Screw Selig and the rest of the mainstream media! We all know he is guilty, but the way they have demonized him leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Some of the so called baseball columnists and writers,have protrayed ARod, as Osama Bin Laden to the game. They overlook, all the other transgressions that players and management have been guilty over the years.
Of course, getting in bed with Bosch, adds a whole separate stink to the affair. The last thing that I have to say about the whole Affaire de Biogenisis, that" whomever has not sinned, cast the first stone"!
So everyone, except Arod, cut the deal for 50 games. I agree with Morosi. Although I'd rather Alex be run over by a bus than rejoin the Yankees, what exactly did he do that Melky and Braun didn't do? And I still think that this is Bud Zelig's attempt to somehow rewrite his own history regarding PED use in the 90's.
[3] Yes, though I would add: this is Selig trying to make sure that A-Rod does not pass Bonds - or Hank Aaron. This is Selig "making up" for "doing nothing" about Bonds (and McGwire, and Sosa).
It's all about the damn home run record. And that is sad.
[4] I don't buy the home run record as Selig's motivation for one minute. Alex has just about no chance of breaking that record. Selig is punishing Alex harshly because 1) he got away with cheating once and then, proceeded to blatantly cheat again, 2) he encouraged a slew of players to cheat with him, and 3) he tried to buy his way out of trouble and lied to Bud's investigators about it all.
[6] I also read that Selig was incensed when he heard ARod saying that he was going to fight this all the way and not make a deal while his lawyers were in fact making a deal. Cashman was right when he said "Alex should shut the F... up" He brought this on himself. I think what also sticks in Selig's craw is that Alex had to admit he did steroids in the past although he was not punished. Not only did he do it again, but he obstructed the investigation and made these ridiculous comments to the press. The Yanks could use him this year, but obviously they would rather be rid of him. His pointing out that the Yanks benefit from this and making it seem like MLB is in cahoots is pretty ridiculous. Every other team would like the Yanks to pay the max under the luxury tax. Nobody is doing them any favors especially as the lifetime ban appears to be off the table now.
On a separate note: This team of old men is breaking down as many predicted they would do last year. They are turning back into a pumpkin right in front of our eyes. CC's decline is perhaps the most disturbing. Jeter, ARod and Andy you could see they were nearing the end.
I hope the Yanks pull out a miracle and return to the playoffs for Mo.
[6] Happy to admit I'm wrong. But here is what doesn't add up for me, and leads me to believe this is about the home run record.
BTW, I happen to think A-Rod wouldn't do it even if he did play the rest of this year and the next 4. I don't think Bud cares that his chances are low.
So far as we know, A-Rod has never failed an official test. The 2003 survey testing was supposed to be treated as anonymous, and so far as I am aware, no other major league has suffered a penalty for having failed that test.
Manny allegedly failed the survey testing, too. He then failed not one but two drug tests - and for that, he received a 50 game suspension and then a 100 game suspension. So clearly Manny "got away with cheating once and then, proceeded to blatantly cheat again" - indeed twice more! Yet he received the standard suspensions, nothing else.
The same is true for Ryan Braun, but he received merely 15 extra games of suspension, not 161.
Melky tried to set up a fake website to clear his name and also initially lied to the MLB investigators about this. So clearly Melky "tried to buy his way out of trouble and lied to Bud's investigators about it all." and yet Melky received just a standard 50 game suspension.
Finally, "he encouraged a slew of players to cheat with him," but we don't know that. We know that the source of this accusation is a guy who impersonated a doctor and is potentially under federal investigation, and who struck a deal with MLB, from which he benefited financially, and from which he will receive further benefits (MLB will "put in a good word with the feds" on his behalf). Let's say this evidence is credible; it still doesn't pass the smell test. Other players chose to cheat, because A-Rod said they should? And A-Rod gets punished for that?
Logically, it doesn't add up to me. That means there must be something else behind it, and the only thing I can figure is that damned home run record.
I don't think what A-effing-Rod did was sufficiently worse than the other suspended players. Certainly not enough to justify a penalty 4 times greater than anybody else.
