What a Player Will Do to Extend His Career

Less than a month before federal agents appeared at Jason Grimsley's home because they believed he was receiving and using illegal performance-enhancing substances, Grimsley, a right-handed reliever for the Arizona Diamondbacks, spoke passionately about players being allowed to make their own choices.

Skip to next paragraph

Growth Hormone: A Primer

IN NATURAL FORM The growth hormone is produced by the pituitary gland in the brain. It is secreted into the blood and stimulates growth and cell reproduction. The amount of secretions change throughout life, with a peak during puberty, and a decline beginning around age 20.

SYNTHETIC FORM A biosynthetic form of the hormone was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1985 and is now manufactured by several pharmaceutical companies. It is administered by injection and used to treat numerous conditions.

MEDICAL USES Growth hormone replacement therapy is used to treat Growth Hormone Deficiency, a condition resulting in abnormally slow growth in children. For adults with Growth Hormone Deficiency, the benefits of treatment can include enhanced energy and muscle strength. Other uses include treatment for muscle deterioration in AIDS and cancer patients, treatment of burn patients and treatment for obesity.

USES FOR ATHLETES Growth hormones increase muscle mass by allowing the growth of new muscle cells.

Sources: Britannica Online; Columbia Encyclopedia, Children's Hospital Boston

M.L.B. Schedule/Scores A.L. Standings | N.L. A.L. Stats | N.L. Team Reports Discuss M.L.B. Yankees Schedule/Results Individual Stats | Team Roster | History 2005 Yankees vs. Red Sox Discuss the Yankees Mets Schedule/Results Individual Stats | Team Roster | History Discuss the Mets

"Who is going to be the first to say, 'Enough'?" Grimsley said. "Let's let guys play baseball."

Grimsley's remarks are notable now that he is being investigated for the alleged use and distribution of steroids, amphetamines and human growth hormone. Thirteen agents searched Grimsley's home in Scottsdale, Ariz., on Tuesday after he told investigators April 19 that he used performance-enhancing substances, according to court documents.

The Diamondbacks released Grimsley yesterday.

While Grimsley stood in a cramped spring training clubhouse in Arizona in March, he was asked how players would adjust this season since they could no longer use amphetamines. Grimsley mentioned how greenies have "been part of the game" for decades and said that baseball was becoming too politically correct.

"There are some things that don't need to be in the game, but there are things that have been in the game a long time," Grimsley said. "It's almost like they're trying to change everything about baseball. It's become sterilized."

During Grimsley's circuitous 15-year career that began as a starting pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1989, he has rarely felt comfortable about his roster spot in the majors. Grimsley, 38, has almost always been trying to hang around for one more season and one more paycheck.

After Grimsley made his debut at age 21, he played in 10 minor league cities. He pitched in more than 15 major league games in a season only one time before signing with the Yankees in 1999.

Grimsley went 7-2 with a 3.60 earned run average in 1999, his finest season, and was part of the Yankees' World Series championship teams in 1999 and 2000. He was 1-2 with a 4.88 E.R.A. this season and has a career record of 42-58 with a 4.77 E.R.A.

When Grimsley was with the Yankees, he was mild-mannered in the clubhouse and often played Stone Temple Pilots songs on his guitar with Bernie Williams. Grimsley was more intense with a baseball in his right hand and was popular among his teammates, in part because he was not afraid to defend them by hitting an opposing batter.

Grimsley's popularity will be tested since he told investigators the names of other major leaguers he said used performance-enhancing substances. Although the names were blacked out on the affidavit, they could leak out and Grimsley could be considered a pariah for revealing what others did behind clubhouse doors.

"I don't know the guys he's named, what they're going to do to him," said Jorge Posada, the Yankees' catcher, who called Grimsley a friend.

Jose Canseco wrote a book in which he made allegations about players and their use of performance-enhancing substances, but the Yankees' Derek Jeter said it was unfair to compare Grimsley to Canseco.

"Talking to authorities, I don't know if you can lie about it, can you?" Jeter said. "That's when you get in trouble. That's completely different from Canseco. Canseco was writing a book."

Interestingly, when Grimsley discussed players' competing without greenies, he said, "There's stuff to help you," but he only mentioned caffeine as one option. He criticized teams, not the players union, for failing to educate players.

"You think a team would get together and say this is what's going to be approved and this is not," Grimsley said. "But nothing. They haven't quite done that yet."

Until yesterday, Grimsley's most infamous act was slithering through a ceiling to retrieve his Cleveland Indians teammate Albert Belle's corked bat from the umpires' room at Chicago's Comiskey Park in 1994. Now Grimsley probably wishes that brazen act was the main reason for his notoriety, not what he is experiencing now.