Straight-talk on steroids

By: GREG BALL - Staff Writer | Sunday, August 28, 2005 8:40 PM PDT ∞

When minor-league pitcher Troy Cate went in for his drug test at the Seattle Mariners' spring training complex in Peoria, Ariz., in late March, he was confident he would pass with flying colors.

After all, he had finished his cycle of steroid injections in mid-December and all his research told him the drugs would clear out of his system in four to six weeks. It had been more than 12 weeks since he had stopped his cycle when he was tested, so when he was told a few days later he had tested positive, he was shocked.

"Nothing's guaranteed," Cate said. "It's all my own doing."

Cate, a Fallbrook High graduate who pitches for the Mariners' high Single-A affiliate in the California League, revealed recently that he tested positive for Winstrol, a form of the powerful anabolic steroid stanozolol.

"I did a four-week cycle in November," he said.

"... If I had any doubt I would fail the drug test, I would have done something about it."

It is the same steroid allegedly used by Baltimore Orioles slugger Rafael Palmeiro ---- who this month became the highest-profile major-league player revealed to have tested positive this year ---- and the drug that cost Canadian Olympic sprinter Ben Johnson his gold medal in 1988.

Cate said he injected the steroid into his own body before this season to recover from an injury. He learned about stanozolol through Internet research and friends who had used it. He obtained it with relative ease by driving to Tijuana from his home in Temecula.

The stigma of steroids

In this, the first year Major League Baseball has released the names of major- and minor-league players who test positive for banned substances, eight major-league players and 81 minor-league players have been suspended.

While most, including Palmeiro, have said the positive tests resulted from a banned substance unknowingly ingested in a nutritional supplement, Cate is one of the few suspended players to admit injecting steroids.

Stanozolol, the steroid Cate used, is a man-made steroid similar to testosterone that can be used legally in the United States only if prescribed by a doctor. Its known side effects include serious and even fatal liver problems.

"(Anabolic androgenic steroids) do build muscle, and they're very seductive for athletes to take," said Dr. Jerry Hizon, who runs a family medical practice in Temecula and Murrieta and has worked with the Chargers for the past six years.

"I'm very concerned about them. They're out there, and there are a lot of misconceptions about them."

Cate said he used stanozolol for a short period only, during the four-week cycle that started in November, to recover from a bout of biceps tendinitis that cut short his 2004 season. A left-hander who has pitched as high as the Triple-A level, he was placed on the disabled list three times last season, suffering from a groin strain, elbow inflammation and the biceps tendinitis.

"I don't feel guilty," said Cate, who was suspended without pay for 15 days at the beginning of the minor-league season. "There was more embarrassment at the time.

"I've had to work extra hard to prove that what I did was a one-time thing. In the eyes of the organization, I cheated. That's the way people have looked at it for the past year."

Mariners director of player development Greg Hunter wouldn't confirm or deny that Cate had tested positive for stanozolol. He also wouldn't comment on whether there is a distinction in how the organization regards players who test positive for injectable steroids versus substances found in over-the-counter supplements.

"We support Major League Baseball in its efforts to rid minor-league baseball and major-league baseball of steroid use," Hunter said. "If a player tests positive, he has to face the consequences.

"I can't get into specifics to say if we look at one case differently than another."

A source close to the Mariners said players in the team's minor-league system are given a list of banned substances and are encouraged to call a team trainer about questionable supplements. In Cate's case, though, there was no need for a phone call. He knew exactly what he was putting into his body, he said.

Getting the juice

After researching stanozolol on the Internet last fall and talking with friends who had used the steroid and experienced its effects ---- both in terms of injury recovery and strength gains ---- Cate set off on a day trip to Mexico to obtain a vial of stanozolol. He estimated he spent just 30 minutes outside the United States.

"You could walk into any place in Tijuana and say, 'This is what I'm looking for,' and they would point you to the place," Cate said.

From there, it was on to a monthlong schedule of injections, weightlifting and occasional throwing. Cate said he injected 2 milliliters of the steroids into his hip once every three days for a period of 30 days.

The only people who knew about it were the friends who had turned him on to stanozolol. He said they were high school friends, not teammates or players from other Cal League teams.

Not even his wife, Holly, knew until he tested positive in March, Cate said.

"The first couple of times (injecting the steroids) were a little difficult," Cate said matter-of-factly, "but I've spent a lot of time in the emergency room for various injuries, so after a while it was no big deal.

"I always did it myself. I was diligent. At that time, it was one of the biggest focuses in my life."

The effects of the steroid injections were not immediate, Cate said, but within a couple weeks, the pain in his biceps was gone, and his muscles started to tighten up.

"I went into spring training healthy," he said.

Cate said his main reason for taking stanozolol was recovery. As a left-handed pitcher who already throws 91-92 mph, he didn't need to gain strength to increase his velocity. Even before being caught, Cate said, he hadn't planned to use stanozolol for more than one cycle.

"It was entirely experimental," he said. "I had no intention of making a habit of it. I was shocked, but I got caught with my hand in the cookie jar, and I have to face the consequences.

"I've moved on. All I can do is get back to doing what they pay me to do, and that is to throw strikes."

Not the only one

Cate is a 1998 graduate of Fallbrook High, where he played baseball with his close friend Josh Carter, a former Padres prospect who also tested positive for a banned substance this year.

Carter, now in the Philadelphia Phillies' organization, said his positive test resulted from a cold medicine he took. Baseball does not make public the substances for which players test positive, but Carter said it was a pseudoephedrine found in many over-the-counter medicines.

He was embarrassed to have his name publicly released but wasn't worried that suspicions would arise about him because of his connection to Cate.

"I don't think there will be guilt by association," Carter said. "People don't know me or Troy personally. Once you have facts, then you can think what you want."

Carter said he talks to Cate regularly, and believes the pitcher's decision to use stanozolol is a mistake Cate will learn from.

"That was his decision," Carter said. "He suffered the consequences."

Contact staff writer Greg Ball at (951) 676-4315, ext. 2632 or at gball@nctimes.com.