June 30, 2012; Denver, CO USA; Grandal rounds first base while hitting a solo home run against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. (Andrew Carpenean-USA TODAY Sports)

Yasmani Grandal, the Reds former first round selection and #12 overall pick in the 2010 draft, has been “named” within the records of one Anthony Bosch. Bosch is currently under a DEA investigation surrounding a clinic he operated in the Miami area. Bosch and his clinic, Biogenesis, are also reported to having ties with New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez, as well as other MLB players.

This isn’t the first time the Bosch name has been mentioned within the MLB/PED circles. His father, Pedro, was linked in the last suspension delivered to Manny Ramirez. Of note here is the location of Pedro Bosch’s office: Coral Gables.

According to an extended article in Miami New Times, the list of Bosch clients extends beyond Grandal and A-Rod. Also, named within the piece were two other MLB players who received 50-game suspension during the 2012 season in Melky Cabrera and Bartolo Colon.

A couple of other MLB names popped up in the article: Texas Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz and Washington Nationals pitcher Gio Gonzalez. The majority of those athletes named by Bosch (on personal records and notes) is that most have ties to the Miami area in some form. For Grandal, he played his high school baseball locally and his college baseball at the University of Miami. The school’s baseball strength and conditioning coach, Jimmy Goins, is also implicated within these same personal notes.

Here’s how the report associates Grandal with Bosch:

Just below Cabrera in the 2012 notebook is a baseball player whom Bosch calls “Josmany,” with the nickname of “Springs.” On a separate client list from June 2012, he writes that “Springs” is Josmany Grandal.

Although the first name is misspelled, the notations likely refer to Yasmani Grandal, the former star catcher for the University of Miami Hurricanes who once tore up the high school leagues playing for Miami Springs.

Grandal received his suspension in November of last year.

Again, it’s a long read, but worth the time as it reveals much about Biogenesis and how the clinic operated.

Some have now referred to Biogenesis as the east coast equivalent of BALCO. Considering the alleged involvement of the clinic in application of HGH, creams, testosterone, “cocktails”, it’s not hard to see why.

And if this so, we could see more names.

UPDATE: Since all of this hit the Internet, a number of statements have surfaced.

1. A-Rod has released a statement through a spokesman. Joel Sherman and Ken Davidoff of The New York Post have the entire statement there. Here’s an excerpt:

“The news report about a purported relationship between Alex Rodriguez and Anthony Bosch are not true,” Citrik and company incorporated said in a statement.

“Alex Rodriguez was not Mr. Bosch’s patient, he was never treated by him and he was never advised by him. The purported documents referenced in the story — at least as they relate to Alex Rodriguez — are not legitimate.”

2. In a story from CBSSports.com by Mike Axisa, Gonzalez took to Twitter to air his denial of taking any PEDs and of ever meeting Anthony “Tony” Bosch. Why wouldn’t he? I mean, isn’t Twitter the quickest means to get the word out?

Even though Gonzalez denies this, his father, who is quoted in the original story, also states the Nats pitcher has never met Bosch. It’s also worthy to mention that per Craig Calcaterra of Hardball Talk…

Be careful with accusations re: Gio Gonzalez. None of the substances linked to him (or his father) in the Miami report are banned.

— Craig Calcaterra (@craigcalcaterra) January 29, 2013

3. When pressed for a statement regarding the mention of Cruz in the Miami New Times report, the Texas Rnagers took the “no comment” route. Per T.R. Sullivan on MLB.com:

“The Texas Rangers were contacted late last week by Miami New Times regarding the story posted this morning,” the Rangers said in a statement on Tuesday morning. “At that time, the Rangers contacted Major League Baseball on that inquiry. The team has no further comment.”

4. And MLB issued a lengthy statement of its own. That entire statement can be found here. As you may have guessed, MLB isn’t too happy with the release of this information. Honestly, there’s no way to provide a shortened version of the statement other than to say that, in part, MLB pats itself on the back for installing measures as recommended in the Mitchell Report and of those recommendations, “several of which emphasized the significance of installing proactive investigative services”.

5. The author of the original story, Tim Elfrink, also has a bog post up that purportedly contains every mention of A-Rod from the records seized from Biogenesis. If you feel so inclined, that’s here.

UPDATE #2 (H/T to Hardball Talk): Through his attorneys at Farrell and Reisinger, Cruz has now issued a denial of any association with Bosch and Biognesis.

We all knew the Reds win streak would end at some point, and did it ever, with an 11-5 loss to the Padres. Welcome home.

Cincinnati Reds catcher

It looked good at first. It was just like old times seeing Edinson Volquez get roughed up for three runs in the first inning and leave after five. Volquez allowed five runs total and did his best to keep the Reds in the game, but they weren’t up to the task. (more…)

June 2, 2012; Houston, TX, USA; Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Mat Latos (55) throws a pitch against the Houston Astros in the first inning at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-US PRESSWIRE

At least that’s what the majority of fans are talking about now on the message boards.

Look, I don’t mean to absolve Latos from the rough outings he’s had – I care about quality starts, and if that is the very least a pitcher can give his team, I’m satisfied. Mat Latos hasn’t had too many of those – only five in 14 starts. Just 36% of his starts have been quality. Even more startling, he’s only averaging 5.7 innings per start, which means the bullpen typically gets its work on nights when he’s pitching. Sure, you can point to his overall 5-2 record, but it is worth noting that Latos sports the highest average run support on the team, typically getting at least five runs behind him whenever he pitches.

The negatives are glaring – fans immediately want to revisit the trade in which the Reds sent four guys for a number 2 starter who is giving up five runs in nearly every outing.

So the main question is – what gives with this guy? A few things from the stat book may help shed some light on the situation.

First, Mat Latos does not fair well against lefties.

RH hit .212 against Mat.
LH hit .319.

Career numbers aren’t much different. RH hit .209 against him while LH hit .257. The difference here is huge. When you see a lineup like Cleveland that employs anywhere from 6-7 left hand swingers at any time, it’s not that hard to see why Latos was rocked; however, it is a little confusing when you consider the fact that just last week Latos went seven innings and only allowed two runs against this same Indians team.

His pitch efficiency does bother me. But when looking back at his time in San Diego, the numbers tell a story all too familiar. Last year, Latos failed to make it past six innings on eight different occasions – or, roughly 25% of his starts were mighty short. The part that’s really worth noting – seven those stats came in April, May and June. He made it past six innings every start after June, with the exception of one 5 inning outing in July.

Another interesting stat – the opponents batting average against Mat, in his short career by the month:

April: .277
May: .207
June .271

Pretty consistent thus far, no? Check out later in the season.

July: .197
August: .211
Sept/Oct: .259.

All of the evidence above suggest Mat’s best days are ahead. Let’s hope so – the aftermath of the Hamilton trade still haunts fans, especially considering Edinson Volquez‘s 3.70 ERA.

But don’t be fooled. PETCO is a pitcher’s sanctuary. If you dig a little deeper, you’ll notice the 21 more walks Volquez has over Latos. Also, for a guy with an ERA of nearly two runs lower than Latos’, Volquez sports a WHIP of 1.39 – Latos sitting at 1.406.

Walt Jocketty knew who he was getting. The Reds used their prospects to secure the most coveted talent in baseball – top of the rotation pitching. Mat Latos has it. According to the back of his baseball card, it just takes longer for his numbers to reflect it.