Details of arbitrator Fredric Horowitz’s ruling against A-Rod

January 13, 2014 by Mike Axisa 129 Comments

As I mentioned earlier, arbitrator Fredric Horowitz’s sealed ruling in Alex Rodriguez‘s case was opened when A-Rod‘s camp filed a suit seeking an injunction earlier today. You can read the entire 77-page ruling right here (PDF link), but, if you don’t have time, here is a breakdown of the major points from my stomping grounds at CBS. The suit was filed against both MLB and the players’ union, which was necessary if they intend to show the deck was stacked against them. Here is the union’s statement on the suit. What a complete and total mess.

Lets go Yankees

And hes suing me for slander on RAB message boards!
http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso

I’m sure that naming MLBPA and blaming Weiner is going to work out well for him.

Alienate the world to preserve a legacy that is irreparably damaged. In the 1% likelihood that the arbitration decision is ruled to be subject to reversal by a federal court, he’s earned himself the opportunity to be universally reviled by his colleagues.

We’re not talking about quiet or tacit acceptance in which they loathe him secretly (which it likely is now). We’re talking about this guy basically being treated like a scab.
- Deep Thoughts
  
  He is certainly going all-out for the Nuclear Option isn’t he. One can only hope Selig is in the blast radius when Alex detonates his vest.
  - Kiko Jones
    
    “One can only hope Selig is in the blast radius when Alex detonates his vest.”
    
    THIS.
- forensic
  
  We’re not talking about quiet or tacit acceptance in which they loathe him secretly (which it likely is now).
  
  Quiet? Tacit? Secretly?
  
  It wasn’t even close to that last year. Player after player came out and said they hated all of this and what they think he was doing. Not to mention the Dumpster game and actions.
  - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
    
    Not talking about “this” or “PEDs”…talking about “A-Rod.”
    
    Hating A-Rod will no longer be quiet or tacit or secret.
  - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
    
    Dempster and Longo may have made small comments. There just plain won’t be filters anymore.
- Kiko Jones
  
  He’s got nothing to lose at this point. But either way, no one is changing their opinion of him. Maybe those who have been quiet about their dislike for him will be more vocal. And those who don’t despise him will likely shake their heads in disbelief.
Deep Thoughts

Interesting. One of the firms appearing o/b/o The Office of the Commissioner was Proskauer Rose, where David Stern and Gary Bettman (and incoming NBA Commissioner Adam Silver’s dad) were partners.
RetroRob

Still have to wonder what A-Rod’s end-game is here. He most likely could have had a reduced sentence (even if it was a lengthy 100 games) and would have been back on the field this year. Now he’s out the full year, has spent a ton of money on legal fees, and may never play baseball again.

Not a smart move.
- Betty Lizard
  
  162 games was the lowest settlement offered by MLB per Rodriguez’s lawyers.
  - RetroRob
    
    My guess (and purely a guess) is if he immediately admitted his guilt a year ago, Selig would have taken it and probably given him a 50-game penalty, especially before some of the other info came out. The denials, attacks, and then obstruction obviously pushed MLB to go for the huge penalty. He could have avoided that.
    - Betty Lizard
      
      You’re probably right about that.
      
      Some groveling* or rolling over would no doubt have gotten a much better deal than the decision. But then again, it doesn’t look like Alex is capable of doing that. He’s so completely ego invested in his baseball performance.
      
