No, this isn’t definitive proof. But when there is smoke, there are often needles. Or something like that. Details, after the jump.

Consider this the bombshell before the bombshell, should this prophecy eventually come true. Joe Bisceglie from Dog And Pony Show tweeted Monday afternoon that four of baseball’s biggest bats, including three New York Yankees and two formerly implicated players, will each be slapped with 50-game first-offense PED suspensions. They are, of course, Robinson Cano, Alex Rodriguez, Curtis Granderson, and Ryan Braun.

Hedo Turkoglu?!? The horror! What are the Orlando Magic going to do without his 2.9 points per game?

According to the Miami New Times, Alex Rodriguez may have taken PEDs as recently as last year. Other implicated players include Nelson Cruz and Gio Gonzalez, against whom the evidence is less damning. Check out the details, after the jump.

Today in unsurprising news, an Italian judge says that cycling’s doping culture hasn’t improved. However, the dude also offered a lot of insight into the culture. Details, after the jump.

With alleged (and proved) steroid users like Mark McGwire and Rafael Palmeiro having been on the National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot for a few years now, the storm between baseball writers and the Steroid Era has been brewing considerably. But with Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, and Roger Clemens now on the ballot, the eye of that storm has arrived.

Melky Cabrera was having an MVP-like season before testing positive for steroids and earning a 50-game suspension. It was a big blow to the Giants, as most wrote them off due to the lack of pop in their offense. But San Francisco went on to win the World Series, so it wasn’t that bad. Cabrera, meanwhile, was kept off the playoff roster and left to stew in the embarrassment of PEDs and a fake website.

Former Dodgers closer Eric Gagne, the consummate Canadian he is, recently came out with a French-language book where he alleged that 80 percent of his teammates were using steroids. Gagne, who himself as admitted to steroid use, also confided that he went through five cycles of steroid use throughout his career.

Skip Bayless said just about the most ridiculous thing on First Take Wednesday morning. And that’s by Skip Bayless standards. Now, Skip wasn’t accusing (god forbid he was being accusatory), but merely insinuating that Derek Jeter (that Derek Jeter, the one you’re thinking of) is using performance-enhancing drugs. Because if Victor Conte says PED use is rampant, it must be true!

San Francisco Giants’ outfielder Melky Cabrera, the MVP of the All-Star Game and inflated stats testosterone user, was recently suspended 50 games, as you may have heard. We thought it would end there. Well, Cabrera wasn’t going down without a fight, albeit an ill-conceived and fantastically juvenile one.