Controversy!MLB

PED-Palooza: Ryan Braun Found In Miami Biogenesis Clinic Records

According to a report by Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan and Tim Brown, Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun’s name has been found on several documents obtained from the same Biogenesis clinic that recently implicated Alex Rodriguez — among others — in using PEDs from 2009-2012.

Braun, who tested positive for illegal synthetic testosterone shortly after winning the 2011 National League MVP award, appeared on three documents obtained from the clinic. Unlike the players implicated in the Miami New Times story that originally opened the can of worms, Braun’s name did not appear next to any specific PEDs.

The evidence, however, is still damning. In one of the several documents the New Times received from a former Biogenesis employee, “RB 20-30K” is written on a line under his name. Clinic operator Anthony Bosch listed the money other players owed him similarly, though Braun’s amount was considerably higher. Braun’s attorney Chris Lyons, who was in the spotlight during Braun’s tenuous fight against suspension after he tested positive for testosterone in 2011, was also found on a document.

It gets worse. The early stages of MLB’s investigation of Biogenesis have reportedly focused on the clinic’s connection to the University of Miami, whose strength-and-conditioning coach Jimmy Goins — an alleged client of Bosch’s — has worked with several of the players indicated in the New Times documents. Braun indeed went to the U, worked with Goins, and roomed on the road for three years with Cesar Carillo, a pitcher in the Tigers organization who is also implicated in the obtained documents.

Braun was joined on the list of players not named next to PEDs by Orioles third baseman Danny Valencia and Yankees catcher Francisco Cervelli. Valencia grew up in Miami, spent his freshman year at UNC-Greensboro, but due to “homesickness,” transferred to the U, despite the scholarship situation being less ideal.

The evidence against Braun is hard to ignore, despite his name not appearing next to any particular drugs. There’s still a lot of investigating to go, but at this point it just seems like semantics. It doesn’t immediately seem like his image will be as irreversibly damaged as A-Rod’s, but when stacked on top of the unfavorable fight against PED allegations Braun already has under his belt, it’s going to be tough to claw back, especially if the MLB’s investigation of Biogenesis presents anything conclusive.

[Getty, inset via]