MLB Investigating a PED Pipeline in Florida

[Gash Prex]

But seems none of the employees had ever seen Arod at the clinic.  The only evidence seems to be his name written down in a notebook.  Unless the Doc swears an affidavit, there really is no solid evidence.

I'd go to trial on this circumstantial evidence any day of the week. I think it defies any reasonable belief that the lists were fabricated.

 

[SoxLegacy]

SI.com's Tom Verducci has a column that is pretty damning in regards to  A-rod:
 
"It was that same year, 2009, that Rodriguez was using Anthony Bosch's cocktails of PEDS, according to the Miami New Times. Rodriguez, who turned 34 that year, returned surprisingly fast from hip surgery to bat .286 with 30 home runs and 100 RBIs while helping to the lead the Yankees to the world championship. A notoriously poor postseason player for the Yankees, Rodriguez batted .365 that postseason. Rodriguez also had been treated post-surgery by Anthony Galea, a Canadian doctor who pleaded guilty in 2011 to bringing unapproved drugs, including HGH, into the U.S. to treat athletes."

Verducci's take: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/mlb/news/20130129/alex-rodriguez-steroids-hgh-gio-gonzalez-yasmani-grandal-melky-cabrera/#ixzz2JQKP70RL

 

[Sampo Gida]

I'd go to trial on this circumstantial evidence any day of the week. I think it defies any reasonable belief that the lists were fabricated.

Good luck, how many guys named Alex Rodriguez do you think there are in the Miami area.  Maybe the notebook was just something he put together to show prospective clients.  They could not even convict Roger and Bonds of anything, with far more evidence, except for not answering a question directly.
 
Unless Arod was foolish enough to pay by cash or credit card there is no case without the Docs testimony given the lack of eyewitnesses.   

 

[crystalline]

SI.com's Tom Verducci has a column that is pretty damning in regards to  A-rod:
 
"It was that same year, 2009, that Rodriguez was using Anthony Bosch's cocktails of PEDS, according to the Miami New Times. Rodriguez, who turned 34 that year, returned surprisingly fast from hip surgery to bat .286 with 30 home runs and 100 RBIs while helping to the lead the Yankees to the world championship. A notoriously poor postseason player for the Yankees, Rodriguez batted .365 that postseason. Rodriguez also had been treated post-surgery by Anthony Galea, a Canadian doctor who pleaded guilty in 2011 to bringing unapproved drugs, including HGH, into the U.S. to treat athletes."
Verducci's take: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/mlb/news/20130129/alex-rodriguez-steroids-hgh-gio-gonzalez-yasmani-grandal-melky-cabrera/#ixzz2JQKP70RL

I think the notebooks are somewhat damning for ARod but the quoted above is not.
In order,Verducci says he recovered fast, showed some statistical fluctuation in a SSS, and one of his doctors post surgery had a connection to PEDs.

 

[Sampo Gida]

I think the notebooks are somewhat damning for ARod but the quoted above is not.
In order,Verducci says he recovered fast, showed some statistical fluctuation in a SSS, and one of his doctors post surgery had a connection to PEDs.

There is something fishy about those notebooks though.  The business closed last month and the owner disappears but he leaves his notebooks with this information?
 
His best defense, besides what I pointed out is the fact he has passed all of MLB tests for PED';s.
 
Obviously, in a court of public opinion, he is guilty, and as you say, the notebooks are somewhat damning.

 

[Rovin Romine]

There is something fish about those notebooks though.  The business closed last month and the owner disappears but he leaves his notebooks with this information?
 
His best defense, besides what I pointed out is the fact he has passed all of MLB tests for PED';s.
 
Obviously, in a court of public opinion, he is guilty, and as you say, the notebooks are somewhat damning.

 
Easy there Lance. . .