      *Auto correct turned this into “grove lingo.”
      - jim p
        
        Even then autocorrect failed. s/b ‘groove lingo’ which all the hep cats and chicks dig and jive to.
cashjr

I can’t remember the specifics, but I do recall during all the Bonds and Clemens legal maneuvering just shaking my head wondering if they really expected anyone to believe they never touched the stuff. I think it’s a combination of three things: 1) convincing themselves that what they’re claiming is sort of believable (we can never underestimate a person’s ability to deceive themselves, especially when they are surrounded by yes-men and lawyers who benefit from all the lawsuits), 2) they are just so used to getting their way they just assume somehow they will here too, and 3) they are just totally desperate to protect their image they go way overboard and actually do the opposite.
- RetroRob
  
  It’s not a question of believing. It’s a question of evidence. A-Rod is guilty (as is MLB), but it’s unlikely he’d be convicted in regular court because most of the evidence wouldn’t be allowed.
Farewell Mo

At least now Kiko Jones can read all the evidence he was crowing about not having seen while defending Arod the other day.
- Kiko Jones
  
  “Defending A-Rod?” You don’t get it, do you? Not believing MLB and Selig is not an automatic defense of A-Rod or anyone. WTF?! How bitter does that A-Rod hate taste? Jeez…
  - Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
    
    I don’t get it.
    
    All I’ve been saying is MLB is hypocritical. Never once have I said Arod didn’t deserve punishment. Those two are not mutually exclusive.
    
    People aren’t capable of second grade level thought.
    - Farewell Mo
      
      Why are you even in this conversation since this wasn’t directed to you???
Holy Ghost

The MLB has a pretty sophisticated Testosterone testing system and several Bosch clients have failed tests for Testosterone in the past 3 years.

If Bosch allegedly gave A-Rod the same stuff he gave Ramirez, Colon, braun, and Melky, why hasn’t A-Rod failed a drug test?
- Need Pitching & Hitting
  
  You missed a bunch of other players there who were clients but didn’t test positive but admitted use.
  Also, presumably at least some of those players passed some tests while on the stuff.
  Could be ARod just got lucky, or used the product “better”.
  - Holy Ghost
    
    “Could be ARod just got lucky, or used the product “better”.”
    
    Perhaps. But Rodriguez, given his past history was probably tested more often than most players.
    
    This isn’t BALCO. Bosch isn’t batting 1.000 with his clients not failing drug tests. So there’s still some doubt about whether A-Rod could’ve taken PEDs for an extended period of time without failing a test…
    - Need Pitching & Hitting
      
      12 tests over about 3.5 years (according to the report), some in 2013 after the BioGenesis story broke and the association presumably ended (along with his usage of Bosch’s product). Two of the substances he used weren’t tested for during his alleged 3-year association with Bosch.
      It seems given the nature of what he took and the limitations of the testing process, a player would have to be unlucky – or just dumb – to get caught.
      I really have no doubt Arod could’ve taken PED’s over the entire 3-year period and still not failed a test.
      - Holy Ghost
        
        I still have some doubt. Between A-Rod’s steady offensive decline since 2009, his health problems, and the lack of a failed drug test, I’m not totally convinced that what he got from Bosch was PEDs.
        
        Victor Conte says A-Rod came to him for ‘legal supplements’. How do we know A-Rod intended to get banned substances from Bosch or that Bosch provided A-Rod banned substances?
        
        I’m under the belief that guilt by association applies here. A-Rod should’ve known better than to associate with a guy linked to several players who got caught violating the PED policy. Still, I don’t think the evidence that A-Rod took PEDs is concrete.
        
        radnom
        
        “Use service elevator if possible. Careful. Lots of eyes.”
        
        Arod to Bosch.
        
        Farewell Mo
        
        If you caught Arod in your kitchen injecting testosterone, you’d probably find some way to rationalize how he wasn’t using PEDs.
        
        Holy Ghost
        
        Innocent until proven guilty.
        
        I have acknowledged the fact that he shouldn’t have been associating with Bosch. Their relationship alone makes him look guilty.
        
        However, Bosch has a poor record in terms of his clients being able to avoid failing drug tests. So it’s significant that A-Rod didn’t fail any. Plus A-Rod hasn’t been very good since 2010 so if he was on PEDs they weren’t working…
        
        Vincent Vega
        
        Innocent until proven guilty IN A COURT OF LAW.
        
        ChrisS
        
        You should take some time to read the ruling. The only thing they lack is video of Arod jabbing a needle into his ass.
        
