Embattled A-Rod admits to injecting steroid

Feb 17, 2009 - 8:53 PM TAMPA, Florida (Ticker) -- New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez admitted Tuesday that a cousin injected him with a steroid called Primobolan during his three seasons with the Texas Rangers from 2001-2003.

Addressing the media for the first time since acknowledging his use of a peformance-enhancing drug in an interview with ESPN last week, Rodriguez said the drug is available over the counter in the Dominican Republic.

Rodriguez, who was born in New York, grew up in the Dominican Republic before returning to the United States as a teenager.

Primobolan, which has a street name of "Boli", can provide an energy boost and strength without adding body mass.

"In 2001, my cousin told me about a substance you could purchase over the counter in the DR called Boli," he said. "He told me that it could give me an energy boost and nothing more."

Rodriguez told a media throng between 150 and 200 that he and his cousin were unaware of the implications of what they were doing. Ironically, Tuesday's news conference took place on the fifth anniversary of the day he was introduced as a member of the Yankees.

"It was pretty evident that we didn't know what we were doing," he said. "My cousin did not provide any other players with it. I stopped taking in 2003 and haven't taken it since."

During a news conference that lasted about 40 minutes, an occasionally emotional Rodriguez said he stopped taking the substance following his neck injury in 2003 and after Major League Baseball introduced a drug-testing program.

"I was probably more reckless at 24 than I was at 34 and now 44," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "Did Alex make wise decisions? No. He understands that and knows that."

Rodriguez said he took the substance about twice a month for six months during his three seasons in Texas. He would not reveal the name of his cousin, however, and suggested the two of them did not even know if they were properly administering the substance.

"I don't even know if we did it right," he said. "I didn't think they were steroids. That's part of my being young and stupid. It was over the counter, it was pretty basic. It was really amateur hour."

The three-time MVP was supported by a number of his teammates, including Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera , Andy Pettitte, CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira, who attended Tuesday's news conference that took place inside a tent set up behind the third-base stands at Steinbrenner Field. Jeter is expected to address the media Wednesday.

On February 9, Rodriguez acknowledged the performance-enhancing drug use in a 45-minute interview with ESPN, but did not reveal the specific substance.

Two days earlier, Sports Illustrated broke a story that identified him as one of 104 players who tested positive for banned substances in Major League Baseball's 2003 survey testing program.

Saying "I'm a little nervous or a lot nervous," Rodriguez began the news conference by reading a statement in which he admitted he had to "earn back the trust of his teammates and fans."

In a 2007 interview with CBS' Katie Couric, Rodriguez flatly denied using any steroids or performance-enhancing drugs.

"The last couple weeks have been difficult and emotional," he said Tuesday. "On one hand, it's extremely tough to admit mistakes, but on the other hand it feels great to be moving forward.

"I know I'm in a position where I have to earn my trust back and over time I'm confident that at the end of my career, people will see this for what it is - a stupid mistake and lesson to be learned for a guy with a lot of baseball to play."

There were moments during the news conference, however, when Rodriguez was evasive, dancing around questions about whether he thought he cheated or if his pursuit of Barry Bonds' home record is tainted.

On Monday, Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jamie Moyer ripped into Rodriguez, saying that he should be disqualified from Hall of Fame consideration.

"I'm sorry he feels that way," Rodriguez said. "He's entitled to his opinion."

Rodriguez related how he discovered Primobolan.

"In 2001, my cousin starting telling me about a substance that you could buy over the counter," he said. "It was his understanding that it could give me an enerry boost and was other harmless.

"My cousin and I, one more ignorant than the other, decided it was a good idea to start taking it. We did everything we could to keep it between us and my cousin did not provide any other players with it."

Rodriguez hit 156 home runs during his three seasons in Texas. He passed the 500-homer mark last season, and is on pace to surpass Barry Bonds' record of 762.

He won this third MVP award in 2007, when he hit 54 home runs and drove in a career-high 156 runs. He belted a career-high 57 homers in 2002.

"The one thing I can lay my head on my pillow at night (on) is that I entered this game when I was 18," he said. "I had my best year when I was 20 and my other best year in 2007. So foul pole to foul pole is pretty good."

However, Rodriguez was asked why he did not do more research into the substance he was injecting into his body.

"I was pretty naive and I was pretty young," he said. "I just gave it a try. I was 24, I was 25. I guess when you're young and stupid, you're young and stupid."

Rodriguez reinterated , however, that he has never taken the substance during his five seasons with the Yankees.

"In 2003, I had a serious neck injury and it scared me half to death," he said. "I was scared for my career and truly my career after baseball, my life after baseball.

"At that time, it became evident to me how serious this all was and I decided to stop then."