DUGOUT: Allegations continue to fly around Alex Rodriguez

The bad news keeps coming for Alex Rodriguez.

Back in February, the Yankees’ slugger admitted to prior use of performance enhancing drugs. This revelation knocked the baseball world on its heels.

Just when fans thought the steroid era was nearing a long-overdue end, Rodriguez is cornered by ESPN’s Peter Gammons and ends up confessing that he used steroids from 2001-03 while with the Texas Rangers.

There was controversy about that admission, partly because it came two days after Sports Illustrated leaked an “anonymous” Major League Baseball survey headlined by Rodriguez’s name.

SI’s Selena Roberts, author of the book “A-Rod,” sparked the investigation that led to that February discovery. Her book is slated to come out in the very near future, but she leaked two pieces of information that could have devastating effects on Rodriguez’s career.

First, she claims that the third baseman actually started using performance-enhancing drugs when he was in high school. She cites sources that claim that Rodriguez went from bench-pressing 100 pounds to 310 pounds in just six months.

If that allegation is true, Rodriguez’s many endorsements would break camp and leave without a moment’s hesitation.

But there’s more; pitch-tipping.

Roberts claims that during Rodriguez’s stay with the Texas Rangers for about two-and-a-half seasons he would use “obvious signs” to signal the opposing batter as to what the next pitch would be. He expected the same in return from the opposing team if ever he was having a bad day at the plate.

Essentially, Rodriguez allegedly sold out his pitchers to boost his own stats. In addition, Rodriguez was playing shortstop for the Rangers at this time instead of the third-base position we see him now with the Yankees, giving him a much clearer look at the catcher’s signals.

Roberts was quick to mention that Rodriguez would only do this during a “blowout” game, when an extra run really didn’t have any significance. Try telling that to the pitcher whose ERA just shot up a couple of points.

Those extra runs could have been the difference between a multi-million-dollar extension and a designation for a minor-league assignment for some players.

The allegations state that teammates of Rodriguez knew of these highly illegal - not to mention unethical in just about every sense of the word - activities but kept quiet because of the grievous repercussions the team would face if word spread.

If any of these rumors are true, Rodriguez will have a hard time keeping any of his fans, not to mention endorsements.

While many consider this another “non-story” (much like the Brett Favre saga of last year) there is no doubting that Rodriguez’s chances of being enshrined in the Hall of Fame could be in serious jeopardy should any former teammates come forward and share their potentially incriminating stories.

Joe Mauer made his long-anticipated debut with the Minnesota Twins on Friday night.

After starting the season on the disabled list, Mauer rejoined his team at the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The Twins had kept their heads above the water during the month of April, escaping with an 11-11 record and finding themselves in the midst of their AL Central division hunt.

In the bottom of the first inning Mauer’s first swing resulted in a home run over the left-center field wall. Mauer later doubled and walked, scoring a total of three runs.

The Twins beat the visiting Kansas City Royals by a final score of 7-5.

Heading into the season the majority of baseball fans anticipated a slugfest between the Yankees, Red Sox, and Rays for the AL East crown.

So far, the Blue Jays have risen to the top and are one of the best teams in all of baseball.

Boasting a 16-9 through Friday, Toronto has been led by the pitching of Roy Halladay and the bat of Aaron Hill.

Attempting to earn every penny of the $2.59 million due him this year, Hill has a batting average of .376 to go along with five home runs and twenty runs batted in.

In the month of May, the Blue Jays have fourteen games against division rivals as they attempt to prove that April was more than a mere hot streak.

The St. Louis Cardinals are quietly enjoying a comfortable lead atop the NL Central.

Albert Pujols can be thanked for that, as he leads the league in runs batted in and is tied for the lead in home runs.

Pujols has a batting average of .356, fourth-best in the league, and is in the top-five in everything from runs scored to hits recorded to walks taken.

His excellent on-base-percentage of .468 solidifies him as one of the best all-around players in baseball.

The Cardinals have a record of 17-7 through Friday, and are enjoying a solid four-game lead over the second-place Cincinnati Reds.

Andrew Kneeland is a sophomore at Sahuarita High School. He is an intern at the Green Valley News.