Ryan Braun accused urine sample collector Dino Laurenzi Jr. of being an anti-Semite and Chicago Cubs fan out to get him, ESPN’s Buster Olney reports.
Olney says the suspended Milwaukee Brewers outfielder made the accusations while talking with several veteran baseball players over the phone. Braun reportedly anticipated losing his appeal of a positive drug test and was trying to drum up support from fellow players. In the process, he supposedly accused Laurenzi of being a Cubs fan and anti-Semite (Braun is Jewish).
Braun surprisingly won his appeal because the arbitrator ruled that Laurenzi did not follow proper protocol with the specimen collection process. In his victory speech, Braun specifically attacked Laurenzi, implying that the collector tampered with his sample.
Though Braun avoided punishment in 2012, he was implicated in the Biogenesis scandal and accepted a 65-game suspension from MLB in July. Braun admitted making mistakes, but he never admitted he used PEDs and lied multiple times.
[Related: All the lies Ryan Braun told about his PED use]
Famous athletes like Matt Kemp and Aaron Rodgers went to bat for Braun, and both have expressed their disappointment with the outfielder for lying to them. Ex-Brewers pitcher Zack Greinke said Braun would use people more the closer he was to them.
Braun hired friend Ralph Sasson to conduct background research on Laurenzi. Sasson is currently suing Braun for defamation.