While I'm a Yankee fans who is happy to see A-effing-Rod out of pinstripes, it strikes me as terribly unfair and ill-balanced for him to receive such a markedly more stringent penalty.
Yes, it is legit to punish someone for recruiting others to take PEDs. And the fact that none of the other players are appealing should tell you all you need to know about the credibility of the info MLB has.
The real question is, Why is ARod appealing? To show he can still play, I suppose. And to have one more shot at the postseason. Any other theories?
[13] Arod has about $35M reasons to appeal, not to mention the fact that MLB has ignored due process and turned this into a witch hunt.
I'd imagine the other 12 suspended have fully conversed with the MLBPA, their lawyers, etc. and decided that keeping their mouths shut and taking the 50 games is the best course of action. Particularly for the ones in the pennant race who risk missing the playoffs if they appealed and lost.
From Jack Curry: "With PA chief Michael Weiner saying the verdict on ARod's appeal won't come until Nov-Dec, he could play rest of season with Yankees."
So, that's a wrinkle. But it says here Alex gets injured in two weeks or less and goes on the DL.
Normally, I shy away from conspiracy theories. But it occurs to me that all the changes made to the luxury tax during the last (few) CBA bargaining rounds have been punitive to the Yankees - the changes were intended explicitly to reign in the club's payroll spending.
So whatever else happens, it seems like the team will save upwards of $25 million next year, making it a lot easier to get under their intended threshold, at just the right time. Obviously the Commissioner's office understands this effect. How does anyone else feel about Selig's reaction to this? Is it just an unavoidable effect in his eyes? Did it come up in discussions between the Steinbrenner brothers and Selig? And if it did, did it have any effect on Selig's deliberations?
“We are in full support of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. We also recognize and respect the appeals process. Until the process under the Drug Program is complete, we will have no comment. We are confident that the process outlined in the Drug Program will result in the appropriate resolution of this matter. In the meantime, the Yankees remain focused on playing baseball.
However, we are compelled to address certain reckless and false allegations concerning the Yankees’ role in this matter. The New York Yankees in no way instituted and/or assisted MLB in the direction of this investigation; or used the investigation as an attempt to avoid its responsibilities under a player contract; or did its medical staff fail to provide the appropriate standard of care to Alex Rodriguez.
Separately, we are disappointed with the news today of the suspension of Francisco Cervelli. It’s clear that he used bad judgment.”"
For a press release of so few words, that one says a lot. I especially like the change in tone from "please don't ask the players, coaches, etc. any questions" in paragraph 1 to "we are legally covering our asses, or trying to" in paragraph 2 to "BTW, Cervelli sure did something stupid, huh?" in paragraph 3.
The IP attorney in me is most interested in the part of all these proceedings that seems to get the least amount of coverage: all this stuff is supposed to be kept confidential:
"Lastly, I want to close by stating our profound disappointment in the way individuals granted access to private and privileged information felt compelled to share that information publicly. The manner in which confidential information was so freely exchanged is not only a threat to the success and credibility of our jointly administered program; it calls into question the level of trust required to administer such a program. It is our view that when the bargaining parties hold their annual review of the program, we must revisit the JDA’s confidentiality provisions and consider implementing stricter rules for any breach by any individual involved in the process."
[18] Well, there is Bizarro World where MLB owners happily give up millions of dollars from their pockets because they love the Yankees.
[21] Wait, you are a lawyer and you don't understand why Alex is being punished for encouraging other players to cheat and break MLB rules? It is obvious that Alex is accused of forming a conspiracy with Bosch to recruit MLB clients.
Btw, I am not debating the validity of the leaked info of wrong doing because that acceptance of the penalties by all the other players tells me that MLB does have strong evidence against all of them. I expect tons more to get leaked when he appeals.
From David Cornwell
“It is regrettable that the Commissioner’s office has taken this unprecedented action. Major League Baseball has gone well beyond the authority granted to it in its Joint Drug Agreement and the Basic Agreement. Consequently, we will appeal the discipline and pursue all legal remedies available to Alex."
