2012 MLB Thread

[buckchuckler]

Melky Cabrera has been suspended 50 games for using roids.  That hurts the Giants chances pretty seriously. 

[Bocephys]

Melky Cabrera has been suspended 50 games for using roids.  That hurts the Giants chances pretty seriously. 

Looks like he's not trying the Ryan Braun school of defense either and is accepting the punishment.

[MerrittsMustache]

Melky Cabrera has been suspended 50 games for using roids.  That hurts the Giants chances pretty seriously. 

What?! You mean a .267 hitter who averaged 8 HRs/year didn't suddenly learn how to hit for average and power in his late 20s? I'm shocked!

Hopefully Theo is on the phone with Brian Sabean right now trying to sell him on Soriano.

[Benny B]

Looks like he's not trying the Ryan Braun school of defense either and is accepting the punishment.

Why invoke the Braun defense when he has something even better at his disposal... the SF fans who wrote the Barry Bonds school of defense.  My guess is that this will simply go down as "Melky Cabrera never tested positive for steroids" in the annals of Giants lore.

[MU B2002]

Melky Cabrera has been suspended 50 games for using roids.  That hurts the Giants chances pretty seriously. 

But helps the Dodgers.   

[Bocephys]

Nice little game from King Felix today.

[buckchuckler]

Nice little game from King Felix today.

Unreal.  Struck out 5 of the last 6.  Just killer.  Eventful day in baseball. 

[MUfan12]

Looks like he's not trying the Ryan Braun school of defense either and is accepting the punishment.

Or he did, and it stayed quiet. Like Braun's case should have been.

[Benny B]

Unreal.  Struck out 5 of the last 6.  Just killer.  Eventful day in baseball. 

The ball was dancing around the strike zone like Buzz after a WVU game.

[MerrittsMustache]

Looks like he's not trying the Ryan Braun school of defense either and is accepting the punishment.

"My positive test was the result of my use of a substance I should not have used," Cabrera said in a statement released by the union. "I accept my suspension under the Joint Drug Program and I will try to move on with my life. I am deeply sorry for my mistake and I apologize to my teammates, to the San Francisco Giants organization and to the fans for letting them down."

Accepting blame! What a novel concept! He should have tried to ruin the life of the sample handler instead.

[Hards Alumni]

"My positive test was the result of my use of a substance I should not have used," Cabrera said in a statement released by the union. "I accept my suspension under the Joint Drug Program and I will try to move on with my life. I am deeply sorry for my mistake and I apologize to my teammates, to the San Francisco Giants organization and to the fans for letting them down."

Accepting blame! What a novel concept! He should have tried to ruin the life of the sample handler instead.

That's just like, your opinion, man.

[Spotcheck Billy]

Or he did, and it stayed quiet. Like Braun's case should have been.

^ This.

[jmayer1]

"My positive test was the result of my use of a substance I should not have used," Cabrera said in a statement released by the union. "I accept my suspension under the Joint Drug Program and I will try to move on with my life. I am deeply sorry for my mistake and I apologize to my teammates, to the San Francisco Giants organization and to the fans for letting them down."

Accepting blame! What a novel concept! He should have tried to ruin the life of the sample handler instead.

When rules aren't followed, there is no reason to not appeal. That appeal should have never come to light (even if he did get off on a technicality).

Following the rules that have been collectively bargained, what a novel concept!! The sample handler has nobody to blame but himself.

[Bocephys]

When rules aren't followed, there is no reason to not appeal. That appeal should have never come to light (even if he did get off on a technicality).

Following the rules that have been collectively bargained, what a novel concept!! The sample handler has nobody to blame but himself.

Except he did follow them, MLB thinks he followed them, the WADA thinks he followed them.  Braun did get one arbitrator to catch his Hail Mary pass though, so good for him.  Doesn't change the fact that he never disputed the positive test, only how it was handled.

[The Process]

Or he did, and it stayed quiet. Like Braun's case should have been.

Actually, a beat writer had the scoop on this one back in late July, but because of Melky and Melky's agent's denial of them even being contacted by MLB or the union for a positive test and the fact that the writer had even acknowledged the rumor in the first place, the writer issued an apology to Melky.

Oh, irony.  Sweet, sweet irony.

[The Process]

Doesn't change the fact that he never disputed the positive test, only how it was handled.

But if the easiest path to clearing oneself is via a Chain of Custody dispute, why should they even fight the test itself?  Doing so would have likely led to the airing of all sorts of things that Braun would have not wanted disclosed.  Why disclose more than what is absolutely necessary for one's defense?

[wadesworld]

Except he did follow them, MLB thinks he followed them, the WADA thinks he followed them.  Braun did get one arbitrator to catch his Hail Mary pass though, so good for him.  Doesn't change the fact that he never disputed the positive test, only how it was handled.

A neutral arbitrator who was agreed upon by both parties (the MLB and the MLBPA). If the MLB doesn't like it, then they shouldn't have made it their own rules.

And how do you know whether Braun disputed his innocence or the use of a banned substance in his defense? Were you sitting in on the hearings? I doubt it. How do you know what the arbitrator based his decision off of? If the handler followed all of the procedures correctly and everyone involved agrees to that, then Braun was found not guilty based on...?

Even if Braun was found not guilty based solely on a technicality and didn't dispute the use of a banned substance in his hearings, he maintained his innocence from day 1. Like in any legal case, Braun could have been innocent based on a huge number of facts. The defense could have had 5 different arguments. The job of the defense team is to decide which defense is the best defense to use, the most likely to win the case. Whether Braun used a banned substance or not, the easiest defense to win the case was always going to be a chain of custody issue (which apparently there wasn't 1 and everyone knew there wasn't but he still won his case...? Must be a buddy of Braun's that the MLB agreed to use as an "independent" arbitrator, eh? ) because that means the sample cannot possibly be used or found credible, legally. It was a failure to follow the MLB's own rules.