 

[Nuf Ced]

The results of baseball’s investigation, in theory, could help the Yankees if they attempt to void Rodriguez’s contract. That would not be easy — the Yankees failed to do it with Jason Giambi — but there may be another exit strategy.
The Yankees have continued to emphasize the seriousness of Rodriguez’s hip injury, with General Manager Brian Cashman asserting last week that it could keep him out all season, not just for the first half. The natural next step in that progression is that the injury would end his career, as it did for Albert Belle of the Baltimore Orioles in 2001. This would allow Rodriguez to collect his money — but with insurance, not the Yankees, covering most of it.

 
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/30/sports/baseball/rodriguezs-denials-put-yankees-patience-to-test.html?_r=0

 

[InsideTheParker]

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/30/sports/baseball/rodriguezs-denials-put-yankees-patience-to-test.html?_r=0

I wish someone with a background in contract law could chime in here. If the contract lacks specific language about steroids, isn't it non-voidable for that reason? And if Rodriguez can be demonstrated to have broken the law, would that be an out for the insurance company? (Assuming a case could be made for steroid use leading to his injuries.)

 

[Seabass]

The contract isn't going to be voided.  It's not happening.  The MLBPA negotiated the CBA with MLB, and it states that the first time a player is caught using steroids they are suspended for 50 games.  That is the most that can happen to Rodriguez.
 
And there's no reason for Rodriguez to go along with this ploy that's being floated by Rosenthal and others this morning to commit insurance fraud.  Why would he want to end his career now when he still is under contract for five years and can reach some of those $30M in milestone bonuses if he gets healthy again?  To help the Yankees clear his contract from their payroll? Really? He'd act against his own self interests to help the team that has thrown him under every Bx1 bus that's stopped at 161st street for the last half a decade?  
 
He might get suspended for 50 games.  That's it.  He's not going to end his career because of this. 

 

[ItOnceWasMyLife]

There is something fishy about those notebooks though.  The business closed last month and the owner disappears but he leaves his notebooks with this information?
 
His best defense, besides what I pointed out is the fact he has passed all of MLB tests for PED';s.
 
Obviously, in a court of public opinion, he is guilty, and as you say, the notebooks are somewhat damning.

 
I thought part of the article noted that his business partners changed the locks on him due to non-payment/payback.  Looks like he was caught off guard by the "lock-out" and couldn't get to the notebooks before others did.

 

[KiltedFool]

 I'm at work but I know one of you will know this off the top of your head but didn't Manny technically not fail a PED test ? The actual first banning was based on the prescription he handed in for Clomid or something similar and negated the need for further investigation ? I think he had a high test ratio which started the whole thing rolling but the preliminary investigation led to the discovery of the paperwork for the fertility meds and thus his first suspension
 
. Is there precedent here  ?
 
I may have also muffed that story.
 
Edit: and that would be the non-analytic positive posted above me.

 
 
From the Verducci article referenced above:
 

But the bigger shoe to fall is the one belonging to commissioner Bud
Selig. The notebooks of Anthony Bosch are figuratively on his desk at
this very moment. The man who in union with the players association has
crafted the toughest anti-PED policies in pro sports has the power to
suspend the players even without a positive test.

Under section 7.G.2 of the Joint Drug Agreement, the commissioner can
rule for disciplinary action against a player for "just cause" in the
cases of violations not specifically referenced in the JDA.
Prescriptions and records of PED use and purchase fall under the "just
cause" umbrella.

In 2009, for instance, Manny Ramirez entered an appeal of a test that
showed an elevated level of testosterone. When an investigation of that
appeal turned up a prescription from a doctor for a banned substance,
Ramirez dropped his appeal and accepted the 50-game suspension. Ramirez
was not banned because of the test, which technically was not entered as
a positive, but because of the records of his prescription for hCG, a
female fertility drug often used to kickstart testosterone production
after steroid cycles.

Ramirez's doctor? Pedro Bosch, the father of Anthony Bosch.
 

This whole thing has a NY Jets slow motion train wreck cap nightmare quality to it, only A-Rod's contract rather than Sanchez'.  Entertaining.

