Free agent third baseman Alex Rodriguez
It has been about two weeks since all of the Biogenesis related suspensions were handed out by Major League Baseball, so I am very late to the party. For the most part, I am tired of the story and have nothing particularly insightful to add. But there are pretty significant baseball implications here, so I feel the need to write a little bit about it. Fortunately, I will be able to quickly bury this post with a much more interesting article (to me) coming in the next day or two. In case you didn’t notice, there was a pretty big trade made before the deadline last week. But first, here are some of my Biogenesis thoughts along with the impact the suspensions will have on the DTBL.
I have to admit that I was very skeptical of the entire Biogenesis story when it was made public earlier this year. It seemed far too coincidental that many of the players being implicated in the story just happened to be most of the players who had tested positive for PEDs and/or served drug related suspensions last year. As it turns out, there was a good reason for this. All of these players were receiving their PEDs from the same source: Tony Bosch and his Biogenesis clinic. Many have stated that these suspensions and subsequent admissions of guilt are a black eye on the sport of baseball. I don’t see it that way. In fact, I think it is somewhat encouraging that most of the players suspended in the last year and a half had ties to this now defunct clinic. This is not to say I believe PEDs have been completely eradicated from the league now that Biogenesis is no more. But I believe these suspensions are a positive step towards cleaning up the game. Cheaters are getting caught and punished. That is more than could be said as recently as five years ago. Also, while there is still plenty of room for improvement in the drug testing and punishment program, MLB is so far ahead of the other three major professional sports leagues in this regard, it isn’t even worth comparing. That MLB seems to take far more heat than the NFL for having a PED problem is completely ridiculous.
To me, one of the most fascinating aspects of the Biogenesis scandal has been the way it has been covered by the media. Not only the overwhelming number of articles on the topic, but the extent to which specific guilty players have been skewered as cheaters and liars. They are indeed both of those things, but this isn’t new information. Almost everyone besides die-hard Brewers fans and Aaron Rodgers knew Ryan Braun was guilty of taking PEDs when he avoided a suspension on a pure technicality following a failed drug test. The fact that he is now admitting his guilt after accepting a 65 game suspension is not particularly interesting news, in my opinion. He certainly owes a major apology to the sample handler whose character he attacked, among allegedly much worse things, as the Braun drama continues. And the Brewers fans who have stuck by Braun throughout his career have every right to be angry. But other than that, I don’t see Braun as much more of a villain than any of these other suspended players, past or present. Almost all of these guys attempted to do whatever they could to avoid punishment, just as Braun did. Heck, somewhat hilariously, Melky Cabrera tried to create an entire web site to prove his innocence. But he seems to have been forgiven as he is now yesterday’s news. Braun and Alex Rodriguez just happen to be the biggest names in this story, and are therefore receiving the most attention.
And then there is ARod and his pending 211 game suspension. I am really curious to see what kind of dirt MLB has on him, because on the face of it, the largest drug related suspension in league history seems a bit harsh for a player who has not tested positive under the current drug testing regime. I have no opinion on how much of a suspension he deserves without knowing exactly what he did, but again I state that almost all of these players have taken steps to try to duck the long arm of the law. Just how serious ARod’s offenses were in comparison will be interesting to see. I would hope the fact that pretty much everybody wants him to just go away, including his own employer, had no bearing on the decision to give him this unprecedented year and a half ban. Just because everyone hates him isn’t enough of a reason to cast him out to sea. But the willingness of the rest of these players to accept their punishments leads me to believe that MLB’s evidence is pretty solid. So the ARod saga continues.
Now for the DTBL impact of Biogenesis. Despite some huge names going down in this scandal, it doesn’t appear to be particularly likely to swing the DTBL title race in one direction or another. Almost all of the suspended players happen to be on non-contending teams. Losing Braun is just another major blow in a nightmare season for the Jackalope. They will finish this season without the two main faces of their franchise (Braun and Albert Pujols, who was just ruled out for the season due to his foot injury). The Moonshiners will be without the services of Jhonny Peralta, but they too are in the midst of a disappointing season. Nelson Cruz will be out of the Gators lineup for 50 games. The Gators currently sit in last place, but seem to be building a more competitive team for the future. Losing Cruz won’t really change much. Ditto for Everth Cabrera and the Demigods. The one suspended player on a contending team is Jesus Montero of the Naturals. However, he had been sent to AAA a couple months ago and didn’t figure to play much of a role down the stretch for the Naturals anyway. Finally, Alex Rodriguez has been a free agent all season after the Kings finally cut him last winter. Interestingly enough, there is a chance a DTBL team might take a flyer on him before the year is over since he is finally healthy and doesn’t figure to have his appeal ruled upon until very late in the season, if not after it. Despite receiving the biggest punishment of any Biogenesis player, he may be the only one on a DTBL active roster in September. Well, maybe Melky Cabrera (Gators) too since he did not receive any additional punishment having served his suspension last year. Same for Yasmani Grandal (Naturals) , but he’s out for the year with a knee injury anyway.
To close things out, in regards to Biogensis, I am going to steal a line from The Band Perry: All I want to be is done!