Alex Rodriguez consulted BALCO founder Victor Conte and secretively purchased legal products from the chemist last year, according to a report.
The New York Daily News says Rodriguez, with the assistance of former NFL linebacker Bill Romanowski, sought out Conte last season and asked for legal products that could help give him an edge.
Conte, who spent time in prison in 2005 for distributing steroids and money laundering, has changed his career path and now says he provides athletes with legal products aimed to give them an edge in competition. He met with MLB last week to discuss his involvement with A-Rod, and he talked with the Daily News about his experience with the New York Yankees third baseman.
Conte says Romanowski, who admitted to using steroids and growth hormone provided by Conte’s BALCO company, tried to put the chemist in touch with A-Rod for a few months last year. Conte did not meet A-Rod until the Yankees player showed up uninvited at his Scientific Nutrition for Advance Conditioning (SNAC) office in San Carlos, Calif., while the Yankees were in town to play the Oakland A’s in May 2012.
A-Rod wanted the meeting to be secretive, so Romanowski checked out the office first to make sure nobody was around to see them.
“He was real secretive,” Conte’s daughter and business partner, Veronica Conte, said of Rodriguez. “He wanted to make sure no one was here.”
Rodriguez then went in and met with Conte to discuss legal products that could give him an edge, and to discuss in general what players were using as PEDs. Veronica Conte recalled that Rodriguez emphasized they had to keep things quiet so that the media did not find out the two sides were working together, knowing that it would look bad given each of their pasts.
Conte agreed to work with Rodriguez so long as he submitted a blood sample, which the slugger did.
According to the Daily News, Conte gave Rodriguez advice over the phone after analyzing the blood sample. SNAC then sent two shipments to Rodriguez of their legal products, one in June and another in July. Veronica also says she delivered a package to Rodriguez’s San Francisco hotel suite in May, where the Yanks were staying while in town to play the A’s. Those exchanges summarize the Contes’ interactions with Rodriguez, whom they stopped hearing from around the time the Biogenesis stuff was emerging.
Conte met with MLB to try assisting them with their drug programs. He also told them that Rodriguez was working with Biogenesis founder Tony Bosch, even though Rodriguez denied in January ever being treated or advised by Bosch. Conte says A-Rod referred to Bosch as his “nutrition guy.”
In addition to admitting to using steroids from 2001-2003 while with the Texas Rangers (after Sports Illustrated busted him), Rodriguez has been linked to HGH guru Anthony Galea of Toronto; steroid-linked trainer Angel Presinal, who was banned by MLB; Biogenesis founder Tony Bosch; and now Conte. That’s not exactly a good look for someone trying to proclaim his innocence.
Rodriguez was suspended 211 games by MLB last week for his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal. He is appealing the suspension.