 

[JimD]

I would be shocked if a contract that was negotiated by Scott Boras has any language in it that would allow the team to void it using such circumstantial evidence.

 

[trekfan55]

I like that the Yankees 2009 World Series win can now be considered "tainted", people in glass houses and all that,
 
But now the question is if there is really enough evidence against Arod.  I assume the test records are kept somewhere so that he can point out to how many times he has passed them, and if it only his name on a notebook I think they really need something more.  But that applies to a court of law, or to Selig in case he wanted to take any action.  He is forever screwed (more so than before) in the court of public opinion.
 
Now, how much of his contract can the Yankees claim form insurance?  Is his injury 100% covered?  And what happens when he says he is ready to go?

 

[Gash Prex]

I wish someone with a background in contract law could chime in here. If the contract lacks specific language about steroids, isn't it non-voidable for that reason? And if Rodriguez can be demonstrated to have broken the law, would that be an out for the insurance company? (Assuming a case could be made for steroid use leading to his injuries.)

 
My limited background tells me that the phrase "void" or "voidable" are being misused by the "source."  Generally, these circumstances are related to the incapacity of one party, duress, undue influence etc...or material misrepresentation   Obviously, the only scenario at play would be material misrepresentations made by A-Rod or his agents at the time the extension was entered into in 2009 (a difficult case).  The more likely scenario is that the Yankees lawyers are doing some preliminary research whereby they assume that the allegations are true, and to see if under any circumstances his assumed actions could amount to a material breach of the agreement (or trigger some out clause in the contract).  I have no idea how the CBA plays into major league baseball contracts and if the CBA "preempts" or the contract has provisions that make it clear that the exclusive remedy for the use of PEDs is by the CBA and would not result in a breach under the contract. A lot of this is pure speculation since the contract is not public.  My guess is that the Yankees are hoping to find some colorable claim for breach of contract to use to get A-Rod to sign some settlement agreement for less than the remaining amount of the contract. 

 

[Average Reds]

My limited background tells me that the phrase "void" or "voidable" are being misused by the "source."  Generally, these circumstances are related to the incapacity of one party, duress, undue influence etc...or material misrepresentation   Obviously, the only scenario at play would be material misrepresentations made by A-Rod or his agents at the time the extension was entered into in 2009 (a difficult case).  The more likely scenario is that the Yankees lawyers are doing some preliminary research whereby they assume that the allegations are true, and to see if under any circumstances his assumed actions could amount to a material breach of the agreement (or trigger some out clause in the contract).  I have no idea how the CBA plays into major league baseball contracts and if the CBA "preempts" or the contract has provisions that make it clear that the exclusive remedy for the use of PEDs is by the CBA and would not result in a breach under the contract. A lot of this is pure speculation since the contract is not public.  My guess is that the Yankees are hoping to find some colorable claim for breach of contract to use to get A-Rod to sign some settlement agreement for less than the remaining amount of the contract. 

 
As Seabass said all of 5 posts before yours, the CBA covers PED use and is quite clear about the punishment:  A-Rod is facing the possibility of a 50 game suspension without pay.
 
The Yankees can try whatever they want, but they can't punish A-Rod beyond this without violating the CBA which, by definition, governs all individual player contracts.

 

[Gash Prex]

As Seabass said all of 5 posts before yours, the CBA covers PED use and is quite clear about the punishment:  A-Rod is facing the possibility of a 50 game suspension without pay.
 
The Yankees can try whatever they want, but they can't punish A-Rod beyond this without violating the CBA which, by definition, governs all individual player contracts.

 
Not sure why the snarky tone - but forgive me for not accepting at face value that "The contract isn't going to be voided.  It's not happening.  The MLBPA negotiated the CBA with MLB, and it states that the first time a player is caught using steroids they are suspended for 50 games.  That is the most that can happen to Rodriguez."  
 
