RIPPED FUEL Death triggered Piazza to study use of ephedra

The catcher said baseball needs to study the use of painkillers in clubhouses.
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
NEW YORK -- In this month's issue of Playboy, Mike Piazza is quoted as saying, "Ripped Fuel is kind of cool," referring to a supplement that contains ephedra.
But Sunday, Piazza told the New York Daily News that he no longer takes the ephedra-based supplement, saying he was "freaked out" by the spring training death of Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler, which is believed to be related to the pitcher's use of Xenadrine RFA-1, an ephedra-based diet pill.
"Obviously that interview happened before [Bechler died]," Piazza said. "Once I heard about it, I was like, 'Whoa.' I stopped taking it. You've got to be careful."
Piazza also reiterated several other points he made in the magazine interview, including his feelings on baseball's new steroid-testing policy. Officials are singling out steroids, Piazza said, but are ignoring several other problems that are commonplace in big-league clubhouses. The overuse of anti-inflammatory medicine and painkillers could be just as detrimental, Piazza said.
"Look at [A.J.] Burnett," he said, referencing the Marlins pitcher who recently had elbow surgery that may sideline him until 2005. There was some question as to whether since-fired manager Jeff Torborg had overworked the hurler. "You could point to anything. Maybe someone will outlaw oysters, you know, if you eat them the night before a game. It's just selective. If you want to solve a problem, you've got to take it head on and be complete."
Poor pitching
Piazza also said that while some major leaguers may be guilty of taking steroids, a decrease in pitching quality has helped make today's hitters seem more powerful. He denied there is a widespread steroid problem in baseball.
"In the past couple of years a few guys have done amazing things, and because everybody lifts weights, people say it's steroids," Piazza said in the magazine. "But hitting isn't just strength. If it were, you would have Mr. Olympia contestants coming off the stage and hitting homers."
Sunday, he added: "What do you expect when there are so many young pitchers coming up so early?"
Drugs are also a concern away from the ballpark for Piazza. When he has the time, Piazza likes to socialize in the city, but is particularly careful about the potential for problems while at a bar or club. As the Daily News reported in 2001, Piazza's close friend and personal trainer, Mike Fox, committed suicide after ingesting GHB (known as the date-rape drug); that makes Piazza extra cautious.
"I'm careful when I go out. If somebody hands me an open beer, I say thanks and go get my own," he said in the magazine. "I've had guys say, 'What, my beer's not good enough for you?' I say, 'If you want to buy me a beer, let me see the guy open the bottle.' It's not an insult, it's just being smart."