        Holy Ghost
        
        With no failed drug tests and no Barry Bondsesque body changes, and no late-30’s improvements in athletic performance, there’s tons of reasonable doubt that he took PEDs.
        
        Still, I agree that there was enough circumstantial evidence for Rodriguez to be suspended.
  - Deep Thoughts
    
    It could also be that the deals they offered would put them in the best position to cut losses and be ready for free agency, or that they were injured and DL’ed anyway, or that they are young/fringe players who don’t have the talent, respect, longevity, or (most importantly) wealth to take on MLB LLP, Attorneys-at-law.
    
    It isn’t unusual for people to plead down and cop to stuff they didn’t do, nor is it necessarily indicative of their culpability. I’m not suggesting all or some of those other players were totally clean, but I don’t think their acceptance of their suspensions is as clearly indicative of guilt as you’re suggesting.
    
    Let’s keep in mind MLB took Bosch and his brother as financial hostages, knowing they couldn’t to fight MLB’s bullshit “tortious interference” suit. If you’re a AAAA player, do you really want to take on a lame-duck Commish on the rampage?
    - Need Pitching & Hitting
      
      But why would those players admit to usage?
      They can take the suspension without a public admission, which I believe most did.
  - Petemig
    
    When did any of the players that accepted a 50 game ban without a positive test ever admit to doing steroids? They just took their 50 games. Arod never had the chance to take 50 games. He was suspended by an amout that was 4 times the amount of games. MLB said the extra games were for obstruction then the arbitrator says it was for 3 seperate drug offense and 12 for obstruction. That does not seem consistent to me. In actuality the arbitrator raise the jda penalty and lowered the BA penalty.
- lee
  
  and if he was taking PEDs, why haven’t his stats been better? you look at his performance over the last three years, and he’s been aging pretty much like every other mid-30’s player does. no spike in his numbers like we’ve seen with other known PED users.
  
  there’s so much about this whole thing that makes no sense. weird.
  - Need Pitching & Hitting
    
    There wouldn’t be a spike if he’s been using all along…
    And where was Cervelli’s spike?
    - lee
      
      with Cervelli’s numbers he could have “spiked” and you would never know it — zero x anything still equals zero. :)
      
      first i’ve heard anyone allege that Alex was using all along.
      - Lets go Yankees
        
        The first? Where have you been? There have been rumors surrounding ARod and PEDs since he was a HS player. Never actually caught him till the 60 Minutes fiasco in 09
    - The Great Gonzo
      
      The first month of 2013 before he broke his hand, maybe?
  - jim p
    
    Maybe his stats would have been worse; maybe he’d have played even fewer games.
Farewell Mo

Anyone who thinks Arod is ever playing major league baseball again is out of their mind IMO.

Now even Tony Clark from the players union has come out against Arod since he’s suing them in addition to MLB, the Yankees and the Yankees team physician, Dr Christopher Ahmed.

He’s not just burning bridges, he’s dropping Nukes on them. This scorched earth approach is gonna end up with him as the biggest pariah from MLB in our lifetime.

To think he likely could have just admitted what was obvious a year ago, served a 50-100 game suspension and played out the last 3 1/2 years of his contract.

Sad, just sad he totally self destructed like this.
- lee
  
  was a 50-00 game suspension ever really on the table? my impression is that Selig was never going to settle for anything other than a career-ending suspension.
  - Jarrod
    
    Apparently the only offer MLB made to A-Rod was 162 games, no less.
    - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
      
      According to A-Rod’s lawyers. Numerous writers went snooping around on that topic yesterday. Rosenthal and Kransick independently confirmed they was a number under 100 “briefly discussed” prior to selig/manfred getting Bosch’s cooperation.
      - lee
        
        just way too much “he said he said” in this whole story. my impression is that Selig wanted Alex’s head from the git-go, and wasn’t going to settle for anything else.
        
        there’s a lot to this whole story that i suspect we’ll never know.
        
