Schlitz001

Your exactly right. It's the old, "I'm sorry officer, I don't know how that got there" argument. Unless the accused can prove it was planted, injected, placed or ingested unknowingly you create a slippery slope by letting a violator go. The silver lining is that it would potentially limit the harm done to his public image.

There is no substance that would lead to a positive test of synthetic testosterone that is legal for players to take. If Braun was taking some form of synthetic testosterone without the consent of MLB, then that would be a violation of the rules. In theory, something like alcohol consumption could skew a carbon isotope test for exogenous testosterone, but not enough to skew the results to what ESPN has been reporting. EDIT: http://www.tomsarazac.com/tom/opinions/testosterone_d13C.html This is a link to a blurb about alcohol and synthetic T. The author is as much of an expert as I am, so take it with a grain of salt.

If you ask an RPG fundamentalist he might classify it as a shooter and an FPS fan might call it an RPG. I think the reason it plays so well is because it falls somewhere in between. ME2 migrated more towards a shooter while tweaking some RPG aspects. I hope they don't take out even more of the role playing side in ME3 to include the multiplayer, but I have faith in Bioware to create a good game.

True. This is a leap year and things can get pretty confusing.

Don't expect MLB to sit on their hands while Braun tells his side of the story about why he was exonerated. Do you think MLB isn't going to respond after Braun explains what they screwed up to result in a positive test when he in fact was innocent? No matter what happens, MLB will have to explain themselves. Braun tested positive in October. It is now February. This isn't a murder case. Get this thing done already!

30 Rock is really back in stride and Parks and Rec is gold as usual. I have a feeling that The Office isn't going to last more than maybe 1 more season.

Do you really believe that homer? He's gone through rehab numerous times, so he was clean while those were going on. He also has to pass 3 drug test per week. He attributes his sobriety entirely to God and he even wrote a book about quitting drugs and alcohol called "Beyond Belief". If all that is a lie then it makes Josh Hamilton just about the sleaziest person in the game.

What sort of a record does Lindy's project for the Royals in 2012? If they somehow make the playoffs he would be guaranteed to get the award, or maybe even if the Royals finish the year north of 81 wins. You know how these awards work.

The drugs aren't creating synthetic testosterone, the drugs are synthetic testosterone. It's been well documented in clinical trials that synthetic testosterone helps to build lean muscle mass. One of the main uses of prescribed testosterone is for people who are experiencing disease related wasting syndrome. For people who need a prescription for testosterone, the frequency of dosing depends on the dosage form and salt form of the testosterone. This ranges from every day application with the gel, every 2-4 weeks with intramuscular injections or up to every 6 months with a pellet implant. The bottom line is that the measurable metabolite of synthetic testosterone is present in the body for as long as 2 weeks. In theory baseball players can use testosterone during the entire off season without fear of being tested, building lean muscle mass the entire time. In theory they may even continue using testosterone during the season as long as they continue to make sure their T/E ratios do not get inflated. They would really have no reason to worry about metabolite elimination half-lives as long as they make sure that they can pass the first test. Testosterone has the potential to provide a big boost to the players and in my opinion they would be remiss to not at least consider the potential positive benefits from using something like testosterone and the very least HGH with baseball's lax testing policies. I hope that Braun is proven not guilty. Can someone please repost the link where it is mentioned that 2 other Brewer players also tested positive?

Wainwrght is coming off of TJ surgery and Gallardo has the age advantage, but I would say that Wainwright is the better pitcher of the two. I know it's still early, but do you have an idea of who will fill out the benches on both teams?

