MLB Suspends Alex Rodriguez, 12 Others for PED Use
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Major Leauge Baseball(NEW YORK) — Major League Baseball has suspended New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez and 12 other players for violations of the organization’s Basic Agreement and its Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.
Aside from Rodriguez, the 12 players who were suspended include: the Rangers’ Nelson Cruz, the Tigers’ Jhonny Peralta, the Phillies’ Antonio Bastardo, the Yankees’ Francisco Cervelli and Fernando Martinez, the Mets’ Jordany Valdespin and Cesar Puello, the Mariners’ Jesus Montero, the Astros’ Sergio Escalona, and free agents Jordan Noberto and Fautino De Los Santos.
Those 12 players will all receive 50 game suspensions, but Rodriguez has been suspended throughout the rest of this season as well as the 2014 season.
The 38-year-old Rodriguez has yet to suit up for the Bronx Bombers this season due to off-season hip surgery.
“As a social institution with enormous social responsibilities, Baseball must do everything it can to maintain integrity, fairness, and a level playing field,” MLB Commissioner Bud Selig said in statement. “We are committed to working together with players to reiterate that performance-enhancing drugs will not be tolerated in our game.”
During his career with the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and the Yankees, the 14-time All-Star has batted .300 with 647 home runs, 1950 RBIs and 1,898 runs in 2,524 regular season games. He’s fifth on the all-time home runs list, 13 behind former San Francisco Giants outfielder Willie Mays.
“We are in full support of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. We also recognize and respect the appeals process. Until the process under the Drug Program is complete, we will have no comment. We are confident that the process outlined in the Drug Program will result in the appropriate resolution of this matter. In the meantime, the Yankees remain focused on playing baseball,” the Yankees said in a statement.
“However, we are compelled to address certain reckless and false allegations concerning the Yankees’ role in this matter. The New York Yankees in no way instituted and/or assisted MLB in the direction of this investigation; or used the investigation as an attempt to avoid its responsibilities under a player contract; or did its medical staff fail to provide the appropriate standard of care to Alex Rodriguez. Separately, we are disappointed with the news today of the suspension of Francisco Cervelli. It’s clear that he used bad judgment,” the statement continued.
Rodriguez captured his only World Series Championship in 2009 as a member of the Yankees.
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