The 2009 Bucks County Reds

Sunday July 12th
Bucks County Reds vs Phelan Mortgage Mustangs
Liberty Bell Field
10:00AM

Players should arrive no later than 9AM

Rusthoven Suspended 15 games      May 31st, 2009
     The Bucks County Reds first baseman Dave Rusthoven was suspended by the Reds management today for an alledged drug violation, adding a further stamp to what will forever be known as the Steroids Era.
     "It's a dark day for baseball and certainly for this organization," Reds general manager Kris Sharp told the lone fan on the field at La Salle University. "This organization will never condone anything that isn't clean."
     Rusthoven said he did not take steroids and was given medication by a doctor that contained a banned substance just like his idol Manny Ramirez. A person familiar with the details of the suspension said Rusthoven used the female fertility drug HCG, or human chorionic gonadotropin. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the banned substance wasn't announced.
     "As tough as it is for us, it's pretty tough for Dave, too," Reds coach Joe Onorato said. "I know he's the one that might have done the wrong thing and nobody is trying to cover that up, but it's still something that I know he's sorry about."
     HCG is popular among steroid users because it can mitigate the side effects of ending a cycle of the drugs. The body may stop producing testosterone when users go off steroids, which can cause sperm counts to decrease and testicles to shrink. Which explains why Dave was asking to borrow “little Joe’s cup” earlier in the season.
     Rusthoven’s suspension was based not on a pre-season training urine test result but rather evidence obtained afterward, a second person familiar with the suspension said, speaking on condition of anonymity because those details were not released. The Reds had concluded the pre-season test was positive, but Rusthoven would have challenged those results because of "testing issues in the Liberty Bell Clubhouse bathroom."
     Ranked 1st on the career home run list with 13, Rusthoven became the most prominent baseball player to be penalized for potential drug use in the GPMABL. His ban comes three months after Alex Rodriguez admitted using steroids, and at a time when Barry Bonds is under federal indictment and Roger Clemens is being investigated by a federal grand jury to determine whether he lied when he told Congress he never used steroids or human growth hormone. And Miguel Tejada was sentenced in March to one year of probation for misleading Congress after pleading guilty in federal court to misleading Congress about the use of performance-enhancing drugs.
     "The mood was sad in the Reds clubhouse,.” Carter Schauf said, "You can't have someone who's as much of an impact player and personality as Rusthoven missing without it affecting people."
     Rusthoven was not mentioned in the Mitchell Report, MLB's official report on drug use, and there had not been whispers that he was among the sport's juiced players. With the lack of evidence and very little to go on, the REDS decided to take NO CHANCES and immediately following today's game gave Rusthoven his suspension.

Saturday, May 23rd
The Reds traveled to Hagerstown Maryland to play in the Reno Powell Memorial Day tournament for the fourth straight year.

2009 Memorial Day Tournament Roster

Tournament Schedule:

                Date           Time       Field                  Teams
                Saturday     12:30      North                Brunswick Orioles Loss 3-0
                Saturday       5:30      North                Virginia Cardinals Win 10-4
                Sunday         9:30      North                 Baltimore Bobcats Loss 8-7

The Reds went 1-2 , leading to an early exit from the tournament.

2009 Bucks County Reds Schedule