Bye Bye AROD

[TOXIC ASSETS]

162 games
$25 million in salary lost
Untold amounts of lawyer fees
Enjoy your year off, LOSER/CHEATER/LIAR

[Yah Mule]

I predict many more billable hours in his future.

[Outlaw]

The next Jose Canseco, wait till he unloads all the other player names... should have suspended him for life, but hey that's my opinion. HOF- BYE BYE... At least this chapter is over.

[lschechter]

I'm sure they would have suspended him for life if they thought it could have been upheld on appeal.

Does this mean we should move A Rod down on our 2014 cheat sheets?

[whale4evr]

. . . and career effectively over. So in the end the Yanks get the salary relief they wanted. Beltran/McCann/Ellsbury and (Tanaka?) say thank you.

[Yah Mule]

I'm sure they would have suspended him for life if they thought it could have been upheld on appeal.

Does this mean we should move A Rod down on our 2014 cheat sheets?

Someone said he went in a couple DC drafts when 100 games was supposedly on the table.

[Edwards Kings]

The only question that is left is who will play him in the movie?

[KJ Duke]

The only question that is left is who will play him in the movie?

Lindsay Lohan.

[Deadheadz]

Someone said he went in a couple DC drafts when 100 games was supposedly on the table.

I took him quite late in one DC where I needed more 3B depth and figured if he played at all he'd be better than Iglesias.

Let the ridicule begin...


Cheers!

[KJ Duke]

Someone said he went in a couple DC drafts when 100 games was supposedly on the table.

I took him quite late in one DC where I needed more 3B depth and figured if he played at all he'd be better than Iglesias.

Let the ridicule begin...

Cheers!

You drafted Iglesias ?

[Navel Lint]

The only question that is left is who will play him in the movie?

Is there any doubt that he will play himself......

[CA Dreamin]

Interesting reading. Article by Wendy Thurm.


Baseball arbitrator Frederic Horowitz reduced Alex Rodriguez‘s suspension from 211 to 162 games in an opinion released to the parties today. Now that the arbitrator has ruled, Rodriguez’s suspension takes effect immediately.

The meaning of “immediately” is unclear, though, because we are in the midst of the offseason. Rodriguez’s attorneys told reporters that the third baseman plans to show up for spring training with the Yankees, even if he is barred from playing any regular-season games this year. The Yankees are likely to do what they can to stop that from happening.

At this point, we don’t know why the arbitrator reduced Rodriguez’s suspension to 162 games. His written opinion has not been made public. Rodriguez’s attorneys announced that they plan to ask a federal court on Monday to overturn the decision, despite the long odds (more on that below). If that happens, the opinion is likely to become public as an exhibit to Rodriguez’s complaint.

Until then, we are left to wonder what evidence Horowitz found credible or which provisions of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and the Joint Drug Policy he relied on in reducing the suspension from 211 games to 162.

On those points, let’s take a step back and remind ourselves how we got here.


MLB suspended Rodriguez on August 5 for violations of the CBA and the JDA between MLB and the Players’ Association. MLB charged Rodriguez with using two different banned substances over a period of years (testosterone and human growth hormone) and with attempting to obstruct MLB’s investigation. MLB suspended Rodriguez for the remainder of the 2013 season and all of the 2014 season, which amounted to 211 games.

In the weeks leading up to MLB’s suspension of Rodriguez, there were reports that Bud Selig was considering invoking his powers under CBA Article XI, Section (A)(1)(b) to suspend Rodriguez for life to preserve “the integrity of, or the maintenance of public confidence in, the game of baseball.” If Selig had done so, Rodriguez would not have had the right to appeal the suspension to the arbitrator, as the “integrity of the game” provision gives the commissioner final say on the matter.

I raised concerns about Selig using this provision in a post entitled “Is Selig Preparing To Use The Nuclear Option?” Many others did, too. Ultimately, the threat of a lifetime ban was seen as nothing more than a heavy-handed negotiating tactic to force Rodriguez to accept a lesser punishment if he agreed to forgo an appeal.

Selig was then said to be considering suspending Rodriguez for life under the “best interests of baseball” clause of the CBA. Under that provision, found in Article XII, Section B, “

layers may be disciplined for just cause for conduct that is materially detrimental or materially prejudicial to the best interests of Baseball including, but not limited to, engaging in conduct in violation of federal, state or local law.”

