0 the first nfl official. a good chance she'll make it happen. much more than sport. i'll talk to you tomorrow night. that's all for tonight. anderson cooper starts right now. will alex rodriguez fess up or keep fighting. and america goes on high alert. the latest on how real the threat may be. a chilling look through the eyes of an assassin. lost track of how many he's murders. an american teen takes us inside the ruthless drug cartel he killed for starting at just 15 years old. we begin with the biggest forced doping story since lance armstrong. alex rodriguez, the highest paid number 5 on the all-time home run list signing autographs today. once denied using steroids then denied using them after 2003 now suspended for using them since then, accused of doping and having ties to a south florida anti-aging clinic biogenesis. a-rod drew a 211 game suspension without pay and today spoke to reporters. >> i'm fighting for my life. i have to defend myself. if i don't defend myself no one else will. >> the suspension takes affect thursday. he can play during his appeal. he's playing tonight in chicago. joining us in a bristol, connecticut, and the lead reporter on the story since its developed over the past few weeks. jason, a rough day for alex rodriguez and major league baseball? >> reporter: absolutely without question. we saw alex rodriguez, he was evasive in terms of answering specific questions. specifically whether or not he used performance-enhancing drugs. he's denied it before. asked about it again tonight. said he wasn't going to get into it and didn't want it to disrupt the process going on but he did talk about, anderson what this entire ordeal has been like for him. >> the last seven months has been a nightmare. it's been -- probably the worst time of my life, for sure. i am thrilled and humbled to have the opportunity to put on this uniform again. to play major league baseball again. >> well, as humble as she, major league baseball was very clear why they handed out a suspension releasing a statement spelling out the details saying the suspension is based on his use, rodriguez' use and possession of numerous forms of prohibited performance enhancing substances including testosterone and human growth hormone over the course of multiple years and that he attempted to cover up the violation, anderson and obstruct their investigation. rodriguez, once again, repeatedly said he did not use performance-enhancing drugs and wants everyone to "take a deep breath and have a time-out" so the ordeal can play itself out. >> t.j., a lot of people thought coming in to today he would be given an ultimatum, accept suspension or ban him for life. are you surprised that wasn't the case? >> not really, anderson. all along it wasn't clear that baseball really believed it could have a lifetime ban upheld by an arbitrator. whatever suspension they brought, unless alex rodriguez agreed to something ahead of time, it was headed to arbitration. he said he was going to fight it. an arbitrator new on the job. replacing the longtime arbitrator fired from major league baseball to take an unprecedented step. baseball hasn't had a case like this before. the longest suspension anybody had with a drug policy was 100 games. this more than doubles that. >> you've seen some of the evidence against a-rod. how strong is it, t.j.? >> reporter: well, when we saw it, it was compelling. my colleague mike fish and i from espn.com have been working on it since last summer. we obtained documents from the clinic. some written by tony bosch, the founder of the clinic hems. just that was pretty compelling but probably not enough to, for baseball to lower the kind of punishment they did. what they needed was more to corroborate the relationship. from all the sources we have spoken to, tony bosch provided far more than baseball expected. texts, e-mails, voice records, what they can prove was a long-standing relationship where bosch treated a-rod but, you know, individually, would go to his home to inject him and in addition which is what brings us this case you know, to the side of all the -- remember, there were 12 other suspensions announced today. all accepted by players. they said his efforts to obstruct this investigation. >> how great do you think are his chances at fighting the suspension based on what you've seen? >> well, i mean, you -- based on baseball's labor history. based on what we've seen of the evidence, based on how the rest has been described to us, maybe you would have some success in reducing it, but you've got a player who's 38 years old, at as he described in press conference, surgeries on both hip, on his knee. struggling to hit single a pitching recently trying to come back. even 100 game suspension. 150 games which would be massive. bring him close to 40 years old when trying to get back on the field. he's looking at the end of his career, even if he's successful in reducing it, seems like his best shot, he doesn't have much left. >> and then how do you think -- this changes the perception of him. reminded of your investigation into lance armstrong, denied doping for years before finally coming clean. do you think people will end up labeling rodriguez the same as armstrong? a liar and cheater? >> it's a different case. with lance, his level of believers was something else. people inspired by the story how he overcame cancer, to succeed the way he did. with a-rod, different. always a man without a country. he left seattle, went to texas with that huge contract. he never really fit in there. he went to the yankees, obviously, and he was never considered a real yankee. whatever that means. even with the 2009 