I very much understand the remedy for PED use under the CBA - but I can't say without doing some serious legal research as to whether lying about the use of PEDs, suffering an injury that could be linked to PEDs or some other collateral matter is preempted by language in the CBA.  The following the text from the Joint Drug Agreement:
 
 
 
 

 All authority to discipline Players for violations of the Program shall repose with 
the Commissioner’s Office.  No Club may take any disciplinary or adverse action against 
a Player (including, but not limited to, a fine, suspension, or any adverse action pursuant 
to a Uniform Player’s Contract) because of a Player’s violation of the Program.  Nothing 
in this Section 7.M is intended to address whether: (i) a Club may take adverse action in 
response to a Player’s failure to render his services due to a disability resulting directly 
from a physical injury or mental condition arising from his violation of the Program; or 
(ii) a Club may withhold salary from a Player for any period he is unavailable because of 
legal proceedings or incarceration arising from his violation of the Program.  

 
 
 
http://mlb.mlb.com/pa/pdf/jda.pdf
 
That paragraph could be interpreted pretty broadly, but I am sure some crafty, high priced new york lawyer might be able to figure something that would not be preempted under that language. 
 
edit: strange quoting formatting

 

[MalzoneExpress]

Do all of the entries in the notebook related to A-Rod have to be treated as a single "first offense" or can they be parsed so the first page where A-Rod is mentioned is the first offense (50 games), the second page where A-Rod is mentioned is the second offense (100 games), and the third page where A-Rod is mentioned is the third offense (lifetime ban)?

 

[Seabass]

http://mlb.mlb.com/pa/pdf/jda.pdf
 
That paragraph could be interpreted pretty broadly, but I am sure some crafty, high priced new york lawyer might be able to figure something that would not be preempted under that language. 
 
edit: strange quoting formatting

 
I don't see how this could be interpreted 'broadly':

 

 

Club may take adverse action in  response to a Player’s failure to render his services due to a disability resulting directly from a physical injury or mental condition arising from his violation of the Program;

 
 

 
'Directly' is the operative word there.  I don't see how you can say how his hip injury is a direct result of his PED use in any way. I think if he was driving a getaway car after he robbed his PED dealer, crashed the car and broke his leg, then the Yankees wouldn't have to pay him while he was on DL.  Or if he injected Androstendione into his eye and it caused him to go blind. That's how I interpret 'directly,' but I'm no lawyer.
 
Regarding Malzone's question, I don't think there's any way that MLB would pursue that because if they did, the MLBPA would take them to court forever.  That would create an incredibly precedent and quite the slippery slope.  If a player injects himself three times with steroids but tests positive once, does that mean he's banned?  If he takes Adderall six times but never tested positive is he banned? It's not in MLB's best interests to go down that road, and considering the evidence is completely circumstantial, this wouldn't be the case to try to test that standard if they thought it was in their best interests.  

 

[soxhop411]

The yankees cant say his injury was caused by steroids when the doctor himself said
 

In a somewhat unusual conference call with reporters Tuesday following a report that a source said "caught the Yankees off guard," Dr. Bryan Kelly answered questions about A-Rod's upcoming surgery - he hopes his patient will be back by the All-Star game, pending complications - but spent much of the time insisting that neither steroids nor human growth hormone played a role in Rodriguez's ongoing hip issues.

Kelly's claims came despite the Yankee star's 2009 admission of previous performance-enhancing drug use and continuing injury problems, as well as contradictory opinions from other medical experts about the role performance-enhancing drugs can play in injuries to athletes.

Kelly, who is affiliated with the Hospital for Special Surgery, said Rodriguez's hip condition "is a developmental problem that leads to structural mechanics that predisposes people to injury… This has nothing to do with performance-enhancing drugs. Steroids don't change the shape of your bones."
 

so unless the yankees and the doctor want to commit insurance fraud, it seems they cannot use the PED caused the injury excuse
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/yanks-caught-guard-doc-opens-a-rod-article-1.1235802

 

[glennhoffmania]

I heard on the radio this morning that ARod's hip will prevent him from ever playing again.  Maybe they were taking something out of context or something, but that was the report. It wasn't that he won't play for NY again- he won't be able to play again, period.
 
