Alex Rodriguez, who once appeared on his way to breaking baseball's all-time home run record, is all but assured of a Biogenesis-related MLB ban being levied against him -- quite possibly more than the usual 50 games for first-time offenders -- people familiar with the case say.I know people have been saying this was going to happen for months, and then nothing would happen, but this time I think the shit is finally about to hit the fan for A-Rod and the rest of his merry band of cheaters. And I can honestly say I don't care. If this idiot cheated again, he deserves whatever he gets, and probably should just retire and save us all the future head aches.
Rodriguez is expected to be one of up to 15 or so players to receive suspensions by MLB when they are announced, possibly within a couple weeks. All the suspensions could be announced simultaneously.
Rodriguez declined to answer the questions of MLB investigators when they interviewed him, sources told CBSSports.com, as did perhaps most of the other players linked to the PED case. The players union believes baseball's Jenkins Rule allows players not to answer MLB investigators' questions, and players are being advised that their answers could be used against them in a possible appeals process or additional legal matter.
A-Rod, Brewers star Ryan Braun -- the other high-profile player linked to the case -- and most other players involved publicly denied they received performance-enhancing drugs from now-defunct Biogenesis or its proprietor, Tony Bosch, who became a witness for MLB in the case.
Any Biogenesis-related suspension based on so-called "non-analytic positives" (not triggered by a positive test) is subject to appeal -- though the likelihood now is that suspension announcements would be made before any appeals. Players union chief Michael Weiner told the New York Daily News, speaking generally and not necessarily about A-Rod, that appeals aren't necessarily automatic, explaining that in cases where the evidence is overwhelming the player might simply accept a suspension.
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'I don't think he's going to beat the suspension back to the field,' one person connected to Rodriguez said...
...Sources who have spoken to Rodriguez say the Yankees third baseman is expecting a suspension, though he hasn't said that publicly.
MLB people declined to comment, except to say its investigators are going where the evidence takes them.
MLB appears to be readying bans which likely will be based on the drug-test failure standard:
•First offense: 50 games
•Second offense: 100 games
•Third offense: Lifetime ban
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"MLB has receipts, checks, the whole nine yards," a person with ties to an investigated player said.
"He's looking at a lengthy suspension," another player-connected source said about A-Rod.
UPDATE: Bruan has been suspended for the remainder of the 2013 season.