I've seen all of the movie except for "Hugo" and "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close". I want to see those two movies before I dismiss the nominees completely as being another weak Oscar field. So far there is not one movie that you can point to and say that it defined movies in 2012, but most of the nominees that I've seen so far were at least enjoyable. Robert, I largely agree with how you have them ranked. I'm no student of film, but here's how I list them so far:The Tree of Life - It's a film that I was absorbed in right away. I'm a child of the 80's not the 50's, but it still evoked those feelings of growing up in middletown America, love, family, relationships, and the inherent beauty in reality.The Descendants - I want to hear someone's impression who hasn't been to Kauai or Hawaii. I think a big part of my love for this movie is it's gorgeous scenery. It deals with death and infidelity, which are two subjects that most people have to deal with on some scale so it was interesting to wonder how I would have handled the situations from various character perspectives.Midnight in Paris - It's a fresh script and Owen Wilson is great in it. Moneyball - Moneyball disappointed me. I've already done a short review in the Moneyball thread. My dislike has a lot to do with the baseball inaccuracies and building this into more of a Hollywood story in the end.The Artist - I liked this as a love story, except that in the end nobody truly falls in love. A lot of the movie was predictable, including the ending. I guess its a good emulation of the silent genre, but I wish they would have tried something more daring.War Horse - OK, I was moved, but more in a "Movie of the Week" sort of way. Gather the kids and sit down and enjoy this one.The Help - Robert, your summary is good. When I got to the scene with the lawn full of "commodes" I started wondering if they should have played the movie a little bit more seriously.I'm glad "Drive" didn't get nominated. That movie proved to me that there is sometimes a fine line between genius and complete garbage. The movie had so much potential, but continued to go nowhere. I did however really enjoy "Ides of March", but maybe only because it's an election year. Rango is really good too. I can't wait to see the rest of the nominees!

I don't understand how anyone can believe any of the information that's coming out at this point. There is SO much conflicting information out there. You can't fully credit or discredit any media outlet including The Journal-Sentinal, ESPN, Dan Patrick, or your uncle's blog. If this debacle has taught me anything it's that the media will pounce on any little piece of gossip and spin it into a story if they think it will increase the number of hits to their website. No matter what the outcome of this appeal, I hope that MLB issues a statement of apology that any information was leaked.

Actually he put up the best numbers in the 2 hole a couple years ago. Hart, that is. Also with Fielder gone, I'd prefer more of a prototypical leadoff guy just so you have Hart/Weeks power in a place to drive people in. I was referring to Hart's career numbers (wOBA, OPS+), although he hasn't been THAT much better as a leadoff hitter. I was more having him leadoff because he has stated he prefers batting there and so does RR. We don't really have a prototypical leadoff guy on the team. Ideally, Aoki proves that he's good at getting on base and he bats leadoff, but until then I think RR will keep Morgan batting 2nd as a "get 'em over" hitter and that leaves Hart or Weeks hitting leadoff.

Looking at the players making up this years lineup it's clear that there will be a lot of shuffling around as the season moves on. Aoki, Gamel, and even Ramirez are big wild cards as to what they will bring to the table offensively. Aoki's numbers need to translate and Gamel needs to prove that he can produce in the big leagues. Ramirez will likely put up some decent power numbers, but you have to assume that he is likely going to decline from his 2011 numbers. The only sure thing is that Gonzalez is the least productive offensive player on the team and should be slotted #8. I put Hart batting leadoff because that is where him and RR like him to hit and because that's where he puts up the best numbers. Weeks slots nicely as a number 3 hitter with Braun out and I prefer to seperate right and left handed hitters. Here is what I think RR will do opening day against Wainwirght/Carpenter: Hart Morgan Weeks A-Ram Gamel Lucroy Aoki Gonzalez

Braun is going to accept his MVP Award on saturday evening in Manhattan. The New York Times suggests that his speech might shed some light on the allegations. He won't be taking interviews.

Pineda is a stud. I watched him pitch at least 5 games last year and he's a monster. He's a large man who just makes hitters look silly with his velocity. It blows my mind that the Mariners would give him up.

Fielder would be nuts to take a 1 year deal when there are likely multiple lucrative multi-year deals on the table. Nice try Mark A. I still see Fielder ending up with an AL team, despite all these National rumors.

