Dwight Gooden denied accusations by steroid peddler Kirk Radomski that Radomski twice took urine tests for him in the early 1990s. Radomski made the claim in an interview with ESPN’s “Outside the Lines” and in his new book “Bases Loaded,” due out this week.
“That never happened,” Gooden told The Post yesterday. “I don’t know what he’s talking about. I’ve made mistakes through the years, and I’ve admitted them, but that never happened. And the way the tests were administered, it couldn’t have happened. I’ve done enough wrong on my own, I don’t want to get blamed for something I didn’t do.”
Gooden has admitted his cocaine problems of the past. The former Mets ace was suspended for 28 days in 1987 and failed drug tests twice in 1994, but was insistent that Radomski never took a drug test for him. Radomski could not be reached for comment.
Gooden, who pitched a no-hitter with the Yankees in 1996, was married over the weekend to his longtime girlfriend, Monique, a high-school art teacher. It was at the wedding when Gooden first heard about the new accusations.
“I want to set the record straight,” Gooden said. “When I went back to Shea last year it really hit me how much the fans care for me, it still gives me goose bumps. I want to do the right thing for them and my family. I love the fans and I appreciate how much they care for me.”
“Dwight is a really good guy and has a good heart,” said Monique Gooden, who noted that Gooden attends Bridgeway Community Church in Columbia, Md., and that Pastor Dave Michener has been an inspiration to the family. “Without God, our family will not make it.”
This is a busy week in the Gooden household: His oldest son Dwight Jr. will release his first CD on Friday. “I’m proud of him,” Gooden said.
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Former Yankees outfielder David Justice yesterday denied allegations made by Radomski that he bought performance-enhancing drugs from him.
Justice was implicated in the Mitchell Report by Radomski, who told ESPN on Sunday that he sold Justice HGH. Radomski said he drove Justice to the airport after the 2000 World Series and handed Justice a box containing steroids and HGH.
Justice denied having ever met Radomski. “He has never been in a car with me,” Justice told ESPN. “He didn’t take me to the airport. He’s going to call me a liar and that’s his information? That’s a bald-faced lie.” -With Post wires