Friday, February 24, 2012

Braun Case Left With One Big Unanswered Question

Ryan Braun may have won his appeal, thanks to a brain-dead arbitration panel (well, only two out of the three panelists are brain-dead) who took "technicalities" to a whole new level of absurdity.  Maybe I'm missing something, so let's review the events:

STEP 1:  Braun provides a urine sample on a Saturday.  The guy who collects the sample doesn't ship it out until the following Monday - 44 hours later.  There is no evidence that the sample was tampered with.

STEP 2:  The sample is tested and extremely high levels of testosterone are discovered.  Record breaking levels of testosterone.  Ridiculously high levels of testosterone.

QUESTION:  How did those high levels of testosterone get into that urine?  Here are the possibilities:

A) High levels of testosterone magically sprout up in urine after a 44 hour waiting period.

B) Braun used some form of a banned substance - a performance enhancing drug - and high levels of testosterone are noticeable characteristic in this banned substance.

So far, no scientific evidence linking high levels of testosterone to two-day old urine have been discovered. I shudder to think of what might happen after some urine sits around in one of those little cups for a month or longer, if "Scenario A" is true.

Ryan Braun got off the hook and will not have to miss the first fifty games of the season now.  That's great news for Milwaukee Brewers fans who are more than likely not concerned with the question that still plagues me:  How did the urine get so much testosterone in it?

Unless that question is answered to conclusively clear up Ryan Braun's good name, I'm not buying his innocence.  This case may be closed, as far as Braun being cleared to play the full 162 game schedule goes.

But it's not closed for me, or anyone else who wants to know the absolute truth in this matter.  It's far from closed.

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