by Ken Rosenthal

Updated: July 2, 2008, 11:38 AM EST 23 comments

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On the morning of Game 7 of last year's American League Championship Series between the Red Sox and Indians, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that Indians right-hander Paul Byrd bought nearly $25,000 of human growth hormone and syringes between Aug. 2002 and Jan. 2005.

"At this time in my life I do not regret using HGH," says Indians pitcher Paul Byrd. (Tony DEJAK / Getty Images)

Byrd, who was available to pitch in relief that night, did not deny the story, but said that he had a legitimate explanation for using HGH — three doctors had diagnosed him as suffering from adult growth-hormone deficiency.

Byrd, 37, also said that he had been diagnosed with a tumor on his pituitary gland at the base of his brain, a condition that may have contributed to his deficiency, doctors told him.

However, Byrd, said that he took HGH for his hormone deficiency, not the tumor — a statement that led to confusion in subsequent news reports as well as Major League Baseball's Mitchell Report.

The initial Chronicle report said that Byrd purchased HGH from the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center, an anti-aging clinic in Florida that became a focus of law enforcement for illegally distributing performance-enhancing drugs. In March, three men affiliated with the clinic pleaded guilty to drug-related charges in Albany County (N.Y.) District Court.

Byrd, as part of an agreement between MLB and the players' union in April, avoided discipline for using performance-enhancing drugs, along with all of the other current and former players named in the Mitchell Report. And now, in his new book, "Free Byrd," Byrd attempts to set the record straight.

In an interview with FOXSports.com, Byrd spoke about his reasons for using HGH, the emotions he experienced when the Chronicle story was released and the portrayal of him in the Mitchell report that he says is inaccurate. Byrd answered one question simply by referring to a passage in his book. That instance is noted below.

All of Byrd's proceeds from the sale of his book will be donated to Byrdhouse Ministries, which benefits various Christian children's and youth ministries in the United States and abroad, including orphanages and inner-city programs.

Q: Why did you use HGH?

A: I had lost a lot of weight. I was struggling with chronic fatigue syndrome, sudden weight loss. I don't think it was depression. But I struggled strength-wise to get out of bed. There was some weird stuff going on. They found something and said, "Hey, you need to get your hormones checked." I thought that was only for women going through menopause. I didn't know a guy in his 30s could struggle with that.

Q: How often, if ever, did you use it to treat baseball-related injuries — for example, after you underwent Tommy John surgery in 2003?

A: I never used it to treat baseball-related injuries

Q: What is the status of the tumor on your pituitary gland?

A: As of Spring Training 2008, I still have a pituitary tumor.

Q: Have you stopped taking HGH? If so, why did you stop? How much was baseball's ban of the substance in January 2005 a factor?

A: Yes. I have stopped taking HGH. While in the middle of pursuing the necessary steps for a TUE (Therapeutic Use Exemption) an endocrinologist did an MRI and discovered a pituitary tumor. Although this endocrinologist was unsure whether or not I had a deficiency, he explained to me that he could not ethically prescribe HGH even if I was deficient. He said this because he personally felt it could grow the tumor.

He thought this was a possibility because he didn't believe that there were enough case studies done on people taking HGH that had pituitary tumors. Therefore, he wanted to err on the side of caution. Because I am not a doctor, I agreed and dropped pursuing a TUE for HGH.

I am still trying to find out how the Mitchell Report listed me as having taken HGH to treat a pituitary tumor. The report states, "Byrd admitted that he had been taking human growth hormone but said that he had been using it to treat a pituitary tumor on his pituitary gland." This was absolutely incorrect! I never once said or tried to imply that I began taking HGH for this reason. This statement still baffles me and in my opinion disconnected much of my story.

Q: To what extent was Major League Baseball aware of your use of HGH? (Shortly after the Chronicle story broke, Byrd told FOXSports.com, "The Indians, my coaches and MLB have known that I have had a pituitary gland issue for some time." Rob Manfred, an executive vice-president for baseball, denied that MLB had given Byrd or any other player a TUE for HGH).

A: Major League Baseball was unaware of my HGH usage before they required a player to file for a TUE. If I understand correctly, the reason MLB denied knowing anything about me having a pituitary gland issue or turning in paperwork is because reporters asked them if I had alerted them concerning the years that ranged from 2002 to the beginning of 2005 or my time with Palm Beach Rejuvenation. Although I had talked with a team doctor and trainer during this time, I kept this matter private from MLB officials. So it is my understanding that they answered the reporters' questions correctly.

Q: Why did you purchase HGH from the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center and not some other outlet?

A: In his book, Byrd writes, "I was advised to start supplementing with growth hormone. I did so in normal amounts, which resulted in my ability to function like a normal person. After a short time, and for reasons unknown to me, that doctor transferred my records to Palm Beach Rejuvenation, a place where I did medical interviews over the phone and took regular blood tests (on the road) to keep my levels regulated."

Q: The San Francisco Chronicle reported that two of your prescriptions were written by a Florida dentist rather than say, an endicrinologist. How did that happen?

A: I was unaware that apparently on two occasions a dentist was conversing with me over the phone and not a doctor. Again, I did my consults and blood tests on the road away from the facility. Palm Beach Rejuvenation never did anything that was suspicious to me and prior to working with MLB's Drug Program, I didn't understand that it may have been best to see an endocrinologist.

Q: What kind of emotions did you go through when the Chronicle story broke on the day of Game 7 of the ALCS?

A: I was very emotional. I had to stop eating my breakfast because my name was being thrown around on all the sports channels pulling from a story that the San Francisco Chronicle wrote, which deeply bothered me. I felt the story from the Chronicle was positioned to create headlines at the expense of my reputation. I believe this was ill-gotten gain.

Q: What was it like when you spoke to your teammates that night?

A: It was very tough. I am an emotional person and even though I felt I handled my hormone usage appropriately, I still apologized for the story being any sort of distraction to us on such an important night.

Q: How much do you believe your admission damaged your reputation?

A: I do believe that it damaged my reputation to some extent. I am a devout Christian and although I am not perfect, I do try to play by the rules. I do enjoy talking to kids, speaking at youth groups and when I sign autographs for fans most of the time I will write a Bible verse after my name. I didn't want any percentage of the above mentioned to think that I was a big fake or spiritual con artist who cheated and hid behind God.

Q: How much — if at all — do you regret using HGH?

A: At this time in my life I do not regret using HGH. It really helped me health-wise and personally with my marriage. As far as the baseball field goes, I was able to throw bullpens and recover better (like a normal pitcher) but I have recently learned by talking to doctors that my recovery could have been a by-product of the hormone allowing me to get sleep so I am working on that now through different means. What I don't miss about HGH — the reoccurring temptation to take more than the prescribed dose and possibly increase the velocity of my fastball.