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Tuesday, June 23, 2009

L.A. Times: Bill Plaschke: It’s a pretty shaky suspension bridge for Manny Ramirez

While the Dodgers were playing the 42nd game of Manny Ramirez’s 50-game suspension Tuesday, Manny Ramirez was doing something very strange.

He was playing for the Dodgers.

Well, not exactly, but close enough, as he was playing on a Dodgers-sponsored team, with Dodgers-funded teammates and coaches, in a stadium where a portion of the ticket revenue is sent to Major League Baseball.

Manny Ramirez playing for the triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes is as weird as the word Isotope.

Why is Ramirez allowed to play there? Why is Ramirez allowed to play anywhere? Since when are players allowed to turn a rehab assignment into a detox assignment?

And why can’t baseball punish a guy without also apologizing to him?

Sorry about those 50 games, slugger. You can use our minor league club to get back in shape before the suspension ends, come back at full strength, is that OK?

Under the current rules, I don’t blame the Dodgers for sending them there, and it’s hard to blame Albuquerque for trying to make a few bucks off the circus, but there is something fundamentally wrong about all of this. I blame the entire major league baseball system—from the commissioner’s office to the union to the individual clubs—because nobody saw this coming.

Tripon Posted: June 23, 2009 at 07:52 PM | 11 comment(s)
Related News: General, LA Dodgers, Steroids

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1. akrasian Posted: June 24, 2009 at 12:40 AM (#3230580)

He blames MLB for having a tough drug policy where the policies are literal - Manny was suspended for 50 games, so he has to miss 50 games - not more than that trying to get into game shape?
BTW - has Plaschke ever taken a drug test? Is there a reason that his paragraphs are so short?

2. Srul Itza At Home Posted: June 24, 2009 at 01:40 AM (#3230604)

I blame the entire major league baseball system—from the commissioner’s office to the union to the individual clubs—because nobody saw this coming.

Well, teach them a lesson by refusing to watch any baseball games or writing about baseball for, oh, the next 50 years? That'll show them.

3. Tripon Posted: June 24, 2009 at 01:46 AM (#3230606)

BTW, The L.A. Times sent T.J. Simers instead to New Mexico.

4. larkin4HoF Posted: June 24, 2009 at 04:09 AM (#3230630)

[quoteBTW, The L.A. Times sent T.J. Simers instead to New Mexico]

The question is, did they decide that before or after Plaske decided he was not going.

5. David Nieporent (now, with child) Posted: June 24, 2009 at 05:01 AM (#3230635)

According to Sportscenter, Albuquerque drew record crowds and Ramirez received loud cheers. Guess they were so outraged about steroids they forgot to boo.

6. Pasta-diving Jeter (jmac66) Posted: June 24, 2009 at 07:06 AM (#3230667)

but don't you see that's the point--the idiot writers get a free bonus--they can express their outrage over the steroid issue and tsk tsk the fans for NOT being outraged

a twofer

7. thetalkingmoose Posted: June 24, 2009 at 08:30 AM (#3230725)

I blame the entire major league baseball system—from the commissioner’s office to the union to the individual clubs—because nobody saw this coming.

Nowithstanding J.C. Romero's rehab stint in the Phillies farm system before his suspension was over -- which happened just a few weeks ago. Really, reporters should actually, you know, research and get their facts straight before they start hacking away at a keyboard like an infinite number of monkeys sitting at an infinite number of typewriters.

8. Bad Doctor Posted: June 24, 2009 at 08:57 AM (#3230767)

because nobody saw this coming

moose, I clicked on the link to see what Plaschke meant by this. (Gotta run and take a shower now.) He means that when this provision was negotiated into the drug suspension policy, nobody saw this outrage coming.

I think this is the most ridiculous controversy to hit the 24-hour sports news cycle in a while. It's not like there's a federal mandate for a 50 game suspension, and MLB and the MLBPA found a loophole around it. The penalty is what the parties negotiate it to be. The funny thing is, if they agreed to a 40 game suspension (exact same proportion of the season for a first time offender as under the NFL's policy), with an option for a 10 game rehab assignment upon a player's return from suspension, nobody would say boo. (Well, except the people who think the first time penalty should be a year or a permanent ban, but that's no different than their objection to the current policy.) Here, the penalty is acutally more severe, in that the player doesn't get paid during a rehab stint, but everyone's up in arms because it's against the spirit of a "50 game suspension." Stop being so damn literal!

9. scareduck Posted: June 24, 2009 at 02:57 PM (#3231416)

Plaschke is dumber than Tommy Lasorda's dog.

10. Dock Ellis on Acid

Posted: June 24, 2009 at 02:59 PM (#3231421)

BTW - has Plaschke ever taken a drug test?

His employers might want to give him one if words like "isotope" are "weird" to him.

11. Barry`s_Lazy_Boy Posted: June 24, 2009 at 03:33 PM (#3231466)

You know what else is stupid? When a player is suspended for charging the mound, or corking his bat, or whatever... He is allowed to ride on a bus, paid for by a team. Also on planes, paid for by a MLB team. Dress in a locker room, paid for by an MLB team. If a suspension was real, the moment it came into effect, a player would have to turn in any team-provided clothes or equipment (jock straps, etc.), and find his own transportation to his home city and/or his place of residence. MLB employees would be barred from communicating with such a player in any manner: spoken word, email, text message, lap dance, etc.

Lets show that we (by "we", I mean "the media") mean business.

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Tuesday, June 23, 2009

L.A. Times: Bill Plaschke: It’s a pretty shaky suspension bridge for Manny Ramirez

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