Miguel Tejada is denying a claim by the New York Times that he tipped pitches to opponents in 2001. "I've never tipped pitches," Tejada told MLB.com on Sunday. "I love this game and that's not the way I play it. I'm a proud player. I would never do such a thing. It's tough to get a hit. And for me to tip pitches to anybody, that's crazy. I play for my team." His comments came in response to an article published in the Times on Sunday stating that some teammates of Tejada's on 2001 A's suspected him of tipping pitches to fellow Dominicans on other clubs, particularly in lopsided games. "It really shocked me to the point of disbelief," Tim Hudson, then a young pitcher for the A's and now with the Braves, told the Times. "But I figured, if that's an issue where we need to clear the air a bit, then we need to clear the air a little bit. "That's the ultimate betrayal from a teammate. You hope it doesn't happen. You hope that your sense of team with your players comes before any sort of friendship with somebody on another team. Winning of the game should come first and foremost. Does it go on? I would hope that it doesn't. That's not to say that it hasn't happened. But who's to know?"