Sports

Drilling down in Mitchell report

The Times found a passage based on internal notes from within the Dodger organization about former catcher Paul Lo Duca. Seems the team may have considered trading him because he stopped using steroids. Kevin Brown was also suspected, and the names of Eric Gagne and other ex-Dodgers come up too in the report on steroid and human growth hormone use in baseball.

Notes of an internal discussion among Dodgers officials in October 2003 said of Lo Duca: "Steroids aren't being used anymore on him. . . . Might have some value to trade. . . . Got off the steroids. . . . Took away a lot of the hard line drives."

Notes on Brown said: "Steroids speculated by GM."

The Dodgers' general manager at the time was Dan Evans.

The Mitchell report details a sequence of events implicating several former Dodgers:

The document claims that Lo Duca was playing for the Dodgers when he was referred by teammate Todd Hundley to then-Mets clubhouse attendant Kirk Radomski. Radomski had to cooperate with Mitchell as part of his guilty plea for illegal steroid distribution.

Radomski said he sent Lo Duca multiple shipments of performance-enhancing drugs to his home and the Dodger Stadium clubhouse.

Brown and Gagne were referred to Radomski by Lo Duca.

Ex-Dodgers mentioned in the report include Gary Sheffield, Matt Herges, F.P. Santangelo, Chris Donnels, Todd Williams, Phil Hiatt and Ismael Valdez. Safe to say the drugs didn't help Santangelo much, since he never could hit.

Earlier:
Phil Wallace at SoCal Observed says, "Personally, I don't think this report offers closure. I think there is still a lot of information that will be coming out on steroids and HGH in the months and years ahead."


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