CHICAGO — Oh, yeah. Major League Baseball suspended 12 other guys, too.
While Bud Selig’s showdown with Alex Rodriguez is just beginning, the commissioner succeeded in gaining settlements from 12 other players yesterday for their involvement with the now-shuttered Biogenesis anti-aging clinic in South Florida. Each of the dozen agreed to a 50-game suspension that will immediately ban them from game action.
The dirty dozen includes: Philadelphia pitcher Antonio Bastardo, San Diego shortstop Everth Cabrera, Yankees catcher Francisco Cervelli, Texas outfielder Nelson Cruz, San Diego minor-league pitcher Fautino De Los Santos, Houston minor-league pitcher Sergio Escalona, Yankees minor-league outfielder Fernando Martinez, Seattle minor-league catcher Jesus Montero, free-agent pitcher Jordan Norberto; Detroit shortstop Jhonny Peralta; and Mets minor-league outfielder Cesar Puello and infielder/outfielder Jordany Valdespin.
Baseball also banned Ryan Braun, on July 22, for 65 games due to his involvement in Biogenesis as well as other Basic Agreement violations.
Baseball announced the suspensions Monday in order to let these players serve their time in 2013—most teams have about 50 games left—and start fresh next year. Players on contenders like Cruz and Peralta can rejoin their clubs in the postseason if the team so desires.
“I am proud of the comprehensive nature of our efforts – not only with regard to random testing, groundbreaking blood testing for human Growth Hormone and one of the most significant longitudinal profiling programs in the world, but also our investigative capabilities, which proved vital to the Biogenesis case,” Selig said in a statement. “Upon learning that players were linked to the use of performance-enhancing drugs, we vigorously pursued evidence that linked those individuals to violations of our Program. We conducted a thorough, aggressive investigation guided by facts so that we could justly enforce our rules.”
Said Players Association executive director Michael Weiner: “The accepted suspensions announced today are consistent with the punishments set forth in the Joint Drug Agreement, and were arrived at only after hours of intense negotiations between the bargaining parties, the players and their representatives.”
Attorney Jay Reisinger, who worked with A-Rod until earlier this year, represented eight of the suspended players, all of whom released statements. Most of the statements addressed generalities. Valdespin, who has sparked plenty of controversy during his time as a Met, said, “I made certain errors in judgment during the 2012 season and I accept full responsibility for those errors. I look forward to regaining the trust and respect of the Mets’ organization, Mets’ fans and my family, and look forward to contributing to the Mets in 2014.”
Puello said, similarly, “I made certain mistakes during the 2012 season and I accept full responsibility for those mistakes.”
The Mets released a statement reading, “We have and continue to support Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Testing program.”
Of the eight players who released statements, only Cruz, whose departure robs the Rangers of one of their best hitters, offered specifics. “From November, 2011 to January, 2012, I was seriously ill with a gastrointestinal infection, helicobacter pylori, which went undiagnosed for over a month,” Cruz said. “By the time I was properly diagnosed and treated, I had lost 40 pounds. Just weeks before I was to report to spring training in 2012, I was unsure whether I would be physically able to play. Faced with this situation, I made an error in judgment that I deeply regret, and I accept full responsibility for that error.”
Cervelli didn’t release a statement. The Yankees, in a statement that primarily discussed their feud with A-Rod, added, “Separately, we are disappointed with the news today of the suspension of Francisco Cervelli. It’s clear that he used bad judgment.”