Ryan Howard, Ryan Zimmerman cleared in investigation of PED report

Ryan Howard (left) and Ryan Zimmerman (right) (AP Images)

Nearly eight months after the names of Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard and Washington Nationals infielder Ryan Zimmerman appeared in an Al Jazeera report linking them to a doping ring, Major League Baseball’s Office of the Commissioner released a statement about their (now concluded) investigation into the claims of that report. It’s short, sweet, and to the point.

MLB statement regarding Ryan Howard and Ryan Zimmerman: pic.twitter.com/cqulaEHwQF

— MLB Communications (@MLB_PR) August 19, 2016

Here’s the full text of the statement:

The Office of the Commissioner has completed its investigation into the statements made by Charlie Sly concerning players Ryan Howard of the Philadelphia Phillies and Ryan Zimmerman of the Washington Nationals in the Al Jazeera documentary “The Dark Side.” This thorough investigation did not find any violations of the Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program by either Howard or Zimmerman. Both Howard and Zimmerman fully cooperated with the Office of the Commissioner’s investigation. Mr. Sly did not agree to speak with the Commissioner’s Office or provide requested information.

Of note here, besides the fact that both Howard and Zimmerman have been completely cleared, is that Charlie Sly didn’t cooperate or furnish any evidence of the claims he made in the Al Jazeera report “The Dark Side.” Sly, a pharmacist, claimed that both Howard and Zimmerman were both mailed human growth hormone (among other drugs) from the Guyer Institute in Indiana, where he used to work.

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This has got to be a huge relief for both Zimmerman and Howard, who both fully cooperated in the investigation. They both filed defamation lawsuits against Al Jazeera back in January, shortly after the report was released. Presumably those lawsuits are continuing, and being cleared in MLB’s investigation can only help.

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