Rick Ankiel Caps Off One-Of-A-Kind Comeback With Oh, So Predictable HGH Scandal

Hate to bring up the dark and (ob)noxious cloud of juicing in baseball, but this is just too sweet to ignore: crack reporters at the New York Daily News have dug up dirt saying that St. Louis Cardinal wonderboy Rick Ankiel received a year-long supply of HGH in 2004 from the same pharmacy that got New England Pats safety Rodney Harrison suspended for 4 games. (So that's how you go from being a burnt-out pitcher to a studly slugger! Take notes, you aspiring athletes.) His last shipment of the stuff came before the Majors officially banned it in 2005, but we're sure the taint it leaves will be harder to wipe than the DWI that Cards manager Tony La Russa picked up at the beginning of the season. And the memory of Cards reliever Josh Hancock's drunk driving death in April. (Too soon?) Hey, we didn't say it; St. Louie's general manager did:

"This is the first I've heard of this," Cardinals GM Walt Jocketty told The News yesterday. "If it's true, obviously it would be very tragic, along with everything else we've had happen to us this year."

Right, cuz loss of life and loss of dignity are one in the same. And who ever said you couldn't learn any values in the steroid era of baseball? Rick Ankiel received 12-month supply of HGH, News learns [NY Daily News] Image [Google]