Ortiz and Steroids: Follow Manny's Example

There are two kinds of reputation crises -- the ones you know are coming and the ones that blind-side you. The "expected" crisis should really be more a matter of issues management than crisis management. Make a plan to do the right thing. Explain yourself. Make amends. Get ahead of it before you get crushed under the weight.

Did Red Sox slugger David "Big Papi" Ortiz know he would be outed for performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) at some point before the New York Times, citing legal sources, broke the news today? There's already speculation here in Boston that his mediocre performance early this season was the result of being distracted with the knowledge that this day of reckoning was coming.

One of the first things you have to do in a crisis is to quickly take stock of the challenge to your track record on the issue at hand. What have you said and what have you done that has some relevance to this challenge to your reputation.

Flashback to spring training when Ortiz, on camera, told the media: "I think you clean up the game by the testing... You test positive, you are going to be out. Serious and period. Ban them for the whole year." A few years back, he told a group of Boston high school students: "I'm drug free. I never used drugs," and exhorted them to do likewise.

What do you do, if you're Big Papi, and those kinds of clips are playing in an endless loop everywhere you turn (especially in New York, the media center of the universe and home to the New York Yankees)? "No comment" is a weak holding statement. It buys you a couple of hours to compose yourself, but that's about it.

Ironically, the best crisis communications lesson for Big Papi comes from his ex-slugging partner, Manny Ramirez. It would be hard to find two guys with much different reputations. With the Red Sox, Manny played by his own rules; kept to himself; and, didn't care much about pleasing the Boston sports media. Ortiz is a media favorite. He is an idol to fans, a role model to young people, and leads a charity that helps kids in the Dominican Republic and New England who are suffering from medical problems.

Back in May, when it was Manny's turn to get outed for PED use during the 2003 season, he didn't waste much time: Supported by good counsel, he pointed out the number of drugs tests he had passed; made it clear the "personal" drug he took wasn't a steroid; seemed apologetic; and, stayed under the radar for a 50-game suspension. When he got back in the Dodgers' line-up, he started ripping the cover off the ball again.

Ramirez's handling of the crisis should be the baseline for Ortiz. But Big Papi's reputation is bigger and better. As a consequence, he is going to have to apologize a lot more.

~ by Ed Cafasso, Managing Director