Is any publicity good publicity? That probably isn’t the case with the St. Louis radio station that now is regretting hiring Jack Clark.
Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports the fallout has begun from Clark’s allegations that Albert Pujols used steroids.
Former Cardinals icon Albert Pujols said late Friday that he plans to sue former Cardinal Jack Clark, as well as those connected with the St. Louis radio station on which he appears, for Clark’s on-air steroids allegations about Pujols.
Then shortly after midnight Saturday morning, the company that has put Clark and co-host Kevin Slaten on the air abruptly announced they will not be returning — after just seven shows.
At least twice in the first week of a program that made its debut Aug. 1, Clark said that former Pujols trainer Chris Mihlfeld told him in 2000 that he “shot him up’’ with steroids. Both were working in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ organization at the time. Clark also has made other steroids allegations about Pujols, attributing them to comments Mihlfeld had made to him more than a decade ago.
Pujols’ statement:
“I’ve said time and time again that I would never take, or even consider taking, anything illegal,’’ Pujols said. “I’ve been tested hundreds of times throughout my career and never once have I tested positive. It is irresponsible and reckless for Jack Clark to have falsely accused me of using PEDs. My faith in Jesus Christ, and my respect for this game are too important to me. I would never be able to look my wife or kids in the eye if I had done what this man is accusing me of.
“I know people are tired of athletes saying they are innocent, asking for the public to believe in them, only to have their sins exposed later down the road. But I am not one of those athletes, and I will not stand to have my name and my family’s name, dragged through the mud. I am currently in the process of taking legal action against Jack Clark and his employers at WGNU (920 AM).
“I am going to send a message that you cannot act in a reckless manner, like they have, and get away with it. If I have to be the athlete to carry the torch and pave the way for other innocent players to see that you can do something about it, I am proud to be that person.
“I have five young children and I take being a role model very seriously. The last thing I want is for the fans, and especially the kids out there, to question my reputation and character.”
Clark is about to find out there is a big difference between saying something in private and saying it on a radio station. Probably not a good weekend for the person who hired him.