Former pitcher Eric Gagne: ’80 percent of the Dodgers’ were using PEDs

Eric Gagne

Former major league pitcher Eric Gagne — who had a memorably bad and brief tenure with the Red Sox in 2007 — claims in his forthcoming biography that a large majority of his teammates on the Dodgers in the early 2000s were using performance-enhancing drugs.

“I was intimately aware of the clubhouse in which I lived,” he said in the book. “I would say that 80 percent of the Dodgers players were consuming them.”

Gagne, who won the 2003 Cy Young after converting all 55 of his save chances and posting a 1.20 ERA, publicly admitted using human growth hormones in 2010. In the book, “Game Over: The Story of Eric Gagne,” he explains that he used the drugs over a three-year period toward the end of his career.

“It was sufficient to ruin my health, tarnish my reputation and throw a shadow over the extraordinary performances of my career,” said Gagne, who set a major league record with 84 consecutive saves.

Gagne pitched for the Dodgers from 1999 until 2006. After elbow and back surgery limited his effectiveness, he joined the Rangers in 2007 and had a brief resurgence. He then was traded to the Red Sox at the trade deadline and struggled badly in Boston. In 20 games with the Sox, he had an ERA of 6.75 and went 2-2 with three blown saves. The Red Sox still managed to win the World Series that season.

Gagne last pitched in the majors for the Brewers in 2008. He signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers in 2010 but was released during spring training.

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