SI.com reports LA Dodger pitcher Hong-Chih Kuo tested positive for stimulants before joining Taiwan's team at the Asian Games in Doha, a couple months ago. Kuo pitched for Taiwan in the series, however did not appear in that game.
Kevin Chen, secretary general of Taiwan's Olympic Committee, said samples taken from Kuo, as well as two other members of the baseball team, Yeh Chun-chang and Lin Yi-chuan, tested positive for banned drugs before the December competition.
The three players said they had taken either cold or pain medications containing a banned substance, Chen said.
All three competed at Doha but received verbal warnings and were asked to clear their medications with the team doctor, Chen said.
Ephedrine and like compounds exist in cold remedies. These drugs could test positive in urine; they are banned by WADA before competition. It should be a simple procedure in getting clearance for their use (although in The Nation's view they are worthless drugs anyway for colds)
"The situation is quite innocent," Chen said in a phone interview.
Taiwan beat Japan 8-7 in the gold medal game at Doha.
Kuo did not pitch in the final, and Taiwan's manager said at the time he didn't feel well.
The murky circumstances of Kuo's absence prompted an investigation by the newspaper China Times, which reported Kuo's positive drug test Monday.
Kuo bounced back and forth between the Dodgers and minor league clubs, pitching well toward the end of the season in starting roles. Kuo responded (TC Palm):
"I just play baseball. I didn't take anything," Kuo said after a workout at Dodgertown on Monday while the team traveled to Fort Lauderdale for a Grapefruit League game against Baltimore.
Kuo is in the mix for the fifth spot in the starting rotation and is more concerned about the upcoming season than something that happened three months ago.
"It's already passed," he said.
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