To Cheat Or Not To Cheat

Thirteen years later, Liddle and the others learned that Naulty used steroids to transform himself from a fringe minor leaguer into a massive big leaguer throwing 96 mph. They found out because of a 2007 fishing expedition by lawyers for former senator George Mitchell, who had been charged by commissioner Bud Selig to produce a white paper on the game's steroid problem. In January 2007 one of Mitchell's investigators phoned Naulty, one of the nearly 500 former players they attempted to reach.

"Hello, is this Dan Naulty, the former pitcher?" Naulty recalls the investigator asking.

"Yes, it is."

The lawyer identified himself and asked, "Are you willing to talk about drug use?"

"I'd be happy to."

There was silence from the lawyer. And then this: "Do you understand what I'm asking?"

"You're asking me if I'm willing to tell you if I did drugs or not, right?"

"Yes."

"I'm happy to talk to you about my drug use."

Again, silence, and then: "Are you sure you understand what I'm asking?"