MLB Still Is Not Getting It

[ATL96Steeler]

The players are somewhat vulnerable...if they want to clean up the game, strike now while the iron is hot.

Braun is going to miss the remainder of the year...roughly $4 million. Big deal...Next yr and the yr after he stands to collect another $24 million!!! Yea, he lied in front of a whole buncha people, but most of us would've done the same thing to boost our #s for that kind of pay day.

Consider

1st positive - 1 year ban, contract voids, any new contract capped @ 50% of previous contract value
2nd positive - 3 yr ban, contract voids, any new contract capped @ 25% of previous contract value
3rd positive - lifetime ban...no exceptions for return.

These guys may not spit in the face of punishment so easily.

 

[NickVT10]

I am fine with stiffer punishments but the player's union will reject anything like that.

 

[fordman84]

I am fine with stiffer punishments but the player's union will reject anything like that.

And there is the issue. If you were to get something like that pushed through, you would have to give them something MAJOR, like the option to be a FA any time they want

 

[NickVT10]

And there is the issue. If you were to get something like that pushed through, you would have to give them something MAJOR, like the option to be a FA any time they want

I would counter with they can become a FA anytime if they repay the amount they received from their contract since they voided it.

 

[gunnarthor]

It's not like ownership is clean. Most turned a willful blind eye to this. Many send their best prospects to winterball in LA where PEDs are prevalent. Mitchell report wasn't great but it certainly showed enough blame to go around.

 

[fordman84]

I would counter with they can become a FA anytime if they repay the amount they received from their contract since they voided it.

true. You know the owners would hate it though. Get a guy for $5M a year that gets hot and you lose him. Sign a hot guy to a $10M a year deal and he starts to suck and no way he is opting out.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I am fine with stiffer punishments but the player's union will reject anything like that.

That's why I say strike while the iron is hot...they players are publicly saying all the right things...disappointed, he deserves it, etc.

Put the ball in the player union court while...I agree they won't go for what I proposed, but could probably get something more stiff than take a half season off and see you next yr.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

It's not like ownership is clean. Most turned a willful blind eye to this. Many send their best prospects to winterball in LA where PEDs are prevalent. Mitchell report wasn't great but it certainly showed enough blame to go around.

I actually put more of the problem on the owner...by turning a blind eye they created a haven for PEDs then threw the players under the bus when congress started poking around.

But...now is a good opportunity to put the screws to the players a bit more if they indeed want to clean up the game. 50 games or whatever is not proving to be a big enough deterrent.

 

[DweeberAZ]

It's not like ownership is clean. Most turned a willful blind eye to this. Many send their best prospects to winterball in LA where PEDs are prevalent. Mitchell report wasn't great but it certainly showed enough blame to go around.

Do what they do with a normal suspension... Loose a roster spot. If a pitcher is suspended for thowing at a player, or someone pushes a ump, they are suspended and the team can't replace the spot during the suspension.

Do that for a player that has been suspended for 50-100 games and that owners will pay more attention so will the coaches, managers etc...

Won't happen but...

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Do what they do with a normal suspension... Loose a roster spot.

Won't happen but...

Good points.

 

[The Cubs fan]

I think that the current system is good with these changes:
2nd suspension is full season
And that if caught, your contract can be voided.
maybe first idea happens, no way players agree to second one though.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I think that the current system is good with these changes:
2nd suspension is full season
And that if caught, your contract can be voided.
maybe first idea happens, no way players agree to second one though.

Kind of a venting pipe dream I posted... but voiding contracts should be on the table and a complete yr on positives. Beyond that, teams that re-sign these players later would be foolish to offer them fair market...play clean, put up the #s and your next deal will be fair market...PEDs are about the money...the only way to clean it up is to hit the players harder financially.

 

[Clayton]

ARod is going to be their example, imo. Apparently their evidence is better and he tried to block their investigation which really pisses MLB off.

 

[Swangin]

Kind of a venting pipe dream I posted... but voiding contracts should be on the table and a complete yr on positives. Beyond that, teams that re-sign these players later would be foolish to offer them fair market...play clean, put up the #s and your next deal will be fair market...PEDs are about the money...the only way to clean it up is to hit the players harder financially.

So when do you think the NFL should tackle this problem?

 

[ATL96Steeler]

So when do you think the NFL should tackle this problem?

That depends on what you think the problem is.

Is the problem the user? Or how the user is handled?

I think the latter is the problem.

