3 Sox minor leaguers test positive for Steroids

[Flight #24]

ESPN1000 reporting that 3 have tested positive, including Jorge Toca.

And IIRC, I saw a note recently that Michael Morse (SS traded in the Garcia deal) had tested positive prior to being dealt.

[TaylorStSox]

Originally Posted by Flight #24

ESPN1000 reporting that 3 have tested positive, including Jorge Toca.

And IIRC, I saw a note recently that Michael Morse (SS traded in the Garcia deal) had tested positive prior to being dealt.

That explains the power surge.

[maurice]

Toca is no big deal, but I'd like to know who the other two are. IIRC, Gray's already been suspended. Nobody will be surprised if Giambi was one of them.

[mikehuff]

Originally Posted by Flight #24

ESPN1000 reporting that 3 have tested positive, including Jorge Toca.

And IIRC, I saw a note recently that Michael Morse (SS traded in the Garcia deal) had tested positive prior to being dealt.

I don't get it. Why would you even try this anymore? Maybe so many people are still getting through the cracks that it's not a big deal for these guys yet.

[Randar68]

Originally Posted by maurice

Toca is no big deal, but I'd like to know who the other two are. IIRC, Gray's already been suspended. Nobody will be surprised if Giambi was one of them.

So far the only Sox players to have tested positive have been the minor league journeymen veterans.

I'll wait till the names come out to avoid speculating, but I wouldn't be surprised by a few players testing positive.

The minor league penalty for testing positive is a 15 game suspension.

ESPN 1000 is reporting this? Did they report when 8 Cubs tested positive in the first spate of positive test result announcements? Sure don't remember a peep about that...

[Flight #24]

In another update, Robert Valido was another one of the guys who tested positive.

[Randar68]

Originally Posted by Flight #24

In another update, Robert Valido was another one of the guys who tested positive.

Somewhat shocking to me. Also remember "steroids" aren't the only drugs banned and tested for. He certainly doesn't look like he's on the juice...

[maurice]

Valido? CRAP!

The 3rd player was Yofu, who is equivalent in relevance to Toca.

[maurice]

Sox press release:

"It is disappointing that players from our minor-league system tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in violation of Major League Baseball and the MLBPA's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment program," said David Wilder, White Sox director of player development.

"We will continue to offer any support we can to players who remain members of the White Sox family, however, at the same time we strongly support Major League Baseball and the drug testing program because it is in the best interests of the game. There is no place for performance-enhancing drugs in baseball."

Sayonara Yofu and Toca?

[JackParkman]

Here's the AP story off the wire:

{White Sox utilityman among 11 minor league players suspended over} steroids policy
{sssmc}
{By RONALD BLUM}=
{AP Sports Writer}=
NEW YORK (AP) — Colorado pitcher Christian Parker and Chicago White Sox utilityman Jorge Toca were among 11 players given 15-game suspensions Thursday for violating baseball’s minor league steroids policy.
Fifty-nine players have been suspended this year for violating the minor league program. Five players have been given 10-day penalties for violating the major league program.
Parker, a former New York Yankees prospect, is 3-1 with a 1.41 ERA in seven starts this season for Double-A Tulsa.
The 29-year-old right-hander has played in one major league game, giving up seven runs and eight hits in three-plus innings during the Yankees’ 13-4 loss to Toronto on April 6, 2001. Parker, who allowed home runs to Carlos Delgado and Jose Cruz Jr., went on the disabled list with shoulder stiffness and didn’t pitch in another game until April 2003, when he was with the Yankees’ Class-A Tampa farm team.
He spent part of 2003 and 2004 in the minor league system of the Montreal Expos, who originally selected him in the fourth round of the 1996 amateur draft, then signed a minor league contract with the Rockies on Feb. 9.
Toca, 30, is hitting .273 with eight homers and 19 RBIs with Triple-A Charlotte. He appeared in 25 games with the New York Mets over the 1999-2001 seasons, hitting .259 with no homers and 32 RBIs in 175 at-bats while playing first base and left field.
Toca split 2004 with Cancun in the Mexican League, Montreal’s Triple-A team at Edmonton and Detroit’s Triple-A team at Toledo. He signed a minor league contract with the White Sox on Jan. 4 and spent part of spring training in Chicago’s major league camp.
Also suspended were Robert Valido of the White Sox, Jonathan Herrera of Colorado, Steven Smyth of Oakland, and Briane Mazone, Oscar Montero and Guillermo Rodriguez of San Francisco. Three players who already have been released also were suspended: Tetsu Yofu of the White Sox, Marcos Mendoza of the Rockies and Joshua Cram of the Giants.
Giants general manager Brian Sabean and David Wilder, the White Sox director of player development, said they were disappointed.
“I hope that today’s announcement will send a message that the use of performance enhancing drugs is unacceptable and that major league baseball is serious about removing them from our game,” Sabean said.

[wood28]

Here is the official release from MLB

http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/p...=.jsp&c_id=mlb

[Flight #24]

It'll be interesting to see what happens to these guys. Yofu - already released, a former positive tester - Morse: traded. I would not be at all surprised to see Toca released. If they cut Valido, that would be a strong stance, but I don't expect it.

[Randar68]

Originally Posted by Flight #24

If they cut Valido, that would be a strong stance, but I don't expect it.

Not gonna do that. That's a ridiculous stance. Who knows what substance it even was... These are 3 Sox players out of well over 50 in all the minors... probably approaching 75+ at this time, that have tested positive.

[maurice]

Originally Posted by JackParkman

White Sox utilityman among 11 minor league players suspended over steroids policy

What a bizarre headline. How is Toca a "White Sox utilityman" and why does he deserve a special mention in the headline? He's a 30-year-old AAAA 1B for the Charlotte Knights, who never even made a White Sox roster.

[kevingrt]

Bad, bad, bad I don't like that at all. I believe the Scrubbies had much more though...