Howard, Zimmerman Sue Over Al Jazeera Allegations

Ryan Howard of the Phillies and the Nationals’ Ryan Zimmerman each filed separate defamation lawsuits Tuesday against the Al Jazeera network over a documentary that alleged the two baseball players used performance enhancing drugs.

Howard filed suit in federal district court in Washington, D.C., as did Zimmerman. Both are represented by William Burck of the law firm Quinn Emanuel.

The documentary, titled “The Dark Side: Secrets of the Sports Dopers,” alleged that Howard and Zimmerman—among many other athletes, most notably Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning—received and used steroids, human growth hormone and other PEDs from the Guyer Institute in Indianapolis.

The main source of the information included in the documentary was Charlie Sly, an unpaid intern at the anti-aging clinic for three months in 2013. Sly later recanted his statements.

Howard denied the allegations through his legal representation, calling them “outright lies” before filing suit.

“Today I authorized my attorneys to file suit against Al Jazeera and its reporters,” Howard said in a statement. “Their irresponsible reporting forced me to take this action to protect my name and to fight back against the spreading of these lies. I will have no further comment, as the filing itself contains all I need to say.”

In a statement released Tuesday night, Zimmerman said “I felt it was necessary to file this suit to restore my reputation and to hold Al Jazeera accountable for its actions.”