        jim p
        
        what ‘he said’ is written down in several hundred text and email messages. I believe there were recordings too. It ain’t like there’s no record.
  - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
    
    It was on the table before they got Bosch’s cooperation and up until A-Rod met with Selig in July and divulged no information and denied knowing Bosch.
  - Farewell Mo
    
    Buster Olney’s column today suggested that Arod could have pulled a Braun and gotten around 100 games which makes sense since his attempts to cover up were factors justifying 162. Michael Weiner also stared at the time he suggested Arod go make a deal though a specific number of games was never mentioned.
- forensic
  
  This scorched earth approach is gonna end up with him as the biggest pariah from MLB in our lifetime.
  
  He was basically already at that before this. I don’t think this has made it that much worse, because I don’t think it could’ve gotten much worse than it already was.
  - Farewell Mo
    
    Had he admitted he used again a year ago and took his suspension and not sued the world, I think he’d have played out the final 3+ years of his career though.
    - forensic
      
      If he had taken the 211 suspension, he wouldn’t have played for two full years. That’s actually a worse condition than he’s in now.
      
      I’m not sure either way what’s going to happen in 2015-17 yet. I think what may happen with his suits against anything directly involved with the Yankees will have a big impact on his future, but not so much the stuff that has happened so far.
      - Farewell Mo
        
        I’ll eat Kabak’s hat if Arod plays MLB again other than on his Xbox or playstation.
        
        After he loses his appeal, the Yankees and MLB will have him right where they want him and won’t be compelled in the least to let him back into the game. Bonds was a far better player at the end and burned far fewer bridges than Arod and he was never given a chance.
      - Lets go Yankees
        
        Per Buster Olney, he turned down 50 games. http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/01/13/source-a-rod-blew-his-chance-to-take-a-deal-for-a-50-game-suspension/
  - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
    
    It was already bad, for sure. I think you’re underselling the fact that he just named MLBPA as a co-defendant, though.
    
    ThIs, a mere TWO DAYS after he attempted to curry support from fellow ball players in his statement indicating the decision is the “first step” towards threatening guaranteed contracts in the upcoming ’16 labor agreements.
    
    He’s trying to implore support from his fellow players on Saturday, but using the union on Monday. Come on.
    - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
      
      *suing the Union
- Jarrod
  
  I think at this point A-Rod knows its all over (from a playing and respect point of view) and in light of that he is going to drag down as many other people/organisations as he can.
  - Lets go Yankees
    
    The only ones who dont know its over for A-Rod are the A-Rod apologists on here.
    - Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
      
      Rewind…press play…stop. Rewind…press play…stop.
      
      How about a comment where you’re not a repetitive pretentious asshole and you respond to actual comments instead of patting yourself on the back while taking down a bunch of scarecrows.
      - Farewell Mo
        
        That’s funny because that’s exactly what you do.
        
        You should take your own advise.
        
        Farewell Mo
        
        advice.
- Kiko Jones
  
  “This scorched earth approach is gonna end up with him as the biggest pariah from MLB in our lifetime.”
  
  Like he wasn’t already a pariah.
  
  If there’s even a slim chance that it brings Selig down with him, it’ll be worth it. Many, many many people reaped the rewards of PED use, but only the players pay the price. Blow it up and sort out the bodies later.
  - Farewell Mo
    
    That’s like a child throwing a tantrum when he doesn’t get his way.
    
    The only thing these lawsuits are gonna accomplish is filling his lawyers pockets and exposing the sordid details of Arod’s drug use.
Jarrod

Hey Mike, I’ve read several times that a subsequent suspensions (2nd or 3rd violations) cannot be administered until such time as the player has been formally notified of the breach.

That being the case, how can MLB and now the Arbitrator possibly find it appropriate to suspend him for 3 separate breaches all at once?