I don't know what the Drug Agreement or Basic Agreement say, so I cannot possibly say whether Bud went "well beyond" his authority. But, based on the whole Pete Rose thing - I mean, assuming a lifetime ban for gambling was a valid exercise of the Commissioner's authority - I don't understand the argument that a 200+ game suspension for obstructing MLB's investigation, recruiting players to roid, and repeatedly roiding himself is beyond Bud's authority.
Does anyone have a better understanding of this claim?
It has been a nightmare for him? He is humbled to put back on this uniform again? Is he trying not to cry? I am holding back all the cuss words I want to throw at this guy.
Then there was Girardi saying that the young guys look up to Alex? No wonder so many of them got into PEDs. Time to keep him away from the younger players.
Ha! Alex does not want to admit his PED use yet again. He does know MLB's motivation? This is guy is a sociopath, he really is.
[30] Can't Cervelli serve his suspension on the DL? That's what Edinson Volquez did when he got busted. He was on the DL, and that time counted. Really not fair, IMO, since he was still allowed to use the team facilities and even play in rehab games. Though he wasn't paid, so there's that.
It was the same with Manny Ramirez when he got suspended. He was allowed to play in rehab games while suspended.
tar. wait two weeks, feather.
Screw Selig and the rest of the mainstream media! We all know he is guilty, but the way they have demonized him leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Some of the so called baseball columnists and writers,have protrayed ARod, as Osama Bin Laden to the game. They overlook, all the other transgressions that players and management have been guilty over the years.
Of course, getting in bed with Bosch, adds a whole separate stink to the affair. The last thing that I have to say about the whole Affaire de Biogenisis, that" whomever has not sinned, cast the first stone"!
So everyone, except Arod, cut the deal for 50 games. I agree with Morosi. Although I'd rather Alex be run over by a bus than rejoin the Yankees, what exactly did he do that Melky and Braun didn't do? And I still think that this is Bud Zelig's attempt to somehow rewrite his own history regarding PED use in the 90's.
[3] Yes, though I would add: this is Selig trying to make sure that A-Rod does not pass Bonds - or Hank Aaron. This is Selig "making up" for "doing nothing" about Bonds (and McGwire, and Sosa).
It's all about the damn home run record. And that is sad.
Looking at those names, I am surprised that Robinson Cano is not there. He is one of Melky's best friends and Alex is his "big brother mentor."
[2] Whack! I swear, every time someone uses that biblical quote to excuse cheating and other crimes, I want to throw stones at them.
[4] I don't buy the home run record as Selig's motivation for one minute. Alex has just about no chance of breaking that record. Selig is punishing Alex harshly because 1) he got away with cheating once and then, proceeded to blatantly cheat again, 2) he encouraged a slew of players to cheat with him, and 3) he tried to buy his way out of trouble and lied to Bud's investigators about it all.
6) Agree.
Bud is just trying to restore Mickey Mantle to his rightful place on the home run list. For that alone he should be in the HOF.
[6] I also read that Selig was incensed when he heard ARod saying that he was going to fight this all the way and not make a deal while his lawyers were in fact making a deal. Cashman was right when he said "Alex should shut the F... up" He brought this on himself. I think what also sticks in Selig's craw is that Alex had to admit he did steroids in the past although he was not punished. Not only did he do it again, but he obstructed the investigation and made these ridiculous comments to the press. The Yanks could use him this year, but obviously they would rather be rid of him. His pointing out that the Yanks benefit from this and making it seem like MLB is in cahoots is pretty ridiculous. Every other team would like the Yanks to pay the max under the luxury tax. Nobody is doing them any favors especially as the lifetime ban appears to be off the table now.
On a separate note: This team of old men is breaking down as many predicted they would do last year. They are turning back into a pumpkin right in front of our eyes. CC's decline is perhaps the most disturbing. Jeter, ARod and Andy you could see they were nearing the end.
I hope the Yanks pull out a miracle and return to the playoffs for Mo.
http://deadspin.com/alex-rodriguez-suspended-through-2014-1031087174
[6] Happy to admit I'm wrong. But here is what doesn't add up for me, and leads me to believe this is about the home run record.
