DENVER—Reliever Matt Herges and first base coach Glenallen Hill are among 12 current and former players with ties to the Colorado Rockies named in a long-awaited report on steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs in baseball.
General manager Dan O’Dowd didn’t return a phone call seeking his reaction to the Mitchell Report, which also named a former Colorado clubhouse attendant, although the club released a statement expressing disappointment with the investigation’s findings and pledging to continue educating players about the dangers of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs.
The report released Thursday culminated a 20-month investigation by former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, hired by commissioner Bud Selig to examine the Steroids Era.
Herges signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal to return to the Rockies two weeks ago. Herges, 37, started last season with Triple-A Colorado Springs but became a key contributor in a second-half surge that carried the Rockies to their first NL pennant. He was 5-1 with a 2.96 ERA in 35 relief appearances for Colorado.
Former Mets clubhouse attendant Kirk Radomski, who provided information to Mitchell as part of his plea agreement in a federal steroids case, said Herges bought human growth hormone on two or three occasions in 2004-05 before Herges came to Colorado.
As did most players, Herges declined to meet with Mitchell to respond to the allegations.
Hill, 42, was required to meet with Mitchell because he’s a club employee.
He just completed his first season as a big league coach, tutoring base runners and outfielders. He spent the previous three seasons as the hitting coach for the Rockies’ High-A affiliate in Modesto, Calif., following a 13-year major league career from 1989-2001 in which he collected 1,005 hits and 186 homers.
After his name surfaced in the investigation as having purchased performance enhancers in 2000 or ’01 while with the Anaheim Angels, Hill told Mitchell he did indeed buy anabolic steroids but insisted he didn’t use them. Asked why not, he said he was suffering from marital stress at the time.
Hill also told investigators that he had between five and 15 conversations during his playing career with players about performance-enhancing substances but could not remember the names of the players. Hill said his lawyers had told him disclosing the identities of players who used such substances would harm his career in Major League Baseball.
Hill played for seven teams, and Colorado was not among them.
“Obviously, we were very disappointed to learn of the depth and breadth of the findings of Sen. George Mitchell’s report on the alleged illegal use of steroids and other performance enhancing substances in baseball, including references to alleged use by former members of our team, as well as one current player and one current member of our coaching staff,” the Rockies said in a written statement.
“We believe that baseball and its various entities must work cooperatively and in a sustained effort to remove and keep steroids and other performance enhancing drugs out of the game,” the Rockies statement continued. “Like other organizations throughout the League, we will review the results of the investigation, study those findings and recommendations and continue our ongoing efforts to eliminate the use of steroids and other performance enhancing substances from the game of baseball.”
The 409-page report included a half dozen pages on former Rockies outfielder Larry Bigbie, who was one of the few implicated parties who spoke with Mitchell’s investigative team.
The report said Bigbie began using steroids in Baltimore in 2001 and switched to HGH in 2004. He said he didn’t use any performance-enhancing substances during his two months in Colorado after being traded to the Rockies on July 30, 2005.
Bigbie, however, called Radomski after being traded to St. Louis that December. By then, Radomski was cooperating with federal authorities and monitored the call. Bigbie was subsequently approached by federal law enforcement officials and began cooperating with them.
The biggest name on the list of former Rockies named in the report is pitcher Denny Neagle, who played for the Rockies from 2001-03. He allegedly used anabolic steroids and HGH during his time in Colorado.
Radomski produced copies of eight checks from or on behalf of Neagle, including one from former Rockies clubhouse attendant Dan McGinn in the amount of $1,600. The memo line on the check says “Neagle.”
McGinn is no longer employed by the Rockies and didn’t respond to Mitchell’s request for an interview.
Other former Rockies named in the report:
—Outfielder Jack Cust (2002), who allegedly told Bigbie, while the two were teammates with the Baltimore Orioles Triple-A affiliate Ottawa in 2003, that he had used steroids.
—Catcher Gary Bennett Jr. (2001-02). Radomski said Neagle referred Bennett to him. He allegedly bought HGH in 2003 after he had left the Rockies.
—Pitcher Ron Villone (2001), who allegedly purchased HGH. Radomski recalled being referred to Villone by Neagle.
—Catcher Bobby Estalella (2002-03) was among eight players, including Barry Bonds, who was linked to performance-enhancing drugs through BALCO. He allegedly was given a workout program and drug schedule from Greg Anderson under which he would use HGH, designer steroids the “clear” and the “cream” and the female fertility drug Clomid.
—Catcher Gregg Zaun (2003), who allegedly ordered steroids while with the Royals in 2001.
—Infielder Mike Lansing (1998-2000), who allegedly purchased testosterone and HGH two years after he played in Colorado.
—Pitcher Kent Mercker (2002), who allegedly purchased HGH in October 2002 after his time in Colorado was over.
—Darren Holmes (1993-97), whose name was included because a March 8, 2007, Sports Illustrated article reported that he bought HGH and testosterone from the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center in October 2003. Holmes told reporters he ordered HGH after searching the Internet for solutions to his shoulder pain but never used it. Mitchell’s report said: “Neither I nor any member of my investigative staff had any prior knowledge of any allegation about Holmes.”
Mitchell recommended that the drug-testing program be made independent, that a list of the substances players test positive for be listed periodically and that the timing of testing be more unpredictable.
Mitchell urged Selig to hold off on punishing players in the report “except in those cases where he determines that the conduct is so serious that discipline is necessary to maintain the integrity of the game.”
Selig said discipline will be determined on a case by case basis, and actions will be taken “swiftly.”
