arbitrator reduces A-roid ban to 162 games

[MarcoPolo]

Why Baseball Fans Shouldn't Celebrate Alex Rodriguez's Season-Long Suspension | ThinkProgress

Alex Rodriguez will miss the entire 2014 season for his connection to baseball’s Biogenesis performance enhancing drug scandal, a spokesperson for the New York Yankees third baseman announced Saturday.

Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig originally handed Rodriguez a 211-game suspension in August; after a lengthy appeal that allowed Rodriguez to play the remainder of the 2013 season, an independent arbitrator reduced the ban to 162 games. The effect, however, is the same: the Yankee slugger will not set foot on a Major League field for all of 2014.

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[MarcoPolo]

Personally, I think that it's time for baseball to just say "let's adopt the Olympic rules and tests against PEDs". Anything the IOC says can't be used, baseball players can't use. We will use the same accredited test centers and tests as the IOC. MLB will distribute information about what products are known to cause positive tests (such as "XYZ"-brand cough syrup).

 

[calsnowskier]

You have to put the same onus on the teams.

The fact that the Spanks get out from under his 26M+ contract this year is complete bunk. They should still have to pay the $$, but it goes to (for example) a players pension fund instead. As it is, there is MAJOR incentive for the teams to act against their own players to show that used, but no incentive for the teams not to look the other way while the players use.