I would have thought that this alone would allow his lawyers to prove that the Arbitrator was incompetent?
- http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
  
  Go read the arbitration decision. It addresses precisely that. In short, that is untrue with regard to non-analyticals.
  - Jarrod
    
    It’s in my list of reading for tonight so I will get to it.
    
    So you’re saying that for non-analyticals they can issue 2 or more breach notices at the same time? So in theory if they had proved 3 breaches they could have suspended him for life?
    - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
      
      No, not that they have to do it at the same time. There is just no requirement that the first breach notice has the effect of signaling that “everything up to this point is under ONE violation.”
      
      I’m not articulating this well…
      
      Just because you get a first notice of a non-analytical violation, doesn’t mean that every infraction you committed is considered “one violation.”
      - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
        
        Crap, I messed that last sentence up too.
        
        “Doesn’t mean that every infraction you committed BEFORE you got the first breach notice is considered ‘one violation.'”
        
        Jarrod
        
        Gotcha. Cheers
  - Jarrod
    
    I’ve now read the decision and it is much more simple that you have eluded here.
    
    The commissioner has suspended Alex for “just cause” (s.7G of the JDA, not s.7A) and Alex appealed to the Arbitrator that the suspension was not justified.
    
    The Arbitrator decided that there is clear and convincing evidence of 3 breaches of the JDA (the ongoing use of 3 separate PES) and has therefore decided that a 50 game suspension for each is “just cause”. The additional games to make up an entire season are for attempting to obstruct the investigation.
    
    So next time, instead of telling someone to go read the decision, perhaps you should read it more thoroughly.
- Need Pitching & Hitting
  
  Probably not.
  The arbitrator didn’t technically give him a 2nd violation suspension as banned in the JDA, and the JDA leaves just enough wiggle room and ambiguity for non-analytical positives to leave some leeway for other than the proscribed suspensions.
  The JDA really isn’t nearly clear-cut enough on this to prove incompetence.
- Holy Ghost
  
  Trying to make sense of the MLB’s suspension policy is futile. They make up the rules on the fly it seems…
  - Lets go Yankees
    
    This went before an arbitrator appointed mutually by MLB and MLBPA. Can you people give it a rest already with the world is out to get A-Rod!?
greg

Waiting for the Core 4 to call him out.
- forensic
  
  One of whom admitted to using PED’s too.
  
  But, we’ll just ignore that forever now instead…
- Jorge Steinbrenner
  
  You’ll be waiting a while, then.
- The Great Gonzo
  
  No Yankee, past or current, will do that. Because that’s not what Yankees do…
Holy Ghost

All this PED drama kind of makes me miss the days when all people complained about was A-Rod’s lack of production in the playoffs…
Dan in Athens

If you haven’t read the decision, you have no clue what you are talking about on this subject. There is no way this is overturned in federal court. Maybe ARod should drop his suit and look for a good legal malpractice lawyer to sue Tacopina for his “advice and counsel,” and I use those terms loosely.
- Dan
  
  Yea, it’s very well reasoned. And it’s crazy to think that a court will overturn a fact finder’s determination of a witness’s credibility.
- cr1
  
  After reading it I thought OK now we should get a trend going of more rational commentary here with a shared basis of info about what went into the decisionmaking.
  
  Not so much though. Been thinking about why that is. Maybe some posters just have such a fund of rage at Horowitz for not exonerating Al that they simply cannot take in information that arrives over his name?
  - Farewell Mo
    
    You’d think that but some people insist on beating the drum that Selig is evil, MLB is unscrupulous and dirty therefore Arod should get off.
Chris in Durham

I just finished that read. Amazing. “Yuri”, ARod’s “cousin” is prominantly mentioned. The yanks and MLB had very specific direction regarding this guy after ARod’s earlier steroid admission. What part of “stay away from Yuri” was confusing to ARod? I have a feeling that this will be a relevant point for the Yankees when they inevitably investigate the possibility of voiding the remainder of the contract.
Jorge Steinbrenner

The highlights still read like every bit the mess for all involved. Actual baseball games can’t come soon enough.
Dan

I read through the decision, it’s pretty damning. Particularly the BBM’s and texts, which Alex didn’t offer any evidence to dispute.
- pat
  
  In the 60 Minutes piece, he said they were talking about nutrition. They never actually mentioned any steroids by name.
  - Hughesus Christo
    
    I really hope you aren’t floating that as actual doubt about the nature of those discussions.
  - Jarrod
    
    In one message Bosch used the word “Meds”. ARod replied “food dude, not meds”.
    