Reports suggested that Selig leaned toward using the “best interests of baseball” clause because it would give the league flexibility to impose a very long suspension, and one that would keep Rodriguez off the field while he appealed. Section C of Article XII requires “prompt compliance” with discipline imposed under Section B, meaning that the player must serve the suspension even if he files a grievance.

In the end, Selig invoked both the JDA and the CBA, but permitted Rodriguez to play while his appeal was pending — essentially, the remaining 49 games in the 2013 season.

Still, questions remained how Selig arrived at a 211-game suspension.

Section 7(A) of the JDA states:

A player who tests positive for a Performance Enhancing Substance, or otherwise violates the Program through the possession or use of a Performance Enhancing Substance, will be subject to the discipline set forth below. (emphasis mine) 1. First violation: 50-game suspension; 2. Second violation: 100-game suspension; 3. Third violation: Permanent suspension from Major League and Minor League Baseball.

Michael Weiner, who was at the time the MLBPA executive director (and has since passed away), suggested last July that suspensions for “non-analytical positives” — i.e., suspensions based on evidence other than a positive drug test — were not limited to the 50-100-lifetime regime, despite the plain language of the agreement.

Some have argued that the phrase “or otherwise violates the Program through the possession or use of a” performance enhancing substance is ambiguous because the terms “use” and “possession” aren’t defined. Others have argued that evidence that a player purchased PEDs merits stronger punishment than does a positive test, because a purchase shows the player intended to use a banned substance. Under the JDA, a positive test leads to an automatic 50-game suspension for a first time violation, even if the player can prove the PED was in his system accidentally.

Section 7.G. of the JDA may also have come into play. That section, entitled “Other Violations” states in subsection (2):

A Player may be subject to disciplinary action for just cause by the Commissioner for any Player violation of Section 2 above not referenced in Section 7.A. through Section 7.F. above.

Section 2 is the provision that outlines all of the Prohibited Substances (Drugs of Abuse, Performance Enhancing Substances, and Stimulants) and details what players are permitted to do and not do with these substances. The first sentence of Section 2 reads:

All Players shall be prohibited from using, possessing, selling, facilitating the sale of, distributing and/or facilitating the distribution of any Drug of Abuse, Performance Enhancing Substance and/or Stimulant (collectively referred to as “Prohibited Substances).

There’s nothing in either Section 2 or Section 7 that says anything about MLB investigations into a player’s use, possession, sale or distribution of PEDs. Yes, Section 7.G.2. gives the Commissioner the power to discipline a player for “just cause” but only when a player otherwise violates Section 2. That’s a much more narrow “just cause” provision than the one in the CBA, which gives the Commissioner the power to suspend a player whose conduct is materially detrimental to baseball.

As a result, we know Selig relied on both the JDA and the CBA, but we don’t know how he reached 211 games. Was it 50 games for using testosterone, 50 games for using HGH, plus 111 games for prejudicing “the best interests of baseball”? Was it 50 games for a first time violation for “use or possession” plus 161 games for prejudicing “the best interests of baseball”? Or something else?

The hearing on Rodriguez’s appeal got under way on September 30 at MLB’s offices in New York. Even though Rodriguez was the complainant — as he was challenging the commissioner’s suspension — MLB had the burden to prove that Rodriguez used substances banned by the JDA, that Rodriguez impeded the investigation, and that the 211-game suspension was justified.

Over the course of several weeks, MLB put on the testimony of Anthony Bosch, the owner of the now-shuttered Biogenesis Clinic; Dan Mullins, MLB’s lead investigator, and Rob Manfred, MLB’s Chief Operating Officer. Rodriguez’s lawyers had the opportunity to cross-examine these witnesses and did so. There were charges and counter-charges of secret meetings, witness tampering, purchasing stolen documents and more. The appeal hearing was adjourned in mid-October, and set to resume on November 18. In early November, the New York Times detailed the aggressive tactics used by both sides during MLB’s investigation and Rodriguez’s appeal in this story.

The appeal hearing before arbitrator Horowitz re-commenced on November 18 for Rodriguez to put on his case. Yankees president Randy Levine was called as a witness, and gave 30 minutes or so of testimony. Rodriguez and his lawyers then argued to the arbitrator that Selig should be ordered to appear, and forced to testify to explain his basis for the 211-game suspension.

