Judgement day has come and gone for New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez who has been suspended by Major League Baseball through the end of the 2014 season for his alleged role in the Biogenesis scandal. It was inevitable that a lengthy suspension was coming down the pike as MLB commissioner Bud Selig is attempting to rid the game of baseball of performance-enhancing drugs. The owners, players, and fans are tired of the problem, but the Yankees front office is where the biggest sigh of relief could be coming from.
When Rodriguez opted of his contract following the 2007 season, he was seeking a 10-year, $300 million deal. The Yankees and Rodriguez agreed on the years, but both sides ultimately agreed to $270 million for the slugger. Yankee owners Hank and Hal Steinbrenner agreed to the deal at the time in part because Rodriguez who was 31-years old at the time was coming off of winning his third American League MVP Award and he was sitting on 518 career home runs. Rodriguez was looked at as the “clean” baseball player that would break Hank Aaron’s career home run record of 755.
Since Rodriguez helped the Yankees win the World Series in 2009, it has indeed been a rapid decline for the slugger. In 2009, Rodriguez admitted to taking steroids during his three-year stint with the Texas Rangers after signing a 10-year, $252 million deal with the club in the fall of 2000. Rodriguez admitted to feeling pressure in order to live up to the huge contract that he had just signed and thus he succumbed to taking steroids. With the exception of his three seasons with the Rangers, Rodriguez admitted to being clean for the rest of his MLB career.
When Rodriguez won the AL MVP in 2007, he hit 54 homers, but since then he has never hit more than 35 home runs and he only hit 18 long balls in 2012.
Reports surfaced that following the 2012 season that the Yankees were looking to part with Rodriguez even though the slugger would still be owed over $100 million through 2017. With Rodriguez’s name being linked to the Biogenesis clinic in South Florida, the Yankees saw this as a golden opportunity.
With a $228 million payroll which is the highest in Major League Baseball, the Yankees are looking to potentially part ways with aging stars like Rodriguez. Due to Rodriguez’s hip injury that kept him out of action this season until last night, the Yankees were able to have the majority of his $28 million salary this season covered by insurance, but the Yankees know that it will be tougher to reload as they are accustomed too with Rodriguez’s salary on the books.
The Steinbrenners and Yankees general manager Brian Cashman would love for Rodriguez to retire, but he would be a fool to walk away from nearly $90 million which is still on his contract. Selig has suspended Rodriguez for 211 games for his alleged role in the Biogenesis scandal, but were the Yankees forcing the commissioner’s hand?
As much as there is parity in Major League Baseball as we haven’t seen a repeat World Series Champion since the Yankees from 1998-2000, Selig still relies on his big market teams like the Yankees to carry baseball; especially when it comes to the luxury tax that the Yankees have always paid. The Yankees front office has complained to Selig in the past as they have felt that the luxury tax that they pay is not spent accordingly by smaller market teams which caused some tweaks in the system. As much as the Yankees would love to part with Rodriguez, it isn’t out of reach that they could have forced Selig’s hand in the suspension of Rodriguez as they stand to gain a great deal from the matter as he wouldn’t be paid and that is more money for the Yankees to throw at another big-time free agent in the near future.
Rodriguez is appealing the decision thus he made his season debut for the Yankees last night against the Chicago White Sox. The fans in the Windy City didn’t exactly roll out the red carpet for Rodriguez and he shouldn’t expect anything lesser at this point and time.
Rodriguez is going to fight this to the fullest extent that he possibly can due to the fact of the money that he could potentially lose. Rodriguez has also felt that the Yankees have conspired against him in his rehab from his hip injury which could work in his favor as he is attempting to have his suspension reduced. It will also work in his favor that Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun received the second highest suspension at 65 games, but obviously there is a huge gap between 211 and 65.
If anyone thinks that this problem has gone away they can think again. The matter is out of the hands of the Yankees, MLB, and Rodriguez as it is in the hands of lawyers and arbitrators. At some point the truth will come out and it won’t be pretty.
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