world series. so it wasn't like he had this beloved fan base out there to begin with. then in 2009 he admits or confirms a report that he doped when he was younger. he said it was for a limited time. if anybody felt they could forgive him then, he's blown that up now. >> and to the point, he's been combative throughout this process. part of the press conference tonight, what was he like? >> well, he was really subdued. no other way to say it. i would not say he was combative. at least in this particular outing. he was not. seemed he was really holding back emotions. kept saying repeatedly that he would be able to say more at a later time. kept saying repeatedly that he didn't want to disrupt the appeal process and wanted that to play out. i also found interesting, anderson, the reaction outside here. to rodriguez. i heard you talking about the fans. you saw him sign some autographs before the game got underway here tonight, but the overwhelming majority of the fans out here tonight, anderson, say it's time for rodriguez to hang up his hat. >> t.j., if the suspensions are upheld, how much money is this going cost him? >> well, if it's entire 211 games he's looking at -- the number of, a number of factors that kick in. about $34 million. it's no small chunk of change. >> wow. there's an advantage, incentive for him -- on many level, incentive to get this whittled down? >> plenty incentive and incentive with the end of a suspension he serves to get back on the field. he's owed a total of close to $100 million from this massive contract he signed with the yankees. >> a lot of money on the table. t.j., jason, thank you. and digging deeper into the access athletes have with performance-enhancing drugs and have had for years. started as a bat boy for the new york mets, when federal agents showed up at his door in 2005, supplying to hundreds of athletes. he tells his story in a new book, "bases loaded." thanks for being here. what was your reaction to what happened today? >> no problem. it's typically rod's typical superstar mentality. fight, fight, fight and let the lawyers take care of it. >> fight because of the money? >> yes. definitely. because of the money and an ego. these guy, ego-driven. that's why they're good at what they do. >> how easy is it to get around testing? if you know -- talking before the show started. if you know your body and understand the testing. >> if you know your body, understand the reactions to your body, they have the money and access to doctors, it's not that difficult. if you really want to do something to give you that edge, it's out there. plenty of people that will help you. do routine bloodwork every day as you're in the off-season. learn your level and how fast it gets out of your system. >> they are doing routine blood work every day? >> yes. you have to monitor it every day and see how long it lasts in your body. the shelf life. the drug. hgh, they have no ideas about and, nfl has a problem. everyone has it, and it's a great -- it's something that helps your body recover. that's the main thing that these ballplayers want. >> it's reported that you actually helped major league baseball with this investigation. i don't know if you can say anything about it, what you did? >> yeah, well, me and major league baseball are never on the same page, but one of the investigators that i grew up with is now part of the team, and as, you know, courtesy of growing up in the bronx, he turned to me and i led him in the right directions. taught him what to look for, what not, how to approach things and it looks like it's working. >> when you watch a ball game now, can you, do you have a sense how many -- how widespread is this? >> it's got a lot, a lot better. since the '90s and early 2000s. the whole problem, growth hormone is a major factor that back in 2001 i started to change all of those guys back then using anabolics, the hgh itself. >> why were you encouraging them to go for hgh? >> healthier. not detectable. >> doesn't show up in tests? >> olympics and stuff, tested. it's hard. something that doesn't leave markers. i'm not a scientist, not a doctor, but i know so many people that have tested for drugs and never caught with it. it's just something that helps recuperation. when you add anabolics, you grow the muscle. >> that's the testosterone? >> yes. that's why the biogenesis was big. he used testosterone. peptides is huge. >> what are peptides? how is that different? >> a compound, a couple different compound they have of, say, growth hormones of testosterone and not the compound. it's missing a couple of things. you inject in your body it's supposed to fill in the markers and acts the same way. doesn't leave the testosterone. >> to really crack down on this, do you have to some somebody who comes forward? is testing enough or do you have to have somebody on the inside who comes forward? >> well, baseball's doing a good -- the reason baseball is where its at right now is the union finally and the players, which i applaud them, that they're coming forward saying, enough, now. and as long as the union doesn't get in the way of the testing, the testing program will work. and the game will be clean. will it ever be clean? no. because there's always the next guy, the next chemist finding things out. there's always going to be, but if the two work together. i mean the program they have should work a lot, lot better now because the union is not fighting as much. listen, there's some errors on testing and they did not fight. but blatant like this, 12 guys, didn't even fight it. >> what about others? the national football league? are they -- i did pieces for "60 minutes" on