The arbitrator denied Rodriguez’s request, which led A-Rod to storm out of the hearing, and take to the airwaves to attack the appeal process. Ultimately, Rodriguez’s attorneys returned to the hearing without their client, completed their presentation of evidence, and participated in post-hearing briefing.

None of the questions we had in August as to how Selig arrived at a 211-game suspension have been answered. And there is nothing we’ve learned since then that explains how the arbitrator concluded that a 162-game suspension was justified under the express terms of the CBA and JDA.

Indeed, the ambiguity of how the JDA applies to a non-analytical positive coupled with the “best interests of baseball” clause in the CBA leave players at the mercy of the commissioner’s office — the exact opposite of what the 50 game-100 game-lifetime ban punishment scheme had intended to accomplish.

If a player fights a suspension based on a positive test, is he acting against the best interests of baseball? If a player seeks evidence to counter a charge of a non-analytical positive, is he impeding MLB’s investigation? These are uncomfortable questions players and the MLBPA are now forced to confront.

So what’s next for Rodriguez? His attorneys plan to challenge the arbitrator’s decision in federal court as early as Monday. Rodriguez already has a lawsuit against MLB pending in federal court in Manhattan and any further filing by him is likely to consolidated with that case.

But he faces a steep uphill battle. Horowitz’s decision is final and binding under the terms of the CBA and JDA. Collective bargaining agreements are governed by the federal law known as the Labor Management Relations Act. Under that statute, judicial review of an arbitrator’s decision is very limited. Courts are not authorized to review an arbitrator’s decision on the merits, even if one of the parties argues that the arbitrator made factual errors or misinterpreted the CBA. A court may intervene only when the arbitrator strays so far from his authority that he “dispenses his own brand of justice,” as the Supreme Court wrote in a recent opinion.

[Walla Walla]

This is why you should teach your kids golf! Forget basketball , baseball or football.

[DOUGHBOYS]

This is why you should teach your kids golf! Forget basketball , baseball or football.

That's right.
In golf, the equipment has become steroidal, not the player...

[knuckleheads]

MLB bungles it again. Story continues to drag on. Selig suspended ARod for more games than the Collective Bargaining Agreement allowed and then the Arbiter did not make Selig say why. It's clearly a vendetta and Selig is getting his hand called.

Should Selig end up testifying, info will be revealed that will likely end Selig's tenure as commissioner. ARod is Selig's white whale.

[Yah Mule]

MLB bungles it again. Story continues to drag on. Selig suspended ARod for more games than the Collective Bargaining Agreement allowed and then the Arbiter did not make Selig say why. It's clearly a vendetta and Selig is getting his hand called.

Should Selig end up testifying, info will be revealed that will likely end Selig's tenure as commissioner. ARod is Selig's white whale.

Selig should go down hard. He's as culpable for this mess as anybody.

[Outlaw]

Interesting reading here. More or less exactly what was suspected. Copy of Arods latest lawsuit with all the details of what MLB had on him and probably all the other players who chose not to appeal. It includes most of Horowitz's ruling and the Federal judge required it all be released. It's amazing how ineffective MLB's PEDS testing program is at catching all the cheaters. The PEDS are so far advanced in avoiding testing.

The Grapevine has it one legal tactic Arod may employ is outing other players using PEDS, not just associated with Biogenesis either and that he was singled out and treated unfairly.

This whole lawsuit has less than 1% chance of going anywhere and Arod has some big choices to make soon. It's expected the Federal Judge will rule quickly on the injunctive issue.

http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1 ... plaint.pdf

[TOXIC ASSETS]

Memo to AROD: You have no defense. So what if you didn't get the same number of games as everyone else. Nobody else sunk to the level you did in trying to block the investigation. Get over it ---- YOU LOST!

[DOUGHBOYS]

ARod has not lost at too many things during life. It must drive him to the brink of insanity.
So, it surprises me little that ARod is taking the lawyer route. In his mind, he lost, but it can be turned into a win. All it takes is millions of dollars, which to him is like paying an electric bill for you or me.

ARod comes off as pathetic. The evidence against him is insurmountable. He responds by using the means at his disposal, money. To admit guilt, would be to admit defeat. He sues non-evidence sources like his own union, the Yankees, or others. And really, it would not surprise me that he sue the Hall of Fame if not named on the first ballot.