BTW, I happen to think A-Rod wouldn't do it even if he did play the rest of this year and the next 4. I don't think Bud cares that his chances are low.
So far as we know, A-Rod has never failed an official test. The 2003 survey testing was supposed to be treated as anonymous, and so far as I am aware, no other major league has suffered a penalty for having failed that test.
Manny allegedly failed the survey testing, too. He then failed not one but two drug tests - and for that, he received a 50 game suspension and then a 100 game suspension. So clearly Manny "got away with cheating once and then, proceeded to blatantly cheat again" - indeed twice more! Yet he received the standard suspensions, nothing else.
The same is true for Ryan Braun, but he received merely 15 extra games of suspension, not 161.
Melky tried to set up a fake website to clear his name and also initially lied to the MLB investigators about this. So clearly Melky "tried to buy his way out of trouble and lied to Bud's investigators about it all." and yet Melky received just a standard 50 game suspension.
Finally, "he encouraged a slew of players to cheat with him," but we don't know that. We know that the source of this accusation is a guy who impersonated a doctor and is potentially under federal investigation, and who struck a deal with MLB, from which he benefited financially, and from which he will receive further benefits (MLB will "put in a good word with the feds" on his behalf). Let's say this evidence is credible; it still doesn't pass the smell test. Other players chose to cheat, because A-Rod said they should? And A-Rod gets punished for that?
Logically, it doesn't add up to me. That means there must be something else behind it, and the only thing I can figure is that damned home run record.
Guess I'll offer my two cents.
I don't think what A-effing-Rod did was sufficiently worse than the other suspended players. Certainly not enough to justify a penalty 4 times greater than anybody else.
While I'm a Yankee fans who is happy to see A-effing-Rod out of pinstripes, it strikes me as terribly unfair and ill-balanced for him to receive such a markedly more stringent penalty.
Yes, it is legit to punish someone for recruiting others to take PEDs. And the fact that none of the other players are appealing should tell you all you need to know about the credibility of the info MLB has.
The real question is, Why is ARod appealing? To show he can still play, I suppose. And to have one more shot at the postseason. Any other theories?
Oh, and by the way, I assume he'll get boo'ed tonight in Chicago....what kind of welcome will he get at NYS?
Probably more boos, unless he hits 3 homers a day on the trip home.
[13] Arod has about $35M reasons to appeal, not to mention the fact that MLB has ignored due process and turned this into a witch hunt.
I'd imagine the other 12 suspended have fully conversed with the MLBPA, their lawyers, etc. and decided that keeping their mouths shut and taking the 50 games is the best course of action. Particularly for the ones in the pennant race who risk missing the playoffs if they appealed and lost.
How did MLB ignore due process? Isn't this process what MLB and MLBPA agreed to?
From Jack Curry: "With PA chief Michael Weiner saying the verdict on ARod's appeal won't come until Nov-Dec, he could play rest of season with Yankees."
So, that's a wrinkle. But it says here Alex gets injured in two weeks or less and goes on the DL.
Normally, I shy away from conspiracy theories. But it occurs to me that all the changes made to the luxury tax during the last (few) CBA bargaining rounds have been punitive to the Yankees - the changes were intended explicitly to reign in the club's payroll spending.
So whatever else happens, it seems like the team will save upwards of $25 million next year, making it a lot easier to get under their intended threshold, at just the right time. Obviously the Commissioner's office understands this effect. How does anyone else feel about Selig's reaction to this? Is it just an unavoidable effect in his eyes? Did it come up in discussions between the Steinbrenner brothers and Selig? And if it did, did it have any effect on Selig's deliberations?
"STATEMENT FROM THE NEW YORK YANKEES
“We are in full support of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. We also recognize and respect the appeals process. Until the process under the Drug Program is complete, we will have no comment. We are confident that the process outlined in the Drug Program will result in the appropriate resolution of this matter. In the meantime, the Yankees remain focused on playing baseball.