Edit: here's a link:
 

Numerous baseball sources tell the Daily News that Rodriguez, still owed $114 million over five years on his contract, will not recover from the hip surgery he had earlier this month. It is the second hip surgery for the 37-year-old Rodriguez, and sources familiar with the situation believe the surgery will leave the third baseman in such a diminished role that he may consider a settlement or an outright retirement.

 
Link

 

[MakMan44]

How the hell is this going to work out for the Yankees? Seriously?

 

[gammoseditor]

I heard on the radio this morning that ARod's hip will prevent him from ever playing again.  Maybe they were taking something out of context or something, but that was the report. It wasn't that he won't play for NY again- he won't be able to play again, period.
 
Edit: here's a link:
 
 
Link

 
Maybe I'm biased, but it seems like the Yankees are on an all out media blitz to go after Arod wherever they can, hoping he decides it's not worth the time and effort to rehab, so he takes a buyout and they can collect insurance money.

 

[Average Reds]

Not sure why the snarky tone - but forgive me for not accepting at face value that "The contract isn't going to be voided.  It's not happening.  The MLBPA negotiated the CBA with MLB, and it states that the first time a player is caught using steroids they are suspended for 50 games.  That is the most that can happen to Rodriguez."  
 
I very much understand the remedy for PED use under the CBA - but I can't say without doing some serious legal research as to whether lying about the use of PEDs, suffering an injury that could be linked to PEDs or some other collateral matter is preempted by language in the CBA.  The following the text from the Joint Drug Agreement:
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
http://mlb.mlb.com/pa/pdf/jda.pdf
 
That paragraph could be interpreted pretty broadly, but I am sure some crafty, high priced new york lawyer might be able to figure something that would not be preempted under that language. 
 
edit: strange quoting formatting

 
I think the reason for the snark is quite obvious.  You asked a question that had been answered definitively 5 posts before yours. If you disagree with the conclusions of that post or, as you say here, you're not going to take them at face value, that's perfectly fine.  But then the onus is on you to explain why you think it is incorrect rather than tossing out a general question that was just answered. 
 
The fact is that all contracts exist within the parameters of the CBA.  All of them.  So clubs are prohibited from doling out punishments beyond those specified in the CBA. 
 
The only way the Yankees could void the contract is if they can successfully argue that steroid use caused A-Rod's injury.  It's an incredibly high burden to meet and Dr. Kelly's comments yesterday would seem to doom any hope of that happening.

 

[Doctor G]

 

I like that the Yankees 2009 World Series win can now be considered "tainted", people in glass houses and all that,
 
But now the question is if there is really enough evidence against Arod.  I assume the test records are kept somewhere so that he can point out to how many times he has passed them, and if it only his name on a notebook I think they really need something more.  But that applies to a court of law, or to Selig in case he wanted to take any action.  He is forever screwed (more so than before) in the court of public opinion.
 
Now, how much of his contract can the Yankees claim form insurance?  Is his injury 100% covered?  And what happens when he says he is ready to go?

The doctor who performed ARod's second surgery is not likely to participate in any scheme to convince an insurance company that the surgery he performed was not adequate to get Rodriquez back on the playing field, after he had issued a statement post surgery that he was confident that the ongoing prognosis was that Alex would have a good recovery and would return to his pre injury levels of performance.The Yankees can't file an insurance claim based on the fact that ARod isn't putting up numbers that he put up before.The potential effect of PED usage muddies the water so much that any disability claim will be difficult to collect on for the Yankees.
 

 

[Doctor G]

With Melky and Arod's names surfacing already in this investigation I bet there is more than a little concern in the Yankee FO that Cano might be involved as well.

