By David Saltzer AngelsWin.com Senior Writer
While most of the discussions around the current PED scandal
have revolved around what to do with the individual players who allegedly took
PEDs, there has been some healthy discussion about what to do with the teams
whose players actually took the drugs. It’s a legitimate issue because the PED
scandal cuts at the purity of the game which lies at the heart of baseball. The
numbers, the records, the history of the game are all tainted as a result of
the scandal.
Some fans have called for reversing or removing the stats
from the players involved in the scandal. While this would seem the most
Solomonic, in reality it cannot happen. One cannot say how the seasons would
have played out simply be removing a certain player’s numbers. With all the
permutations on in-game moves, trades, free agent signings, etc. make this
solution impossible. No one would have the wisdom to truly discern how a season
would play out without the stats from those who cheated. As much as fans would
like to be rid of the illgotten records, we are unfortunately stuck with them.
But that does not mean that teams who signed players with
PEDs should get off scot-free. Those teams and those fans received unjust
rewards as a result of the cheating. They won games that they shouldn’t have
won, made playoff appearances that they didn’t legitimately earn, sold seats
and merchandise, etc. As such, they should be punished.
I believe that teams who have Major League players caught
using PEDs should have two direct consequences. The first is that the teams
should be forced to donate the salary for any player suspended for using PEDs
into MLB’s Reviving Baseball in the Inner Cities (RBI) charity. Second, I
believe that any team who has a player caught using PEDs should lose their
draft picks for the first three rounds in the following year’s draft and be
forced to draft last in every subsequent round, regardless of their record (and
receiving the lowest signing bonuses as computed for their draft slots for both
the domestic and international pools). If multiple teams are caught at the same
time, a coin toss would decide the order for picks, but all would be given the
least amount in signing bonus money. And, if teams have multiple players caught
at the same time, they should lose picks for 3 more rounds for each subsequent
player caught. (Please note: I do not think that these punishments should be
given for teams with Minor League players caught using PEDs—that should be
handled differently).
The first punishment is necessary to preserve the integrity
of the team. Let’s face it, there is a strong and justifiable belief that Major
League Baseball and the Yankees were pushing for a lifetime ban for A-Rod just
to help the Yankees get out of a bad contract. Whether it is true or not is
irrelevant at this point: it’s the perception that matters.
Buck Showalter already pointed out that banning A-Rod would
in fact help the Yankees to avoid the luxury tax and allow them to go on a
free-agent spending spree with the potential windfall money saved from A-Rod’s
contract. This would disrupt the competitive balance of the game, much to the
detriment of a team like the Orioles which cannot afford to spend like the
Yankees. It is very logical to assume that many teams made trades or signings
as a result of the current economic realities. Allowing the Yankees to
completely upset that would be a major disruption to all teams, and would give
them a tremendous advantage predicated on A-Rod’s cheating. As a result, MLB
should want all teams to appear honest and fair about their dealings in this
scandal, and the best way to protect the integrity for all teams is to donate
the salaries to a worthy charity.
By donating the salary money to the RBI charity, baseball
would also be taking a step to counteract one aspect of the PED scandal: the
long-term effect on the popularity of the sport. With the rise of numerous
other sports, not as many kids today are growing up playing baseball. This is
especially true in inner cities, where access to fields, equipment, coaching,
etc. is more limited. In the long run, that will decrease the potential market
for the game in a generation or two which is bad for the long-term economics of
the game. By giving the salary money to the RBI charity, the teams would be
taking a step to further increase the sport’s future fanbase.
As for stripping teams of the following year’s draft picks, this
is a fair solution to a difficult challenge. Much like steroids give players a
boost in the present by potentially robbing from their health in the future,
the teams that benefitted from the cheating will get to keep their records in
the present but at the expense of the future. And, much like there is no
certainty as to how much benefit an individual received from taking the
steroids, there is no certainty as to how much of a loss it would be to a team
to draft picks in their first three rounds. As we all know, there have been
plenty of great players picked in later rounds, so, it does not deprive a team
of all hope. But, what this does do is provide a punishment for the teams that
received an illgotten benefit.
Normally, our legal system does not punish people for the
criminal acts of another. However, there are plenty of exceptions to that such
as those who act as accomplices and co-conspirators. For example, all the
members of a conspiracy, such as the manufacturing and distribution of illegal
drugs (think “Breaking Bad”) can be punished for the criminal acts of all the
other members of the conspiracy as long as they derived a benefit from the act
or the crime was done in furtherance of the conspiracy. They can be punished
for the acts of others in the conspiracy, whether or not they knew of the other
parties or criminal acts, as long as they derived some benefit from them. (Now
before people jump all over me, I’m only using this as an example and do not
believe that steroids are as bad as the meth depictions in the TV show).
It’s fairly obvious that for a long time baseball turned a
blind-eye towards PEDs. Worse yet, baseball profited from PEDs with increased
revenue. This must stop. Teams should be actively discouraged from having
players using PEDs because it allows a few players to tarnish the sport for the
majority. Teams should have every reason to actively discourage their players
from using PEDs. Stripping teams of their draft picks would be a substantial
incentive towards being more proactive about not using PEDs and preserving the
game’s image. Teams should have an active interest in what happens in their
clubhouses and with their players, and should not be allowed to bury their
heads in the sand and pretend that they have no knowledge.
There is one potential down-side to making teams forfeit
their draft picks and reducing their signing bonuses. In an unfortunate way,
this could encourage teams to seek out players lower in the draft who might be
more prone to using PEDs to make it into the Major Leagues. Hopefully, teams
would realize that this would not work as the players would earn larger and
larger contracts that would have to be paid if the player were ever caught
cheating. But, if that did not stop the problem, repeat violations could result
in more severe losses, such as losing draft picks for more rounds in order to
deter a team from seeking out that type of player.
I know that this cannot happen right now in light of the
current scandal. None of this is in the current CBA and would have to be
negotiated with the players union. However, if I were the commissioner, I would
want to see the teams whose players have been caught using PEDs receive a
consequence, and these are the consequences I would desire.