ARod has cheated so much in his life, that it has become acceptable for him. Suspensions are for OTHER players.
Somebody compared him to Clemens on tv, in taking the legal route and looking bad doing it. That is true.
In Clemens case however, it was mostly a 'he said, he said', type evidence. Folks are coming out of the woodwork knowing about Rodriguez past indisgressions.
In the end, he may come off as more hated than Barry Bonds, which would be remarkable.

The measure of a man is lost through the years. Ty Cobb's racial and gambling issues are never a thought to a kid in learning about baseball history. The fact that he got over 4,000 hits leaps off the page. His character, a footnote.
In 50 years time, Rodriguez will become just a part of an era. An era in which there were a lot of cheats. He'll be lumped in with Bonds, Clemens, Sosa, and others.
Few will know or care of Rodriguez lack of good will. As few know now about Cobb's lack of character today.
We are lucky in a way.
We are able to follow Rodriguez 'Mr. Potter' exploits each day. Unbelieving that his wealth and power are no match for the common sensical George Bailey that is in most of us. In his own way, ARod is backlashing at baseball. Thinking, he owes nothing to baseball. Just as Mr. Potter kept Uncle Billy's $8,000, preferring the town and George Bailey suffer.
Not himself.
They will use any means necessary to win. Even in hurting others.
Ryan Braun knows. He traveled down the same road. And even got a temporary win with Potter-like ways.

Its been over 60 years since 'It's a Wonderful Life' came out. Good, decency, and honesty triumphed over evil, selfishishness, and dishonesty.
It's replayed every Christmas.
That same thing is happening right before our eyes. In real life.
The Potter character, since, has been fashioned into the animated character of 'Simon Bar Sinister', the villain in Underdog.
Now, it is ARod taking on the real life qualities of Mr. Potter.
A character that most can root against. A character that has it all....except for what he wants most.
A character, who really, has very little character at all.

[TOXIC ASSETS]

Good point about Ty Cobb. One of the best hitters ever to play and probably one of the worst persons as well. But how many will know that as time marches on?

[ikenbaseball]

I think your right Dan. This is really getting absurd.
Just the fact that he still wants to go to spring training is ridiculous.
I wouldn't be surprised if his own teammates start throwing at him in batting practice.

Krys

[DOUGHBOYS]

I don't think of ARod as a total 'bad man'. He has gotten his way for a long time. It is probably hard to be told 'no' after a lifetime of ''yes'.

When we think of Denny McLain, the first thing that pops into most baseball fans minds is that McLain was the last pitcher to win 30 games.
McLain is the only baseball player to be convicted of extortion, racketeering, and drug possession. This happened just three years after 'Denny McLain Day' at Tiger Stadium.
As sports fans, we tend to let time remember the good things, while the bad, fade.

I think I've told this story before, but it bears repeating. If only to acknowledge that McLain was not also, a 'total bad man'...

Mickey Mantle was in the last month of the last year of his career. He was tied with Jimmy Foxx with 534 lifetime homers. It was the eighth inning of a game at Tiger Stadium and when Mickey went to the plate, a realization among Tiger fans struck that this would be the last time they would see the slugger. Cheers rose up and cascaded down onto the field. Mantle tipped his hat and McLain circled the mound allowing Mantle to further take the spotlight.
Mantle dug in and McLain threw a batting practice fastball.
Astonished, Mantle took the pitch. He looked down at Tigers catcher Jim Price and said, "What the fuck was that?!"
"I dunno", said Price.
"Is he gonna do it again?"
"I dunno".
Price started walking towards the mound, but McLain waved him back, and in a voice loud enough for Mantle to hear, he said, "Just tell him to be ready!"
He threw the same pitch with the same location. Mantle fouled it off.
Down 0-2, Mantle again, saw the same pitch.
He belted it on a line into the right field seats.
Norm Cash, the Tiger first baseman, all smiles, gave Mantle a glove swoosh to the butt as he strode by. Around second, Mantle tipped his helmet to McLain and said, "Thank you, thank you".

Mantle circled the bases and went back to the dugout to a chorus of cheers and attaboys from teammates.
McLain's first thought was that he would get a letter from the Commisioner. (He did, but no action was taken)
His second thought was, "Who gives a shit, it was worth it!"
And his third thought came in the form of his next pitch. A fastball under Joe Pepitone's chin leaving him sprawling in the dirt.