 

[trekfan55]

 The doctor who performed ARod's second surgery is not likely to participate in any scheme to convince an insurance company that the surgery he performed was not adequate to get Rodriquez back on the playing field, after he had issued a statement post surgery that he was confident that the ongoing prognosis was that Alex would have a good recovery and would return to his pre injury levels of performance.The Yankees can't file an insurance claim based on the fact that ARod isn't putting up numbers that he put up before.The potential effect of PED usage muddies the water so much that any disability claim will be difficult to collect on for the Yankees.
 

Thanks.  But how about his current injury?  It started out as a 6 month thing, now it looks like a year, and maybe more.  Does that get insurance coverage? 

 

[Rovin Romine]

This all seems a bit smoky at present - it seems none of the parties are clearly announcing their intentions.
 
I think it breaks down like this:
1)  MLB would clearly like this to "quietly go away."  As a secondary position they will gun for A-Rod since drawing new fans or keeping old ones (based on the integrity of the game), outweighs A-Rod's draw/costs of a hush-up. 
 
2) The Yankees want salary relief.  If they could walk away right now with no liability, they would.  A-Rod has minimal marketing value. 
 
3) A-Rod seems to be at a natural ending point.  All the signs seem to point toward an early retirement, in exchange for a huge buyout from the Yanks. 
 
Trouble is, A-Rod is the one making the choice here.  I see him going forward, regardless, a la Armstrong, and trying to hold onto his endorsements and/or remaining salary.  I also expect MLB to sit on their hands as long as they can about this.  I'm surprised we haven't heard more about it. 
 
**
 
For what it's worth, the New Times is a weekly, but they have done some very good investigative journalism in Miami in the past.  The Miami Herald covers a lot of big "already known and talked about" stories, but if anyone "broke" a new story that was under the radar, I'd assume it would be the New Times.  They're legit. 
 
(Disclosure - I know several New Times reporters on an 'occasional drinking buddy' basis, but some of my good friends are good friends with the staff and reporters there.)
 
I'm not following this story closely, but if anyone has any Miami-specific questions, PM me, let me know, and if I have any decent info, I'll post it here.
 
***
Final thought - the Armstrong situation has probably grossly impacted all of these types of cases. 

 

[Rovin Romine]

Another thought - Jose Iglesias has been working out with A-Rod.   http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2011/02/red_sox_prospect_jose_iglesias.html (from 2011)
 
Dunno if this has been recent or not.  But if I worked for the Sox and/or was his agent, I'd be having a serious sit down with the kid right now. 
 
This clearly seems to be a "Miami-connection" thing involving Hispanic players.  I don't know how often these guys socialize (as I'm not usually invited to "that kind" of party), but I'd say it's a cause for concern.

 

[Doctor G]

 

Thanks.  But how about his current injury?  It started out as a 6 month thing, now it looks like a year, and maybe more.  Does that get insurance coverage? 

 I was talking about his current injury. i have not seen any comments from Dr. Kelly saying his initial timetable for a return after the All Star break has changed. Cashman mentioned the possibility it could be longer in an interview on FAN but did not cite any specific reasons except the uncertainty of any return from surgery.

 

[Snodgrass'Muff]

How the hell is this going to work out for the Yankees? Seriously?

Best case scenario for the Yankees is ARod retires. If he's really going to be tht diminished he may decide that another five years of ridicule and scorn from the NY media and fans just isn't worth it.

 

[glennhoffmania]

Best case scenario for the Yankees is ARod retires. If he's really going to be tht diminished he may decide that another five years of ridicule and scorn from the NY media and fans just isn't worth it.

 
He's owed $114m.  Why in the world would he walk away for nothing?  He'll get ridiculed no matter what but at least he'll have another $114m.  The chances of him retiring with no buy out are zero.  His agent/manager/lawyer/whoever would murder him.  Thus I endorse such a decision.

