We have arrived at the “could be anytime” juncture as the Alex Rodriguez saga advances to its next chapter. Independent arbitrator Fredric Horowitz’s ruling on Rodriguez’s 211-game suspension should arrive within the next week and could come as soon as Friday.
Though Horowitz has the right to issue his decision whenever he desires — he can uphold the suspension, reduce it or negate it altogether — industry officials expected him to recognize that an announcement earlier this week would have taken attention away from the Hall of Fame elections of Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas.
With the Hall hype now over, there’s no public-relations reason to prevent Horowitz from rendering his verdict. Horowitz heads the panel that also features Major League Baseball COO Rob Manfred and Players Association general counsel David Prouty.
If the suspension is upheld at all, then Team A-Rod has intimated it will try to gain a court injunction to block the penalty from going into effect. That in itself could be a bluff, or if the suspension is reduced considerably, A-Rod could decide not to fight anymore.
In any case, getting an injunction appears a long shot, as most courts respect the verdicts that emerge from collectively bargained, binding arbitration hearings. But such an effort would prolong this already epic drama surrounding the Yankees’ beleaguered third baseman.
Rodriguez actually will receive $3 million from the Yankees on Wednesday as part of the signing bonus from his 10-year, $275 million contract that he agreed to after the 2007 campaign — a $3 million sum that he will receive regardless of the terms of Horowitz’s verdict. The $3 million, however, does not count toward the Yankees’ pursuit to stay under the $189 million luxury-tax threshold.