LAWSUITS COMING IN AGAINST “STARCAPS” MANUFACTURERS?

Chris Mortensen of ESPN reports that some of the players who are facing four-game suspensions for testing positive for a banned diuretic are contemplating legal action against the company that makes the supplement known as “StarCaps.” Per Mort, the contention will be that the StarCaps label doesn’t disclose that it contains Bumetanide, which in the recent past has been added to the list of banned substances. Indeed, the product page for StarCaps claims that the product is all-natural. Bumetanide apparently isn’t a naturally-occuring substance, but a man-made medication. In the past, we’ve been skeptical regarding claims by suspended players that they plan to sue supplement manufacturers. But that’s because, in the highest-profile case we can recall, the player (Shawne Merriman) claimed that he no longer had the container of the supplement that allegedly was spiked with the steroid Nandrolene, and he refused to identify the name of the supplement. More than two years later, Merriman still hasn’t sued. Which likely means that he never will. In this case, if an analysis of StarCaps reveals that it contains Bumentanide, there could be trouble for the manufacturer. If it doesn’t, the folks who are pointing a finger at StarCaps (and we’re just the messenger here) could be asking for a defamation lawsuit. Meanwhile, the players could have avoided this problem by using only those supplements on the league’s approved list.