 

[JimD]

There is zero incentive for Rodriguez to quit now.  He has not failed an MLB-administered test that we know of, so it's in his interest to rehab and get ready to play again and continue passing any tests given to him.  If the Yankees want to release him, so what?  He doesn't have to quit - he can go through the same process any other released player would go through and get ready to play for another team.  There is zero chance that all 29 other MLB clubs will pass on an opportunity to see if he still can play when it can be done on the NYY's dime.

 

[KiltedFool]

Albert Belle style millstone for several years is the most likely result after he serves any suspension that Selig imposes.  He'll refuse to retire since he won't get paid otherwise.  Delicious.

 

[Sampo Gida]

Maybe I'm biased, but it seems like the Yankees are on an all out media blitz to go after Arod wherever they can, hoping he decides it's not worth the time and effort to rehab, so he takes a buyout and they can collect insurance money.

Perhaps there is another motive, one more likely to achieve.  Their problem with his contract may not be so much the amount of money he is owed over the next 5 years, it is the high AAV due to the front ending.  Over the next 4 years he only makes 21 million a year but the AAV is closer to 28.
 
If Arod could be convinced to scrap his current contract in favor of a new contract for the same money, maybe a bit more over more years, then this would lower the AAV.  Lets call it a new 6 year deal at 90 million (instead of the 4/84 remaining) which brings the AAV down from 28 million to 15 million.  The Yankees can still release him after 4 years and pay the last 2 years so its not like they have to worry about tying up a roster spot.  They then have 13 million more to spend than they did. 
 
The MLBPA is unlikely to protest this restructuring since it frees up money for the Yankees to spend on other players and Arod does not make any less than he is contracted to make now (slightly more).  MLB might sign off just so this all goes away, and as a sense of fairness since the revenue sharing rebates did not come into play until after the Yankees signed Arod to this contract. The Yankees were always resigned to paying the luxury tax, but the revenue sharing rebates changed the landscape for them..

 

[Average Reds]

Perhaps there is another motive, one more likely to achieve.  Their problem with his contract may not be so much the amount of money he is owed over the next 5 years, it is the high AAV due to the front ending.  Over the next 4 years he only makes 21 million a year but the AAV is closer to 28.
 
If Arod could be convinced to scrap his current contract in favor of a new contract for the same money, maybe a bit more over more years, then this would lower the AAV.  Lets call it a new 6 year deal at 90 million (instead of the 4/84 remaining) which brings the AAV down from 28 million to 15 million.  The Yankees can still release him after 4 years and pay the last 2 years so its not like they have to worry about tying up a roster spot.  They then have 13 million more to spend than they did. 
 
The MLBPA is unlikely to protest this restructuring since it frees up money for the Yankees to spend on other players and Arod does not make any less than he is contracted to make now (slightly more).  MLB might sign off just so this all goes away, and as a sense of fairness since the revenue sharing rebates did not come into play until after the Yankees signed Arod to this contract. The Yankees were always resigned to paying the luxury tax, but the revenue sharing rebates changed the landscape for them..

 
Structuring a deal where salary owed is stretched over 6 seasons instead of 4 is a significant decrease in the value of the contract.  And as they demonstrated when they rejected the deal between the Red Sox and A-Rod back in 2003, the MLBPA will not agree to any restructuring that decreases the value of the contract. Just a matter of principle that they will not compromise on.
 
In the absence of A-Rod retiring, there really isn't any way out of this for the Yankees. I have smile cramps just thinking about it.

 

[lostjumper]

Bosch went to A-Rod's house every couple of weeks to personally give him PED injections according to T.J. Quinn
 
"Only Tony handled A-Rod" - The jokes that could be made about that statement...

 

[Sampo Gida]

Structuring a deal where salary owed is stretched over 6 seasons instead of 4 is a significant decrease in the value of the contract.  And as they demonstrated when they rejected the deal between the Red Sox and A-Rod back in 2003, the MLBPA will not agree to any restructuring that decreases the value of the contract. Just a matter of principle that they will not compromise on.
 
