Ears tend to perk up when you hear the words “baseball” and “steroids” used in the same sentence.
So it goes. MLB is seeking to suspend 20 players who were involved in the Biogenesis scandal. Among the players named were Alex Rodriguez, Ryan Braun, and Melky Cabrera.
MLB’s case against the players relies solely on the testimony of Tony Bosch who allegedly supplied the players with steroids and was the PED kingpin of Florida.
This is problematic for me.
I’m not a labor lawyer and while I have a working understanding of MLB’s PED testing policy I mainly rely on the opinions of other people who are more versed in the inner workings of MLB’s CBA as it pertains to PED suspensions.
@DSzymborski It’s a collateral attack on MLB’s own testing regime and they have no ability to meet their burden of proof in arbitration.
— Eugene Freedman (@EugeneFreedman) June 5, 2013
So you know, there’s that to consider.
I don’t care about steroids too much. I know a lot of Cubs fans feel a certain way about PED’s because they felt deceived by Sammy Sosa for all those years. You’re entitled to your opinion and I’m not here to take that away from you.
What I am here to say is that this case against these players doesn’t hold much water for me and the burden of proof is on the prosecutors. MLB is relying heavily on the testimony of a witness that doesn’t have a whole lot of credibility.
That Bud Selig is seeking 100 game suspensions for these players based on Bosch’s testimony is disheartening.
I can’t see how the charges stick, and if they do it won’t be a good thing for baseball in the short or long term.
There’s going to be a lot written about this now and in the future, so stay tuned.
