Major League Baseball: Your Cheating Heart
Recently the GM of the Orioles, Mr. Elias, stated that he believes Major League Baseball is doing a good job policing the problems associated with the Astros’ cheating scandal. Millions of fans and numerous current and past players disagree. MLB has sacrificed integrity and credibility for expediency.
According to MLB, the cheating by the Astros was entirely player-driven yet not one player has been penalized. MLB gave the cheaters immunity for being honest about the extent of their cheating. Under that deal, all 8 men banned from baseball in 1919 would have had no punishment. Multi-millionaires cheated to win and other than disdain from fans and players, they got off scot-free. It sets a bad precedent.
Only one player has apologized. Current players are angry. Some former players such as Hank Aaron think players involved should be banned or suspended. The city of Los Angeles passed a resolution asking MLB to strip the Astros of their 2017 title. The fans, the other victims of this deceit, agree. Fans paid to see an honest and fair competition. We don’t expect to get our money back, but it is imperative that the billionaire owners punish the millionaire players properly.
Fans are certainly aware of the impending labor negotiations and that MLB may be playing softball on the penalties to preclude problems hammering out a new agreement with the players. If so, that is shortsighted. Players have been grumbling about the lackluster free agency market yet 6 teams were involved in tanking schemes in 2019 which has had a chilling effect on demand.
Major League Baseball has not done nearly enough to deal with the Astros cheating scandal. Fans don’t want to see the cheaters playing this year and for the benefit of the game, the cheaters could use a year or two away from baseball without pay. It would give MLB something it sorely lacks at this time, credibility.
Dudley Thompson lives in Girdletree, MD., population 106. He was born, raised, and lived most of his life in Baltimore. He worked for the News-American on the advertising side until it closed in ‘86. His second career was teaching in juvenile jails for the Maryland State Department of Education. He holds a Masters in Liberal Arts from Johns Hopkins University, ‘77, and a B.A from the University of Maryland,’74.