    Still think there is doubt what they were talking about?
BK2ATL

I got a different take on this.

While I “think” A-Rod is/was dirty, this whole thing was really messy. From the many leaks to the press, which had already tainted the water, to stolen evidence being admitted, to the word of a con man, to a 60 minutes interview with ALL of the details methodically picked apart to a case that ended a day prior, to a union that had no say in any of this matter other than the standard bullet points.

If I’m A-Rod and this same machine just gave me $30 million, plus $60+ million more in the future, and I have 9 figures of worth even after all of this, I’d burn the whole hypocritical house down with that $10-15 million too. Nothing to lose now, just expose everything. Selig, MLBPA, everyone, except my teammates. His reputation is and already was shot. Go out with a blaze.

If Clemens, Bonds, and A-Rod (IMO Sosa and McGuire aren’t HOFers) don’t get in the HOF, neither should Selig who embraced all of this.
- Holy Ghost
  
  A-Rod has no one to blame but himself for the position he’s in. I do think he’s being railroaded to some extent but he laid himself down on the tracks by associating with Bosch.
  
  He had an awesome career and made tons of money doing what he loves to do so I don’t feel any sympathy for him.
  
  I realize he doesn’t have much face left to save, but at some point he needs to drop all these lawsuits and face the music. The longer he drags this out, the worse he looks.
  - BK2ATL
    
    Man, grab a bag of popcorn, some peanuts, a soda and sit back and enjoy the show. This farce needed to happen a longggg time ago. A-Rod’s got the money, let him use that to fight for whatever HE deems necessary to fight for.
    
    A-Rod is certainly dirty, but I’m glad he’s pulling the entire dirty and hypocritical house down with him. MLB created this entire farce. MLBPA permitted it. Players watched as the union didn’t back on of their members in the slightest. The owners hand out these ridiculous contracts, then raise ticket prices, all the while trying to procure lucrative TV network deals. Selig NEEDS to be held accountable just the same. The MLB writers let him off the hook repeatedly. As seen in this case, he’s just as dirty as A-Rod.
    
    Me, I love seeing a 105 mph fastball, a 500 ft HR, and whatever other amazing stuff that extraordinary professional athletes can do. Integrity of the game? So much hypocrisy going around, esp by many of those who spew that crap.
    - The Great Gonzo
      
      Yup, all of this is EXACTLY where I stand too. I can swallow A Rod being a bad guy in this, I am not OK with him being the ONLY bad guy. Selig is nowhere near a saint, and the MLBPA didn’t hold up their end of the bargain either.
      - Farewell Moron
        
        I simply cannot understand why some people keep pretending that Commissioner Selig had it out for Arod when he did it all to himself. I guess some commenters just can’t swallow the idea of Arod being a bad guy in this.
- Kiko Jones
  
  Yup, why not?
cranky

I think rodriguez is intelligent, but doesn’t know his ass from his elbow about real life. he’s filed this suit because his lawyers have told him he might win it when, in reality, he doesn’t stand a chance. the lawyers are just draining his money and a-rod is too caught up in his ego to notice.
RetroRob

My attorney just called to let me know that so far I have not been sued by A-Rod. The week’s early.
- Joe Tacopina
  
  RetroRob, let this forum post serve as notice that you are being sued by Alex Rodriguez for insinuating that he might decide to sue you.
  - Josh S.
    
