Fehr Backs Up Ephedra Warning

The Baltimore Orioles closed their clubhouse at Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Friday and gathered around players’ union head Don Fehr to hear his stark message: Stay away from ephedra.

Fehr personally backed up a one-page memo sent to all major leaguers this week by his office, warning them to “be extremely reluctant to use any products containing ephedra.”

The union cited action taken last week by the federal Department of Health and Human Services, which cautioned that users of ephedra-based products face “potentially serious risks.”

The visit of Fehr, making his annual tour of spring training camps, to Fort Lauderdale Stadium took on special significance. Steve Bechler, a 23-year-old Oriole pitching prospect, died of heatstroke on Feb. 17, and a Florida medical examiner linked the death to ephedra, an herbal supplement used by some athletes to lose weight.

“If that’s the cause of the guy’s death, then I think we need to stop using that, period,” Minnesota Twin star Torii Hunter said in Fort Myers.

Commissioner Bud Selig last week banned players with minor league contracts from using ephedra.

Baseball’s labor contract prohibits only illegal drugs and certain steroids. Fehr had said the union would await the yet-to-be-released toxicology report from Bechler’s autopsy before deciding whether to reevaluate its position, which is that players should be allowed to use any legal product.

Ephedra is available without prescriptions in diet supplements.

“If it isn’t good for a baseball player or any athlete to put it into his body, then it should be banned,” Pittsburgh shortstop Jack Wilson said.

But not all players agree.

“I use it. Every once in a while before a day game and you’re not feeling so good, you get a little energy,” Minnesota outfielder Dustan Mohr said. “I think unless they ban it no one’s really going to stop using it.”

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San Diego Padre slugger Phil Nevin dislocated his left shoulder during a 2-0 loss to the Chicago White Sox at Tucson.

The left fielder was injured while making a diving catch of Brian Daubach’s sacrifice fly in the fourth inning. He is out indefinitely.

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New York Met pitcher Pedro Astacio will probably begin the season on the disabled list because of a sore right shoulder. .... Ken Griffey Jr. had three homers, including a grand slam, and six RBIs to lead the Cincinnati Reds over the Pittsburgh Pirates, 11-5, at Bradenton, Fla.... Randy Johnson struck out six in four innings and Luis Gonzalez hit his second homer of the spring in Arizona’s 8-0 win over the Chicago Cubs at Mesa, Ariz.... Albert Pujols homered twice and drove in five runs in St. Louis’ 13-10 win over Florida at Jupiter, Fla. Cardinal center fielder Jim Edmonds pulled a calf muscle in the game and will miss at least two weeks.