; general manager Anatoly Bardin; team doctor Sergei Belkin; and former Vityaz team director Mikhail Denisov were suspended and indefinitely denied the right to occupy any position in the club of the KHL or in any structure of KHL.

The other Avangard team doctor involved, Dmitry Batushenko received a two year suspension.

KHL medical chief Nikolai Durmanov, said that one of their major issues is whether the team doctors knew of Cherepanov’s disease. The team doctors of Avangard claim they are not aware of Cherepanov’s serious heart condition. According to them, it is quite normal for professional athletes to feel unhealthy. However, Batushenko declared that the KHL have facts indicating that the doctors knew about the Cherepanov’s disease. They most likely did not understand the full seriousness of his condition and such condition should only be treated by an experienced cardiologist.

Durmanov also addressed the issues alleging that Cherepanov had used performance-enhancing drugs. The medical chief maintained that since the team doctors tried to treat Cherepanov on their own, what the press described as systematic doping really was an attempt to cure Alexei.

After Cherepanov’s death, prosecutors declared that the arena where Cherepanov was playing failed in coordinating appropriate emergency medical services before the game started. And last month, Russia’s federal Investigative committee alleged that a row of gross violations was committed by the medical brigade treating Cherepanov.

The prosecutor trying to find an indictment of Roger Clemens had his first chance to question the former baseball star’s personal trainer, Brian McNamee, during a five-hour session last Friday.

McNamee admitted to federal agents, baseball investigator George Mitchell as well as a House of Representatives committee that he had injected Clemens with steroids and human growth hormone more than a dozen from 1998 until 2001.

However, this is McNamee’s initial meeting with Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Butler who is presenting evidence to the federal grand jury to determine whether Clemens should be charged with lying to Congress when he denied the using performance enhancing drugs.

McNamee only shook his head when asked if he would comment and did not speak to reporters when he arrived at the US Attorney’s office in Washington with his lawyers Richard emery and earl Ward last Friday.

While they were travelling back to New York, Ward said on a phone interview that it all went well and that there might be no more additional meetings. He added that the investigators told them that they will get in touch with them.

Before that, and only blocks away, former New York Mets clubhouse attendant Kirk Radomski, convicted steroids dealer who led the fed to McNamee, appeared at the federal courthouse where the grand jury examining Clemen’s care were meeting twice a week.

Radomski and McNamee are considered to be among Butler’s primary witnesses in the case against Clemens.

Aside from lead prosecutor Butler, Friday’s meeting included top fraud and corruption prosecutor in his office as well as federal investigators. Federal agent Jeff Novitzki, who is the center of the BALCO and Barry Bonds cases also participated via telephone.

Clemen’s lawyers would not describe the questioning. Emery stated that the substance of the discussion is that they were well prepared. He further added that the investigators are pursuing lines of investigation that are exceedingly probative and will be very useful in this investigation. He respects them for doing one heck of a job.

McNamee’s lawyers still haven’t told when their client, a former NY police officer will speak to the grand jury.

According to Emery, their witness has cooperated from the beginning of the investigation and he was also very thorough and well-prepared. He further added that Brian takes his responsibility as a witness very seriously.

McNamee has turned over syringes, vials and other items his lawyers think will link them Clemens to drug use to government agents. Clemen’s camp said that this is “manufactured” evidence.

Brian McNamee’s allegation that Clemens had been using illicit performance-enhancing drugs first came publicly in Mitchell’s 409 page report on doping in baseball. This implicated seven MVPs, 31 All-Stars and identified 85 players to varying degrees.

McNamee now repeated his account last year under oath to congressional investigators and at a public House hearing which was impelled by Clemen’s denial of what was in the Mitchell report. Clemens testified that he did not use performance enhancers.

The 354 game winner told Congress last February that he has never taken steroids or HGH.

Andy Pettitte and Chuck Knoblauch, two former teammates of Clemens both admitted to Congress that McNamee was right when he claimed that they used performance enhancers.

These sworn testimonies provided to Congress by McNamee and Clemens urged lawmakers to ask the Justice Department to investigate whether the former pitcher had lied. After an 11 month FBI investigation, the case was then brought before a grand jury.