Papelbon admits to using Toradol while with Red Sox
Philadelphia Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon admitted Saturday that he used Toradol -- a legal anti-inflammatory drug commonly used as a pain killer -- during his time with the Boston Red Sox between 2005 and 2011.
ESPN's Gordon Edes reported that Papelbon said that he and several other Red Sox players were regularly injected with the drug. Toradol isn't banned by Major League Baseball, but the drug has become controversial in sports because of its dangerous side effects.
Last season, Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz acknowledged that the drug may have contributed to the esophagitis that sidelined him for 20 games. Buchholz was hospitalized in intensive care and lost three or four pints of blood while dealing with the condition.
Papelbon hasn't suffered from any similar side effects, but he told ESPN that he hasn't had a Toradol shot since joining the Phillies prior to the 2011 season. During his physical with the team, Papelbon admitted to using the drug and was told he had to stop.
"They told me, 'We don't do that here.' That kind of surprised me," Papelbon told ESPN. "I haven't had a single Toradol shot since."
Toradol is legal in the MLB in other sports, but it was banned in England and other countries because of its potentially serious health risks. According to a New York Times article last April, a member of the medical staff of an MLB team said that the use of Toradol in baseball started about a decade ago and quickly soared in popularity. At one point, perhaps two or three of a team's five starting pitchers used Toradol regularly, the staff member said.