And Braun ruining someone else's life? Please. Do your job and do it correctly and nobody knows or cares who the sampler is. Why take a dude's pee sample home with you for 48 hours?

[Bocephys]

A neutral arbitrator who was agreed upon by both parties (the MLB and the MLBPA). If the MLB doesn't like it, then they shouldn't have made it their own rules.

And how do you know whether Braun disputed his innocence or the use of a banned substance in his defense? Were you sitting in on the hearings? I doubt it. How do you know what the arbitrator based his decision off of? If the handler followed all of the procedures correctly and everyone involved agrees to that, then Braun was found not guilty based on...?

Even if Braun was found not guilty based solely on a technicality and didn't dispute the use of a banned substance in his hearings, he maintained his innocence from day 1. Like in any legal case, Braun could have been innocent based on a huge number of facts. The defense could have had 5 different arguments. The job of the defense team is to decide which defense is the best defense to use, the most likely to win the case. Whether Braun used a banned substance or not, the easiest defense to win the case was always going to be a chain of custody issue (which apparently there wasn't 1 and everyone knew there wasn't but he still won his case...? Must be a buddy of Braun's that the MLB agreed to use as an "independent" arbitrator, eh? ) because that means the sample cannot possibly be used or found credible, legally. It was a failure to follow the MLB's own rules.

And Braun ruining someone else's life? Please. Do your job and do it correctly and nobody knows or cares who the sampler is. Why take a dude's pee sample home with you for 48 hours?

Barry Bonds has maintained his innocence from Day 1 too and has never tested positive, do you believe him?  How about Mark McGwire or Rafael Palmeiro?

Braun was found not guilty (note how very different that is from innocent) because of a loophole.  I was merely pointing out the difference between his and Melky Cabrera's responses.

[MerrittsMustache]

And Braun ruining someone else's life? Please. Do your job and do it correctly and nobody knows or cares who the sampler is. Why take a dude's pee sample home with you for 48 hours?

The point I was trying to make was that Braun unnecessarily called out the handler and threw him under the bus despite the fact that experts on the matter have stated that leaving the sample out for 48 hours would not have affected the results and the sample was not tampered with. If you think about it, Braun should be thanking the handler because if he had immediately shipped the sample, Braun would have missed the first 2 months of the season.

[Benny B]

The point I was trying to make was that Braun unnecessarily called out the handler and threw him under the bus despite the fact that experts on the matter have stated that leaving the sample out for 48 hours would not have affected the results and the sample was not tampered with. If you think about it, Braun should be thanking the handler because if he had immediately shipped the sample, Braun would have missed the first 2 months of the season.

You know... that's an interesting twist.  After all, on the surface it would appear that Braun was calling out the collector, but it was actually the collector who threw himself under the bus.  All this time I thought it might be to save his job, but perhaps the collector was doing the right thing after all.

[MerrittsMustache]

You know... that's an interesting twist.  After all, on the surface it would appear that Braun was calling out the collector, but it was actually the collector who threw himself under the bus.  All this time I thought it might be to save his job, but perhaps the collector was doing the right thing after all.

Completely ridiculous and improbable conspiracy theory...

Braun knew he would test positive so his agent/lawyers, knowing full well the protocol, advised him to pay the collector six figures to keep the sample at his house over the weekend before shipping it because that was their best chance to "overturn" the positive test, especially since news of the positive test would never be made known to the public and the payoff from Braun would be more than enough to cover the loss the handler would experience from being fired from his side job if word of the bribe leaked or for mishandling the sample.

[🏀]

It is known that the collector followed his company's protocol when it came to handling the sample, right? And that his company's protocol follows the guidelines set forth by the WADA, right?

The collector, his company and the WADA all followed the wrong guidelines because of a difference in wording between the WADA and MLB guidelines. The MLB will be changing their verbiage to match WADA's verbiage with the next agreement.

To sum this whole thing up, if Ryan Braun played in the NFL or the 2012 London Games he would have been guilty of doping without the loophole to get him out.

To further sum it up, Braun got off. It's over and he's still having a great season.

[Benny B]

It is known that the collector followed his company's protocol when it came to handling the sample, right? And that his company's protocol follows the guidelines set forth by the WADA, right?

The collector, his company and the WADA all followed the wrong guidelines because of a difference in wording between the WADA and MLB guidelines. The MLB will be changing their verbiage to match WADA's verbiage with the next agreement.

To sum this whole thing up, if Ryan Braun played in the NFL or the 2012 London Games he would have been guilty of doping without the loophole to get him out.

To further sum it up, Braun got off. It's over and he's still having a great season.

Actually... I would think that WADA should be changing their protocol and/or chain-of-custody rules.  If you gave me a suitcase with a million dollars and a name, I bet I could get that person to fail a drug test so long as allowing a sample to sit unattended for 24-48 hours was allowed under the testing protocol.

[🏀]

Actually... I would think that WADA should be changing their protocol and/or chain-of-custody rules.  If you gave me a suitcase with a million dollars and a name, I bet I could get that person to fail a drug test so long as allowing a sample to sit unattended for 24-48 hours was allowed under the testing protocol.

Can't disagree. I also think there has to be some trust in the collectors over potentially following a collector to a FedEx store, and then breaking into said store to steal the sample.

[SaintPaulWarrior]

Shouldn't Bud award the home field advantage for the WS to the American League since the MVP of his "meaningful" game was cheating?