    Careful, A-Rod may now sue you for impersonating his lawyer on the RAB comments forum.
EndlessJose

Funny how A-Rod is trying to keep what left of his legacy but in reality this is about Selig securing his legacy even though he made this PED culture.

Like Frankenstein’s monster Selig killed his creation and now is the hero.
- Dan in Athens
  
  Have you read the decision? What part(s) support your theory?
EndlessJose

Dan in Athens:

Selig gave money to a Bank robber and a drug dealer who gave drugs to kids just to catch a man who cheated and made some money off of it.

Selig wanted to secure him as a hero and A-Rod was it.
- Jarrod
  
  This!
  
  Plus while all of this is happening, tons of other players are cheating just like Arod was and the MLB testing is not picking any of it up! Selig and MLB are a joke!
clubic

I have a hard time to understand the logic in this case compared to the other guys. So basically it says, A-Rod took 3 different pills, therefore 3 x 50 games. Forget about the 12 “extra games for interrupting the investigation”.

Does anybody believe one of the other guys took only one pill? For me this is double standards.
- ChrisS
  
  Read the ruling. Essentially Horowitz writes, quite clearly, that if MLB went by the letter of the JDA, ARod should be banned for life and MLB is, in fact, being lenient with Arod considering the magnitude of his violations. ARod received an unprecedented suspension because of the unprecedented violations. People need to get past the 50/100 first and second violation etc, which were put in place for drug tests.
  - Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
    
    “ARod received an unprecedented suspension because of the unprecedented violations.”
    
    I don’t buy the “unprecedented violations” for a second. You’re telling me no one else, in MLB history, has repeatedly taken PED’s and lied about it? No one? Ever?
    
    Maybe “unprecedently cared about violations”.
    - Deep Thoughts
      
      I agree. Where is the multi-$100,000 months-long investigation into EXACTLY what and how many times Bartolo Colon took banned PES? Or Cervelli, or Cruz, etc. If you unleashed the full investigative fury of an organization against one target, you would not be surprised to find more comprehensive evidence of violations than you would if that player got a more proportional share of investigative attention.
      
      Selig made him Public Enemy Number One, which the fan’s prerogative, but is unfair when it comes to enforcement of JDA/CBA policy.
  - Jarrod
    
    That’s not entirely accurate. All parties agreed that ARod could not be suspended in accordance with s.7A of the JDA (50/100/lifetime ban section) and that instead he was suspended in accordance with s.7G (the Commish using “just cause”), because this is a non-analytical suspension i.e. he never failed a test.
    
    I agree with clubic though, surely Braun and co were using more than one substance. It’s not like they decided that cheating was ok but only if you cheated with 1 substance. I am sure they were all on the same kind of “diet” prescribed to Arod by Bosch.
B

Now that ARod has sued the MLBPA, can they drop him from the union?
- The Great Gonzo
  
  I would assume that conclusion is foregone. He’s done with the Union, but that does not mean he can’t play. IIRC, Bonds was not with the Union (Which is why he was never in video games) and the contract is still legally binding, regardless of Union affiliation.
Farewell Mo

It seems there should be a criminal investigation into the death threats Bosch claims to have received and what’s with trying to send him on a trip to Colombia? Unless he was gonna hid out there permanently, what was to be gained by that move unless you consider it likely would be a lot easier to knock him off and get away with it there. Manfredi said Bosch’s primary concern all along was his own safety from Arod’s goons.

This part of is like an episode from the Sopranos.
- Long-Past-His-Day-Rod
  
  Agreed about the Sopranos comment. From a number of articles I’ve read it seems like a lot of people around Bosch and even some around A-Rod seem like stereotypical Mafia types. This definitely has movie potential.
- Holy Ghost
  
  Why now? Why didn’t Bosch go to the police when the threats happened?
  - CashmanNinja
    
    Because he probably either didn’t have any proof of the threats or…most likely…he was afraid of the police starting an investigation and digging into what he was really doing.
    - Holy Ghost
      
      Or the fact that the burden of proof is much higher in a criminal case than in a baseball arbitration case?
    - The Great Gonzo
      
      But the DEA was already raising a case on Bosch, right? Didn’t the MLB offer to ‘put in a good word’ for Bosch with the Fed on account of this?
      