NFL...most teams will grin and bear it for one positive 4 gm suspension if you're a starter. I can't be certain, but if you get cut, I think your signing bonus not yet earned is at the discretion on the team under the code of conduct clause...similar to the M Vick and A. Hernandez cases...the short answer is the NFL has much more control over how much money you can earn after getting busted.

 

[Swangin]

That depends on what you think the problem is.

Is the problem the user? Or how the user is handled?

I think the latter is the problem.

NFL...most teams will grin and bear it for one positive 4 gm suspension if you're a starter. I can't be certain, but if you get cut, I think your signing bonus not yet earned is at the discretion on the team under the code of conduct clause...similar to the M Vick and A. Hernandez cases...the short answer is the NFL has much more control over how much money you can earn after getting busted.

I was actually just talking about testing itself. You seem like you want PEDs out of baseball, when the NFL has the biggest joke of a testing policy out there. Just curious if you want the NFL to clean it's sport up as well when it comes to PEDS?

 

[ImSmartherThanYou]

The players are somewhat vulnerable...if they want to clean up the game, strike now while the iron is hot.

Braun is going to miss the remainder of the year...roughly $4 million. Big deal...Next yr and the yr after he stands to collect another $24 million!!! Yea, he lied in front of a whole buncha people, but most of us would've done the same thing to boost our #s for that kind of pay day.

Consider

1st positive - 1 year ban, contract voids, any new contract capped @ 50% of previous contract value
2nd positive - 3 yr ban, contract voids, any new contract capped @ 25% of previous contract value
3rd positive - lifetime ban...no exceptions for return.

These guys may not spit in the face of punishment so easily.

I find it funny in a sad way that a Steelers fan thinks baseball needs to clean up the game.

The punishments are fine the way they are. One failed test is legacy assassination, which is much worse than the loss of playing time.

I also don't understand why the money matters. Players make a lot of money. Get over it. Unless you can prove everything they've done is illegitimate, then you can't touch the contracts. Ryan Braun didn't hold a gun to Attanasio's head.

 

[ImSmartherThanYou]

That's why I say strike while the iron is hot...they players are publicly saying all the right things...disappointed, he deserves it, etc.

Put the ball in the player union court while...I agree they won't go for what I proposed, but could probably get something more stiff than take a half season off and see you next yr.

It's because, at the end of the day, PEDs really aren't that big a deal. You still have to be a good player, and you still have to execute and perform. The media has blown it up into something bigger than it really is (while simultaneously being an accessory to the "scandal"). At the end of the day, some guys take drugs to hit a ball further or throw it harder, or recover from an injury. Is this really a big deal? Really? It's their bodies. It's not hurting anyone but themselves. People just need to gain a little perspective.

 

[ImSmartherThanYou]

I actually put more of the problem on the owner...by turning a blind eye they created a haven for PEDs then threw the players under the bus when congress started poking around.

But...now is a good opportunity to put the screws to the players a bit more if they indeed want to clean up the game. 50 games or whatever is not proving to be a big enough deterrent.

What about the writers? What do you think about the *FACT* that they knew exactly what was going on, and were in those locker rooms every day and at those training camps every spring? How about the *FACT* that they saw all of that and said nothing, until Barry Bonds started destroying records? Until they realized how much money they could make blowing the lid off the story? All the book deals and all the webpage hits.

The writers' job is to be the conduit between the players and the fans. To tell us what's going on. They failed at their jobs far worse than anyone in this whole mess. Hell, any fan with half a brain knew what was going on too, but didn't care because it was exciting, and after all, this is just entertainment. Nobody wants admit that blame lies equally with all parties, and just accept that it happened and move on. That's it's part of the game's history and you can't rewrite history.

And now, the writers sit in judgment of the behavior they condoned.

 

[ImSmartherThanYou]

That depends on what you think the problem is.

Is the problem the user? Or how the user is handled?

I think the latter is the problem.

NFL...most teams will grin and bear it for one positive 4 gm suspension if you're a starter. I can't be certain, but if you get cut, I think your signing bonus not yet earned is at the discretion on the team under the code of conduct clause...similar to the M Vick and A. Hernandez cases...the short answer is the NFL has much more control over how much money you can earn after getting busted.

The problem is the fact that PED use is almost universal in the league, and no one ever tests positive, and no one cares in the extraordinarily rare instance that someone does test positive. The NFL seems to care more about players smoking weed than taking steroids.

The problem is the double standard that exists. If PED use is so offensive in baseball, and in cycling and in the Olympics, it should be offensive in all sports.

Hell, the WWE has a better drug testing program than the NFL at this point.