Ryan Zimmerman maintains his innocence.
The Nationals first baseman, who is suing Al Jazeera America for defamation, once again denied allegations of using performance-enhancing drugs during a 30-minute news conference on Tuesday. The allegation first came in a documentary released by Al Jazeera America in December.
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“It’s really, really hard to win these suits, but I think it’s my responsibility not only to clear my name, but if I do this and whether I win or lose on the defamation suit, whatever it is, even if it gets to a trial, I sort of felt a responsibility because I am able to fight it that maybe if this stops this from happening to just one person after me, then it’s worth it,” Zimmerman said, via the Washington Post.
In the Al Jazeera America documentary first aired on Dec. 27, an Indiana man named Charlie Sly said he provided PEDs to NFL and MLB players. Zimmerman and Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard became the first to sue Al Jazeera over the story published by the news organization that linked both athletes, among others, to the alleged use of human growth hormones. The MLB sluggers filed suits in U.S. District Court in Washington on Jan. 5.
“I don’t really think there’s much of a stronger action for me to take than saying: ‘Here you go. Come look at me legally,'” Zimmerman said. “A lot of people have said certain things when they’re accused of these but have never taken these actions. So by taking these actions, I’m basically letting them into all aspects of my life, unfortunately, that nobody should have access to but now they do. Whether that’s right or wrong, that’s for everyone else to decide. It’s one of those things where privacy is really not privacy anymore for me, and it’s unfortunate that I have to do that, but that’s the steps I’m willing to take to show people that I have nothing to hide.”
Zimmerman claimed he never heard of or met the people featured in the documentary and vowed that he has never even considered using PEDs.
“I’ve never done any of that,” Zimmerman said. “I’ve never thought about doing any of that. It’s a tough spot. You do everything the right way. You work. You think something like this will never happen, and then, for some reason, it does. We’re taking the right steps to ultimately clear my name, which is the most important part. Unfortunately, nowadays the public opinion is one of the things that matters the most. I trust that my teammates and the people that, I guess you can say, matter — not that some people don’t matter — the people who really know me, know the truth.”
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Less than a month after the documentary aired, MLB and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency coordinated an investigation into whether players named in the documentary received banned drugs. The NFL has also begun its own separate investigation.
In the meantime, Zimmerman will prepare to enter his 11th major league season with Washington. He holds a career batting average of .283 with 200 home runs and 783 RBIs.