Quote:NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Yankees (news) slugger Gary Sheffield (news) says he unknowingly used an illegal steroid obtained from BALCO during the 2002 season, Major League Baseball's official Web Site said Tuesday quoting a magazine article.



In a Sports Illustrated article which will hit the news stands Wednesday, Sheffield says he used a steroid known as "the cream" on an injured knee but was unaware it was illegal.


Quoting from federal grand jury testimony provided during an investigation last year into the illegal sale and distribution of steroids by BALCO, a San Francisco-area nutritional laboratory, Sheffield said the cream "was like a cortisone to heal these wounds.


"I rubbed it on every night and it helped me. It was like you could go to a store and find something like that. That's what was in my thoughts," Sheffield told Sports Illustrated.


"I put it on my legs and thought nothing of it. I kept it in my locker."


In the article, Sheffield said San Francisco Giants (news) slugger Barry Bonds (news) introduced him to BALCO president Victor Conte.


Sheffield said he received vitamins from BALCO through Greg Anderson, Bonds's former personal trainer, who, along with Conte, faces charges of conspiring to distribute performance-enhancing drugs.


"He (Bonds) said, 'I got guys here, they can get your urine and blood and prescribe a vitamin specifically for your blood type and what your body needs'," Sheffield said. "And that's what I did."


Contacted by CBC radio, Conte's lawyer Robert Holley said: "BALCO provided Gary Sheffield with no illegal substances and the check BALCO received from Sheffield was for legal nutritional supplements."

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