So Manny Ramirez has tested positive for a banned substance, and Major League Baseball has suspended him for 50 games.
He stated that the drug was presribed for a medical condition. Unofficial reports are saying that the drug was Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG).
Wikipedia has this to say about HCG:
Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is a glycoprotein hormone produced in pregnancy that is made by the developing embryo soon after conception and later by the syncytiotrophoblast (part of the placenta). Its role is to prevent the disintegration of the corpus luteum of the ovary and thereby maintain progesterone production that is critical for a pregnancy in humans. hCG may have additional functions; for instance, it is thought that hCG affects the immune tolerance of the pregnancy.
Assuming Manny isn't pregnant, then why would he take HCG, a female hormone?
I knew someone many years ago who had to take HCG. His testacles didn't descend, and he had to receive HCG injections, I believe, to stimulate the production of testosterone.
And there lies a possible clue. Steroid users apparently take HCG after going through the steroid cycle to restimulate the production of testosterone which is apparently suppressed by steroid usage.
There are people who have stated that HCG can have a performance-enhancing affect as it does increase testosterone production. But I have to wonder if Ramirez took steroids some time in 2008, for his numbers shot into the stratosphere during the second half of the season after being sent to the Dodgers.
I don't know that there is much anecdotal evidence for steroid usage beyond that and the HCG. However, it wouldn't surprise me at all if Manny thought he could get away with using steroids in this day and age.
There seems to be a serious disconnect between common sense and Manny Ramirez.
No comments:
Post a Comment