A-Rod may have doped in high school

http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/extras/extra_bases/2009/04/report_arod_use.html

Relaying details from an upcoming book on Alex Rodriguez by Sports Illustrated's Selena Roberts, the New York Daily News reports today that Rodriguez may have started taking steroids as early as high school and is suspected of continuing his use of performance-enhancing drugs with the New York Yankees.



A front-page headline (right) reads, "A-Rod book bombshell" with text below adding, "Slugger may have taken HGH while playing for the Yankees" and, "Hints he took steroids as early as high school days."

The report indicates that a high school teammate of Rodriguez's told Roberts that A-Rod took steroids before being drafted as a No. 1 pick and that his high school coach knew it -- an allegation the coach, Rich Hoffman, denied.

The book also indicates that two anonymous Yankees said they believed Rodriguez was using banned substances based on visual side effects, which reportedly led to Rodriguez gaining an unflattering nickname that referenced an increased pectoral size comparable to a woman's chest. The report also notes that a clubhouse staffer suggested management had a suspicion that the third baseman may have been juicing.