      So much TV drama. Love it. Before all this is over, someone is going to wake up with a mascot’s head in their bed.
TopChuckie

I really don’t think any of this is about “winning” the case. I think it’s simply about tying in up in the courts, and securing injunctions allowing him to play while it’s still in the courts, thus making the most of his physically able playing days remaining.
http://riveravenueblues Mississippi doc

This is getting boring. Let the lawyers go at each other. I’m more concerned about the fact that we do not yet have a credible infield or even an adequate pitching staff.
- Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
  
  The don’t comment on ARod threads.
- OldYanksFan
  
  “According to FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi, the Yankees have contacted the Padres about dealing for an infielder. Chase Headley has been the subject of trade speculation for a long time, often in connection with the Yankees, but Morosi writes that Logan Forsythe is “the most realistic target.” Forysthe, who turns 27 tomorrow, batted just .214/.281/.332…”
cheddar

So as I understand it, Alex is the only baseball player caught in the Biogenesis case who got multiple PEDs from Bosch, because if others did as well they too would have received multiple 50-game suspensions.

Does that really make sense?
- The Great Gonzo
  
  Nope. Well, the other guys decided to eat the 50 games, so they didn’t get ‘investigated’…
- Doug
  
  Somewhere in the decision it’s mentioned that Horowitz did not consider the other Biogenesis suspensions when handing down his ruling.
  - Jarrod
    
    He couldn’t consider them because they were non-precendtial settlements, but that’s not what Cheddar is saying anyway.
    - Jarrod
      
      *non-precedential
- Jarrod
  
  Spot on. The decision to ban A-Rod for next season was justified by the fact that he used 3 different PES over the course of the 3 years – a 50 game suspension for each.
  
  If the other guys used more than 1 PES they should be receiving the same type of suspension.
OldYanksFan

People should realize that there are 3 parties here that are ALL very guilty. But what are they guilty of?

ARod: Used a variety of PEDs, lied about it, tried to interfere with the investigation against him.
Verdict: Guilty on all counts: of doing what many other MLB and MiLB players before him have done. Guilty of cheating in MLB (like literally over 1,000 other players). Guilty of gross stupidity.

A. Bosch: Had a ‘clinic’ to promote and sell illegal drugs to adults AND minors, specifically targeting professional athletes. Wrote out prescriptions for drugs on another Doctors prescription pad.
Verdict: Guilty on all counts: of selling illegal drugs, of selling drugs to minors (high school athletes), of stealing and writing prescriptions on another Doctors valid prescription pad (forgery, Theft and possession of a controlled substance… all Felonies)

Spud Selig: Obtained stolen evidence, bribery, blackmail, inconsistent treatment of MLBPA members.
Verdict: Guilty on all counts: and many more. Dropped his case against Bosch, someone who sold to and involved multiple MLB players in PEDs, in order to be able to suspend ARod for 162 games instead of 50.

ALL guilty. My question here is WHO is the most criminal? The most immoral? The most out of line with societal norms?

Who here is the moron? The criminal? The total scumbag?

Who should be held to the higher standard? The employee/citizen? Or the governing institution?
- Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
  
  Pretty much agree with all of this.
- Holy Ghost
  
  A-Rod is smart about baseball but dumb about everything else in his life
  
  Bosch is a criminal
  
  Selig is a hypocrite
- John Gotti circa 1992
  
  I totally agree. Governing institutions should never cut deals with criminals to catch other criminals.
OldYanksFan

Quote of the Day: if you disagree with MLB’s tactics, you’re apparently pro-cheater
http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/01/14/quote-of-the-day-if-you-disagree-with-mlbs-tactics-youre-apparently-pro-cheater/