It was just a couple of weeks ago Hal Lanier told me there would be no room for a steroid user in the Winnipeg Goldeyes clubhouse.
While sharing his opinions on the drug scandal in baseball, the long-time Goldeyes manager made it crystal clear he had a zero-tolerance policy where the juice is concerned: you use, you lose.
Little did Lanier know his hard-line approach would soon be tested.
Last Friday, the Goldeyes announced they'd signed a pair of relief pitchers, including a strong-armed right-hander named Darwin Soto.
The 23-year-old Soto, just released by the Seattle Mariners organization, was going to be Lanier's bullpen ace, his closer.
Instead, exactly one month from the opening of training camp, he's one giant question mark after testing positive for steroids.
Soto was one of 38 players identified yesterday as having violated baseball's minor league steroids policy.
The news caught Lanier completely off guard.
"Really?" he said from his home in Florida yesterday. "It's a shock to me to learn this. His agent never indicated to me that anything like that happened. Seattle told me the reason (he was cut) was they didn't have room for him."
Now, you might think a player's agent wouldn't want to volunteer something like a failed drug test.
But Lanier says the way the Goldeyes bent over backwards in signing Soto, it's the least his agent could have done.
"He should if he's straight up and honest, like we were with him," Lanier said. "We did everything in our power to accommodate him ... the money we gave him. There were some other teams, and we were pretty patient waiting."
Lanier was also surprised the Mariners weren't more forthcoming.
The Goldeyes have forged quite a relationship with Seattle over the years, as former Winnipeg pitchers Bobby Madritsch and George Sherrill have signed with the major league club.
"They had to know, you would think," Lanier said. "I mean, they're the ones that tested him."
Northern League officials were as flabbergasted as Lanier.
In fact, they couldn't even say whether or not they'd honour the 15-game suspension handed Soto before he was cut.
"We've just found out about the whole thing," said John Blake, the Northern League's chief operating officer. "This is kind of a precedent. I have a call into the commissioner (Mike Stone)."
Whether or not the league honours Soto's suspension doesn't solve Lanier's dilemma.
If Soto's failed test is a black-and-white case of steroid use, does he cut him outright?
In our conversation last month, Lanier left no doubt about his position.
"We wouldn't put up with that," the manager said then. "He would probably be gone. I would not let anybody wreck what the Goldeyes have accomplished. We would wash our hands of it and wish him luck somewhere else."
MORE INFORMATION
Yesterday, Lanier wanted more information before making a decision.
And he didn't rule out giving Soto a second chance.
"I think so," he said. "It just depends on what the situation is. I don't have an answer until I find out exactly what it was and why I wasn't informed about this."
We tried to reach Soto, too, to get his side of the story, but couldn't.
So we'll wait for more details, too, before rushing to judgment.
After all, not all failed drug tests are cut-and-dried. You only have to recall what happened to former Winnipeg Jets defenceman Randy Carlyle at the 1989 World Hockey Championship to know that.
Carlyle was eventually cleared, after his first test came back positive.
But if it turns out Soto used steroids to get an edge, Lanier's decision should be an easy one.
There shouldn't be room for drug cheats here, or anywhere.
No matter how good the player is.