Here are some of the specifics of Albert's contract. It's heavily backloaded with Albert making $12 million in 2012 and $30 million in 2021. He gets a hotel suite for every road game. He also gets $3 million for breaking 3,000 hits and $7 million for hitting 763 homeruns and breaking Barry Bonds' record.

Please post a review of Dead Island once you've played it. I've heard good things too, but 'm still on the fence about it.

I wish they would have provided a link to that study, because it seems to me like a classic case of "correlation does not imply causation". Winning drives ticket sales, and a lot of times good teams are built by expanding and bringing in talent from around the world. But who knows, maybe if the Brewers bring in the entire It's a Small World ride, attendance will go through the roof.

I've been an XM subscriber since about '05. I was pretty annoyed by this change also, but I use it enough to pay the extra. The online charge didn't start until after the "merge", I want to say in '09. The merger did bring some channels from Sirius over to XM, but not as many as you would have thought. Also, no one should be paying more than $25 for every 6 months of service. I think this is the best deal, the only downside being that you have to call and talk to someone every 6 months.

Maybe because it was something embarrassing and he didn't trust MLB to keep it confidential. Considering it somehow leaked that he had a positive test, I would say that fear is justified. That doesn't necessarily absolve him, but it's at least justified.The government has strict penalties for the violation of HIPAA laws and any accidental leak of private health information would look terrible on MLB. Look at how careless they look right now when almost no definitive information about Braun's case has been leaked. I would hope that Braun would be comfortable enough with the Brewers staff to go to them as a channel to get the OK for any medication that he's taking. I know that certain herbal medications have been known to be counterfeited and include actual chemical ingredients, for instance counterfeit Extenze with chemical Levitra or Viagra. So I suppose it's possible that Braun bought some counterfeit erectile dysfunction meds or something equally as embarrassing and they contained a huge amount of synthetic testosterone. That's the most realistic scenario I can think of and it still seems very far fetched. It doesn't fit a lot of the information that's already been leaked and it still means that Braun was knowingly taking a supplement from a third party without telling the Brewers organization or MLB.

Why would Braun be taking a medication without informing MLB or the Brewers training staff if there was even a remote possiblity that it may trigger a positive test? Every prescription or OTC medication sold in the United States must past rigorous random FDA testing to verify that the average tablet/capsule/whatever has a certain percentage of active ingredient/filler/etc. Even most herbal supplements now undergo random quality checks as well by organizations such as USP. There are no secret ingredients in medication. And you're right, if Braun has tested positive for something like marijuana, I would not label him as a cheater and I don't think anyone in baseball would either. But if he tested positive for synthetic testosterone, it's going to be extremely difficult to convince people he wasn't cheating.

Ryan Braun is a smart guy. If he claims that he was taking a medication and forgot to get approval, I will have a hard time believing him. Steroid use destroys a ballplayers reputation and chances of getting into the Hall of Fame. Someone of Ryan Braun's caliber should be taking every step possible to preventing a positive test. I hope this story updates soon so all the speculation and rumor can stop

The White Sox are a mess. They can't pay Quentin who while oft injured at least has produced for them because they have so much tied up in Dunn and Rios. I don't know what young options you are referring to. De Aza perhaps? He was already penciled in to start. Jordan Danks? Please. Their farm system is devoid of talent. They'll be lucky to win 70 next year. They won't draw 2 million with that collection they now have. If I'm the Brewers,and if Gamel's struggling at midseason but the the Brewers are hanging in there, I'm all over the Sox to get Paul Konerko. Konerko is a 5 and 10 guy, but he could waive that for a contender. De Aza, Danks, Viciedo. Trading Quentin is a salary dump for a team that needs to see if they can hit on some of their younger guys. Quentin breaks down every year, he is a year away from FA and there is no guarantee of draft pick compensation. He probably should have been traded at last years deadline, but it is what it is. If they are a 70 win team anyway, why hold on to him?