players using and it didn't seem like they were proactive in testing? >> no. and i've met some nfl play talked to players. their problem is growth hormone. they're huge, these guys. need recuperation playing only once a week. it gives them time and it works. i mean, they're trying -- these blood tests and stuff. i mean, i can't see it working. i don't understand it from a chemical, but as i'm talking to people and i've taken growth hormones. i know people that pass tests all the time on it. >> as i said, you were -- feds came knocking on your door. did you ever think you would get caught? >> when you -- >> did it seem kind of easy at the time? >> growing up the way i did, in the bronx. when you do something wrong, sooner or later, your time runs out. just a matter of time, and in a way i did, like -- when i wrote my book i said it was a comfort and relief. because it got so big for me. players were telling other players and other players telling other players. >> dealing with so many. >> my phone would never stop and i was hiding it from everyone. the only people who knew i was doing what i was doing were the players themselves. and i would never tell on another player. and i didn't tell my wife. i didn't tell anyone in my family. people were totally shocked. like a secret. finally when it came to light in a way, like a relief. >> interesting. kirk, i appreciate you being on. fascinating stuff. this were just about baseball or a celebrity with credibility problems it wouldn't be half the story it actually is. the rest what do deal with non-athletes and non-celebrities using the exact same drugs, longer lives, bigger muscles. how do they use it without the trouble the athletes get in? the answer is steroids. >> reporter: this is the body of a man who uses performance-enhancing drugs, virtually the same ones connected to lance armstrong. olympian marion jones and baseball player alex rodriguez. but this man is not a professional athlete. jeffrey is 74 with a rock, hard body and, he claims, a mental sharpness of a man half his age. >> everyone's going to age. i'm not against aging. i'm against getting old. >> reporter: and he claims no one has to, with daily, rigorous workouts, a strict low-carb diet and injections of testosterone and human growth hormone or hgh. >> what we use it for, to improve health. to slow and prevent disease and to improve quality of life. i like to think i'm kind of blazing a trail for the baby boomer generation. >> reporter: a journey that dr. life, a family physician, began years ago. this was him before exercise and supplements. this is him today. >> how does this 74-year-old doctor keep looking younger and younger as he ages? the answer is the elite health program. >> reporter: it's a company that runs a chain of clinics calling itself the nation's largest age management group. part of the exploding anti-aging industry relying in part on testosterone and hgh. last year the company reported they made $100 million in revenue. the anti-aging industry targets america's about 80 million baby boomers looking for any way to turn back the hands of tile. the food and drug administration regulates the use of hgh stressing the hormone is not an approved treatment for anti-aging. so how does the company not break any laws? by focusing on a natural loophole of sorts. the natural depletion of hormones as we age. >> we are all about correcting deficiencies and getting people up to a healthy level. >> reporter: he suffered from growth hormone deficiency one of the few reasons for taking hgh. he says patients go through a pituitary gland to meet fda regulations. they told him that was his problem, like all patient who is take the hormones, he says he is monitored and tested four times a year for his testosterone and hgh intake and now feels like he's 40. that comes with a hefty price tag. all this can cost up to $15,000 a year. cash only. >> my health restored. whatever it costs me, it's worth it. >> reporter: if you think this is too good to be true, you're not alone. many doctors agree. saying, sure, there may be short-term gain but there will be long-term cost. >> it's a fallacy to say that even in low doses that these drugs are not harmful. >> reporter: this doctor, a professor of medicine at boston university school of medicine would not talk specifically about the company but is a vocal critic of the anticipate aging movement. >> giving growth hormone in particular for anti-aging is quackery. >> reporter: he says there are no reputable studies saying hormones don't age, and it could cause high blood pressure and even trigger cancer. >> what do you say to the medical community who says you're just selling a bunch of vudu and this is potentially dangerous because it's so untested. >> we do not know what the long-term consequences are going to be with testosterone and hgh replacement therapy. >> reporter: what's wrong with just getting old? >> an argument a lot of doctors use. who wants to get old if you don't have to? >> reporter: if next year for some reason you get cancer, will you blame the supplements? >> no. i will not. >> reporter: he will continue to be the poster grandpa of a company and a movement that believes the riskier move is to turn away from this fountain of youth in dumbbells, diet and drugs. for cnn, las vegas. >> fascinating stuff. let us know what you think. up next, the threat behind the massive terror alert and whether it's a sign al qaeda is gaining strength yet again. the ugly aftermath of that deadly incident on california's venice beach. one killed, 15 hurt by car speeding down the boardwalk. 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