If Rafael Palmiero can turn the other cheek, maybe there’s still hope for Jose and Wilson Alvarez?
From the Associated Press.
After what he called a “surreal” day testifying before a congressional committee, Rafael Palmeiro returned to spring training Friday insisting his finger-pointing denial of steroid use came from the heart and that he is willing to forgive Jose Canseco.
“If it turns out to be a positive thing that he wrote this stupid book, and he turns himself around and if he can be a positive role model, I’ll forgive him,” said Palmeiro, who played with Canseco on the Texas Rangers from 1992-93.
Palmeiro was among the half-dozen current and former players who appeared before the House Committee on Government Reform, which is examining steroid use in baseball. Canseco’s book accused the Baltimore Orioles star of using steroids.
Palmeiro was emphatic in his denial of steroid use in his opening statement to the committee. He pointed his index finger at the panel, and said the gesture was spontaneous.
“I was just speaking from the heart, man,” he said. “I just wanted to make sure I got my point across and that I was sincere about it. I didn’t plan on doing that. I was upset.”
“I’m upset because (Canseco) encouraged the use of steroids,” Palmeiro said. “But in the end, he backed off of that and he basically took the stance that he’s against it. So it all turned out good.”