I am very pleased

"Under the Joint Drug Agreement, a player's successful fashion gucci belts 2012 new arrivals outlet beige/red challenge to a suspension normally would not have been made public," the players' union said in a statement. "The parties have agreed, given the particulars of this case, that an announcement is appropriate." Baseball's anti-doping procedures call for drug testing and the appeals process to be confidential, but Braun's positive test for a performance-enhancing drug was reported in December by ESPN, when the player himself issued a statement through a spokesman to ESPN that he expected to be "exonerated." However, baseball officials made it clear they disagreed with the decision. "As a part of our drug testing program, the Commissioner's Office and the Players Association agreed to a neutral third party review for instances that are under dispute," MLB executive vice president for labor relations Rob Manfred said in a statement posted on MLB.com. "While we have always respected that process, Major League Baseball vehemently disagrees with the decision rendered today by arbitrator Shyam Das." Das's vote gave Braun a 2-1 ruling by a panel of three arbitrators, MLB.com reported. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported that the appeal went in Braun's favor because of "some kind of technicality" in the test conducted last October. Newsday newspaper reported that Braun's urine sample, gucci outlet collected during the playoffs in October, wasn't shipped immediately after collection, which the player's advocates argued called the chain of custody into question. "I am very pleased and relieved by today's decision," Braun said in a statement. "It is the first step in restoring my good name and reputation. "We were able to get through this because I am innocent and the truth is on our side. We provided complete cooperation throughout, despite the highly unusual circumstances." On November 22, Braun had been named MVP of the National League for his role in helping the Milwaukee Brewers claim their first division title in almost 30 years. His outstanding season came after he inked a five-year contract extension through 2020 worth $105 million last April. Braun, who broke into the big leagues with the Brewers in 2007, was one of the young stars who was helping baseball move beyond the taint of drugs that has shadowed the exploits of such now-retired stars as slugger Barry Bonds and pitcher Roger Clemens. Asian investors were cautious even after U.S. stocks climbed following a report that said jobless aid applications fell to a four-year low helped. Offsetting the optimism was a European Commission forecast that the combined economies of the 17 nations that use the euro would shrink in 2012, raising concerns that austerity programs are holding back growth. Poor economic growth in Europe would also hurt demand for goods manufactured in Asia. "When Europe enters into a recession, it will hurt exporting economies in Asia like China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan. And so, it will be reflected in the economic growth for these countries and eventually in the earnings of the blue chip stocks," said Francis Lun, managing director at investment company Lyncean Holdings. "So that's why investors are quite cautious now. The market has reached a peak and now it's ready to consolidate." Another report said German business confidence rose in February for a fourth straight month, but some analysts noted that the report also highlighted disparities in growth across Europe. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average finished 0.4 percent higher at 12,984.69 and the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 0.4 percent to close at 1,363.46. The Nasdaq composite index climbed 0.8 percent to 2,956.98. Fears over the price of crude oil — driven higher by gucci hats 2012 online tensions over Iran and the weakening dollar — were keeping Asian markets in check because of worries it could crimp the U.S. economic recovery.