Is Dan Meyer Bitter? Ex-Reliever Rips Former Philadelphia Phillies Teammate Antonio Bastardo After Pitcher's Biogenesis Suspension
Former Major League pitcher Dan Meyer drew both controversy and praise when he called former Philadelphia Phillies teammate Antonio Bastardo an “ahole” on Twitter Monday after Bastardo beat him out of a roster spot in 2011.
Bastardo, 27, was one of 13 Major Leaguers suspended Monday in connection with the Biogenesis case -- baseball’s investigation into performance-enhancing drugs provided by Biogensis owner Tony Bosch.
Meyer, 32, was one of the Phillies reliever competing for a roster spot in spring training in 2011. One of those roster spots went to Bastardo while Meyer was cut from the team. Meyer is currently a free agent.
Meyer ignited a firestorm on Twitter by those who claimed he sounded bitter towards Bastardo after word of the Phillies reliever’s suspension was publicly announced.
But Meyer said he wasn’t bitter about the situation, and others retweeted the post to showcase what the damage performance-enhancing drugs can do to the careers of those who stay clean.
“Wow pep r getting personal. Just for the record. I had multiple chances to be successful n didn't do it. I can live with that. #thatsonme,” he wrote.
Meyer said he wasn’t arguing that he was a good enough reliever to land the job, but brought up the point about other capable players who might have missed out on a Major League opportunity due to a player who made it to the big leagues through performance-enhancing drugs.
“Never said I was good enough but what about the players that never got their chance? Their lives could have been completely different,” Meyer said.
Meyer also directed a tweet to Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones, but later said he was joking about the future Hall of Famer.
“Hey @RealCJ10 , just want to tell you I was clean when you were hitting lineás [sic] off me,” Meyer wrote. But then he prefaced the remarks by adding he was joking.
“Dude owned me,” he wrote, referring to Jones. “That was the joke.”
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