However, we are compelled to address certain reckless and false allegations concerning the Yankees’ role in this matter. The New York Yankees in no way instituted and/or assisted MLB in the direction of this investigation; or used the investigation as an attempt to avoid its responsibilities under a player contract; or did its medical staff fail to provide the appropriate standard of care to Alex Rodriguez.
Separately, we are disappointed with the news today of the suspension of Francisco Cervelli. It’s clear that he used bad judgment.”"
For a press release of so few words, that one says a lot. I especially like the change in tone from "please don't ask the players, coaches, etc. any questions" in paragraph 1 to "we are legally covering our asses, or trying to" in paragraph 2 to "BTW, Cervelli sure did something stupid, huh?" in paragraph 3.
How many games before Alex goes back on the DL. I say less than his number 13.
[16] The MLBPA seems to think so: http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/08/05/mlbpa-believes-selig-has-not-acted-appropriately-under-the-basic-agreement-in-suspending-a-rod/
The IP attorney in me is most interested in the part of all these proceedings that seems to get the least amount of coverage: all this stuff is supposed to be kept confidential:
"Lastly, I want to close by stating our profound disappointment in the way individuals granted access to private and privileged information felt compelled to share that information publicly. The manner in which confidential information was so freely exchanged is not only a threat to the success and credibility of our jointly administered program; it calls into question the level of trust required to administer such a program. It is our view that when the bargaining parties hold their annual review of the program, we must revisit the JDA’s confidentiality provisions and consider implementing stricter rules for any breach by any individual involved in the process."
[17] Wait, are you suggestion that a 2013 Yankee, coming back from an injury, gets injured in short order? Inconceivable!
[5] I confess, I was really afraid Robbie would be one of the "surprise" players suspended.
Seems like the Yankees have more than their share of players on that list.
[21] Thanks for that - really interesting to hear that the Union isn't happy about it. But why? What specifically went "too far"? They don't say...
[18] Well, there is Bizarro World where MLB owners happily give up millions of dollars from their pockets because they love the Yankees.
[21] Wait, you are a lawyer and you don't understand why Alex is being punished for encouraging other players to cheat and break MLB rules? It is obvious that Alex is accused of forming a conspiracy with Bosch to recruit MLB clients.
Btw, I am not debating the validity of the leaked info of wrong doing because that acceptance of the penalties by all the other players tells me that MLB does have strong evidence against all of them. I expect tons more to get leaked when he appeals.
Also, batting cleanup tonight and playing third.
Cribbed from LoHud:
From David Cornwell
“It is regrettable that the Commissioner’s office has taken this unprecedented action. Major League Baseball has gone well beyond the authority granted to it in its Joint Drug Agreement and the Basic Agreement. Consequently, we will appeal the discipline and pursue all legal remedies available to Alex."
I don't know what the Drug Agreement or Basic Agreement say, so I cannot possibly say whether Bud went "well beyond" his authority. But, based on the whole Pete Rose thing - I mean, assuming a lifetime ban for gambling was a valid exercise of the Commissioner's authority - I don't understand the argument that a 200+ game suspension for obstructing MLB's investigation, recruiting players to roid, and repeatedly roiding himself is beyond Bud's authority.
Does anyone have a better understanding of this claim?
It has been a nightmare for him? He is humbled to put back on this uniform again? Is he trying not to cry? I am holding back all the cuss words I want to throw at this guy.
Then there was Girardi saying that the young guys look up to Alex? No wonder so many of them got into PEDs. Time to keep him away from the younger players.
Ha! Alex does not want to admit his PED use yet again. He does know MLB's motivation? This is guy is a sociopath, he really is.
And Cervelli "used bad judgment." That seems to be the refrain. Now he has to get better before he can sit for 50 games - is he done? Released?
And that Jesus trade still isn't looking awful, is it?
[30] Can't Cervelli serve his suspension on the DL? That's what Edinson Volquez did when he got busted. He was on the DL, and that time counted. Really not fair, IMO, since he was still allowed to use the team facilities and even play in rehab games. Though he wasn't paid, so there's that.
It was the same with Manny Ramirez when he got suspended. He was allowed to play in rehab games while suspended.
Didn't know that, thanks. Seems it could have been worse for old Cervy.