Carlos Ruiz suspended 25 games for amphetamines

[Zito75]

Not surprised by this sadly... Looks like he'll be riding the pine through April.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/8683788/carlos-ruiz-philadelphia-phillies-suspended-25-games-positive-test

[GiambiJuice]

Yeah, his stats were too good to be true. Yadier Molina's too.

[Steven Gallanter]

Yeah, his stats were too good to be true. Yadier Molina's too.

Yes, I am surprised by this but not for the reasons of Zito75 and GiambiJuice. Amphetamine's jittery rush would be counterproductive to baseball. Furthermore, the inevitable destruction of muscle mass is what lead to amphetamines becoming unpopular 20 years ago. Finally, Ruiz is is not...the...sveltest of players. This whole thing is soooo 70's!

[jnakamura]

Amphetamine's jittery rush would be counterproductive to baseball. Furthermore, the inevitable destruction of muscle mass is what lead to amphetamines becoming unpopular 20 years ago. Finally, Ruiz is is not...the...sveltest of players. This whole thing is soooo 70's!

Well it didn't say what he took. It might have been Adderall or something like it. Although Adderall is an amphetamine, it doesn't make you jittery in properly prescribed doses. It actually may very well be helpful--it makes you more alert aware and focused, and in a way, actually calmer. I used to take it.

[Ben Grimm]

Well it didn't say what he took. It might have been Adderall or something like it. Although Adderall is an amphetamine, it doesn't make you jittery in properly prescribed doses. It actually may very well be helpful--it makes you more alert aware and focused, and in a way, actually calmer. I used to take it.

Yes, it was Adderall. It's his second time showing up positive - hence the suspension.

[Afterglow]

Yeah, his stats were too good to be true. Yadier Molina's too.

I'm confused. Why did you mention Molina?

[SamtheBravesFan]

I'm confused. Why did you mention Molina?

Same principle. He's the latest "mysterious late-career stats boost" suspect.

[Afterglow]

Same principle. He's the latest "mysterious late-career stats boost" suspect.

Yea...but he has been improving yearly.

Molina came into the league as a young guy that was a pure catcher. His hitting was a blank canvas that could be improved upon.

He's always had some pop in his bat, he just didn't have it together.

The fact that he's stayed healthy *knock on wood* also helps him improve his hitting, unlike most catchers that have started to slow down due to injuries 9 years into their career.


It also hasn't hurt that he's spent his career around some pretty dayum good hitters.

[SamtheBravesFan]

I agree with your perspective, if only because I don't want to suspect anyone just because they improve late in their career.

[GiambiJuice]

I'm confused. Why did you mention Molina?

Because his numbers are highly suspect. The guy had an 82 OPS+ through his first 7 seasons. The last two seasons were 124 and 137 respectively

He was literally one of the worst hitters in baseball, had a career high of 7 home runs before the 2011 season. This year he hits 22. It's a very Melky Cabrera-esque transformation.

[Bothrops Atrox]

Because his numbers are highly suspect. The guy had an 82 OPS+ through his first 7 seasons. The last two seasons were 124 and 137 respectively

He was literally one of the worst hitters in baseball, had a career high of 7 home runs before the 2011 season. This year he hits 22. It's a very Melky Cabrera-esque transformation.

But his OPS+ has been trending up for 7-8 years. He did not jump from 80 to 120 overnight. Plus, his batting approach has changed more than any other batter I have ever seen. He used to refuse to pull the ball to avoid K's and now he pulls the ball most of the time. He always hit the ball hard when he did pull.

Now I am not saying he isn't using something, just that there are other option too.

[GiambiJuice]

But his OPS+ has been trending up for 7-8 years. He did not jump from 80 to 120 overnight. Plus, his batting approach has changed more than any other batter I have ever seen. He used to refuse to pull the ball to avoid K's and now he pulls the ball most of the time. He always hit the ball hard when he did pull.

Now I am not saying he isn't using something, just that there are other option too.

I agree. I'm not saying he's definitely using something, I just think it's very possible that it is.

[Ben Grimm]

I agree. I'm not saying he's definitely using something, I just think it's very possible that it is.

Yeah, Yadier is another who definitely could come under question. From 2001-2010, his ISO was .090 . The past two seasons, it's .175 - that alone could raise a red flag.

Normally I understand a catcher coming together at the plate a bit later than others simply because so much time is spent learning the position. But neither he nor Ruiz was anything more than a decent contact guy with very limited power until very recently. Ruiz moreso since he obliterated his career offensive numbers at the age of 33 with no warning whatsoever until he started producing in 2011.

One thing both players had in common is that they were heading towards new contracts within two years of their spikes in '11 - with Yadier getting paid already. Another is that both players are + defenders who were #7-8 hitters in the lineup and suddenly are catalysts of the offense hitting in the middle of the order. Offense - especially power - pays the bills. It's likely why Russell Martin and his .211 AVG will likely get near $30M over the next three seasons.

[Bothrops Atrox]

Yeah, Yadier is another who definitely could come under question. From 2001-2010, his ISO was .090 . The past two seasons, it's .175 - that alone could raise a red flag.

Normally I understand a catcher coming together at the plate a bit later than others simply because so much time is spent learning the position. But neither he nor Ruiz was anything more than a decent contact guy with very limited power until very recently. Ruiz moreso since he obliterated his career offensive numbers at the age of 33 with no warning whatsoever until he started producing in 2011.

One thing both players had in common is that they were heading towards new contracts within two years of their spikes in '11 - with Yadier getting paid already. Another is that both players are + defenders who were #7-8 hitters in the lineup and suddenly are catalysts of the offense hitting in the middle of the order. Offense - especially power - pays the bills. It's likely why Russell Martin and his .211 AVG will likely get near $30M over the next three seasons.

I have read a scouting report that said that Molina had good power potential when he was in the minors. When he pulled the ball. he typicaly hit it hard even when his BA was poor. This dude tried to fist EVERYTHING into RF for years. hence the obscene number of groundouts for so long.

[Afterglow]

Because his numbers are highly suspect. The guy had an 82 OPS+ through his first 7 seasons. The last two seasons were 124 and 137 respectively

He was literally one of the worst hitters in baseball, had a career high of 7 home runs before the 2011 season. This year he hits 22. It's a very Melky Cabrera-esque transformation.

It couldn't possibly be that his approach has been different?

Also, i'd say the worst hitting thing stopped in 08' when he batted .304 with a .349 OBP that seemed rather decent cosidering how little he walked.

The power is the only thing that has changed, and that was covered by someone else in this thread.