Manny, Steroids, and the Money Train

It's time to put a stop to this. To the continual drip of the steroid juice onto the news pages of baseball, to the careers of what one had assumed was a Hall of Fame player, to the proclivity of a baseball player to harm the game of baseball or even themselves. Oh, I know, how harmed is Manny with all the money he's made. Does he really care about reputation? Or honesty? Or integrity? Or not cheating the game? Probably not. But whether Manny, or ARod, or any of the other supposed cheats of this era care or not, we do, and curing this problem, is not as hard to do as many would think. Okay, MLB and the Union have been moving in a better direction with 50 game suspensions and testing programs for PED's that are currently detectible, but it hasn't gone far enough. On to the new plan, and yes, we'll build on the one already in place and take into consideration you have a Union to bargain with on any new additions to it.

1) The first time penalty should be two-tiered, with the 50 game suspension for those that unknowingly had a PED in their system due to a health store supplement or doctor's script legitimately taken. But, at the discretion of baseball and after a hearing that the player would have to request, if the infraction rose above that level, then a 1 year ban for a first time offense would be invoked.

2) No matter whether it was the 50 game, or 1 year suspension level, not only would the player lose his salary for those suspended game, but he would play the remainder of the year, or subsequent year, (112 games for the 50 game type; 162 games for the 1 year type) at the MLB minimum level (currently $400,000). How harmed is Manny now with the $7.5 million dollar hit when he's coming back in July to make $18 million more for the year? He might think twice if the money train was going to cost him a whole lot more.

3) Any player caught using PEDs would automatically have his current contract revoked. Yes, revoked, Manny would not be due $1 more on the current deal, which may have been illegally obtained due to stats gotten under PED performances. Not one $ more of the $38 million dollars still to come. Any new contract would have to wait until after the 50 game or 1 year suspension and time period of playing under the MLB minimum, per #2 above.

4) #3 above also applies to anyone who admits, or is caught for, PED use, prior to the current year. ARod, you are now playing for the minimum, and the Yankees don't owe you a dime more, if they don't want.

5) All players on the 40 man roster would be subject to a mandatory checking of any prescription with the team doctor to check whether it breached the league PED policy. Not a hard thing to accomplish and it would get rid of doubts, i.e. Manny, of an outside physician making a mistake, or prescribing something that he/she shouldn't.

Would these steps eradicate the problem? Probably not. It wouldn't stop a young Dominican from trying to get his first payday, or a minor leaguer just trying to make the show, or hang onto the show. But it might just get rid of most of the arrogant, self-absorbing, money grubbing players who think they deserve Hall of Fame adulation and record shattering feats, along with obscene, ticket raising salaries, for steroid abusing performances, if they knew the money train was ending if they got caught.

Time to toughen it up, folks, and the time is now!