Rafael Palmeiro
Rafael Palmeiro
Rafael Palmeiro Corralesis a retired Cuban American Major League Baseball first baseman and left fielder. Palmeiro was an All-American at Mississippi State University before being drafted by the Chicago Cubs in 1985. He played for the Cubs, Texas Rangers, and the Baltimore Orioles. He was named to the MLB All-Star Team four times, and won the Gold Glove three times. He is a member of the 500 home run club and the 3,000 hit club and is one of only...
NationalityCuban
ProfessionAthlete
Date of Birth24 September 1964
CountryCuba
Someone needs to be there for him. I know he doesn't have family here. So some of us need to do whatever we can to help.
I was careless, ... I'm sorry that I caused all that pain and anguish to my teammates, the Orioles, my fans and my family.
I respect Frank Robinson. He's entitled to his opinion, but I'm not going to comment on that.
Staying here and helping this team get back to .500 is a possibility, and it would be a great thing if we were able to do that, ... I want to help them do that, and, in the meantime, hopefully work something out so I could finish my career here.
Let me start by telling you this. I have never used steroids. Period.
I don't see myself as someone that brings a lot of luggage.
You set your goals to a point where they're attainable, but far enough away that you have to really go get them. And every year I push my goals a little bit farther away, and every year I work a little bit harder to get them.
He doesn't have a family with him. He's not married. He doesn't have kids,
I don't, but if he'd swing the bat, he would be. It's not different than anyone else.
To snap my fingers and let it go away. Even if it takes the 3,000th hit with it, just let it all go away.
Maybe it wasn't the right thing to do. I've never been in a situation where I'm getting booed so badly, and I just really don't know how to handle it.
Maybe if I have some solid years and don't test positive, they can say he went out and hit that way. Maybe that's what I can do.
Obviously, I would love to play and come back and finish and hopefully prove to everyone I can still play at a high level, that I can still be productive and do it the right way, which I've always done, ... I am not going to shy away from what happened to me. I am going to face it. Hopefully, I can explain myself one day, and whether people believe me or not, I can't control that.
Since I was informed last May that I tested positive for steroids, I have fully cooperated with Major League Baseball and Congress in their respective inquiries into this matter, ... I have done so because I have nothing to hide.