Quote:Tampa Bay outfielder Alex Sanchez won't appeal his 10-day suspension for violating baseball's steroids policy, saying he was tripped up by a change in laws that made a supplement he took illegal.

Sanchez, the first player penalized under the tougher rules put in place last month, made his decision Thursday, four days after he was suspended by commissioner Bud Selig.

``I used an over-the-counter supplement that I purchased before the laws banning certain substances changed on January 15th,'' Sanchez said in a statement. ``If I am guilty, I am guilty of not taking the initiative to learn more about the contents of what I was taking. Once my agent informed me that I had tested positive, I then started finding out what was in my supplements. Then, and only then, did I find out about the particular ingredients of this supplement.''

Sanchez's suspension began Monday, when Tampa Bay played Toronto in its season opener. Because suspensions for violating baseball's rules on performance-enhancing drugs are without pay, Sanchez will lose $32,787 of his $600,000 salary.

``He did not knowingly take any banned substance,'' said Michael Weiner, general counsel of the Major League Baseball Players Association. ``We respect Alex's decision to forgo an appeal, and he has our full support.''

<a href='http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylc=X3oDMTBpcDBuM2RlBF9TAzk1ODYxNzc3BHNlYwN0aA--?slug=ap-steroids-sanchez&prov=ap&type=lgns' target='_blank'>http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylc=X3oD...ov=ap&type=lgns</a>

Has anyone in MLB ever knowingly taken steroids? :rolleyes:

These guys know what they're putting into their bodies. I don't buy this "I didn't know it was steroids" speech for a second.