In the absence of A-Rod retiring, there really isn't any way out of this for the Yankees. I have smile cramps just thinking about it.

Technically, the MLBPA approval is not required.  In 2003 Arod agreed to abide by the MLBPA ruling.  Here is what MLB said at the time
 
 

Rob Manfred, executive vice president of labor relations & human resources for MLB told the Associated Press. "In a situation like the current situation, where there was a restructuring, where the player was getting something and the club was getting something, Gene Orza is not the final arbitrator on whether the
restructuring provides an actual or potential benefit to the player. The commissioner currently is considering his legal options in consultation with the two teams."

 
A-rod decided he would have to get MLBPA approval to agree to the deal, this was not required, although MLBPA could have challenged the deal and perhaps went to arbitration if MLB approved the deal. He used their rejection as grounds to not go forward.  Schilliing actually came out and disagreed with MLBPA position.
 
http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/articles/2003/12/18/union_mlb_spar_on_pact/
 
Circumstances have changed and A-rod may be more willing to oppose the union.
 
I am sure there are some creative solutions for a new or restructured contract that could be considered a benefit to the player while also reducing AAV.

 

[terrynever]

Selena Roberts rings up Cashman in this response to the latest A-Rod scandal:
 
http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/41275020/

 

[Jordu]

Selena Roberts rings up Cashman in this response to the latest A-Rod scandal:

http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/41275020/

Wow. Tough stuff from a very good reporter who worked the Yankee beat and should know what she's talking about.

 

[JohnnyK]

More from Verducci
 

The notebooks reported to belong to Florida wellness clinician Tony Bosch connect New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez to a staggering array of drugs and supplements to be used literally morning, noon and night and through multiple delivery systems, including lozenges, creams and injections. Those notes, parts of which the Miami New Times have published online, provide the road map Major League Baseball investigators have begun to follow.

 

The notebooks contain a trove of information from 2009-12, especially about Rodriguez and a suggested volume of doping almost unheard of in baseball. The documents released by the New Times connect Rodriguez to at least 19 drugs and supplements, including the  banned substances testosterone, HGH and IGF-1, and define one doping regimen that includes as many 19 injections: four subcutaneous injections of IGF-1, nine shots of CJC (a growth hormone releasing hormone) and GHRP (growth hormone releasing peptide), and six shots of HGH at 2.5 international units.

Well, wow. So maybe the best the Yankees can hope for is that all that stuff he pumped into himself will kill him, right?

 

[lostjumper]

So basically MLB testing would go to Mr. Universe bodybuilding competitions and declare everyone perfectly clean. What a joke...

 

[Rovin Romine]

So basically MLB testing would go to Mr. Universe bodybuilding competitions and declare everyone perfectly clean. What a joke...

A somewhat amusing tie in. . .http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/01/22/3195163/recalled-mayor-carlos-alvarez.htmlhttp://www.miamiherald.com/2013/01/22/3195163/recalled-mayor-carlos-alvarez.html

 

[brs3]

ARod thinks MFY and MLB are out to get him
 

Sources say the embattled Yankee star is “scared” that bigger forces are
at work to try to discredit him and sink his career. Holed up in Miami,
Rodriguez has been huddling with an army of lawyers and PR people as
the performance-enhancing drug scandal enveloping him intensifies.

 

 

[terrynever]

MLB investigators in Miami, reviewing the documents alleged to have come from Bosch's lab, and hope to obtain them from the New Times. This raises an interesting ethical question for the New Times' editors. If they give them the documents, they are caving in to investigators, and setting a bad precedent for their organization, and the media in general. Standard rule is media protects sources and documentation of stories from outside agencies. New Times' now "deliberating," to use the editor's word, over this request from MLB.
 
http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/8916793/reports-mlb-seeking-records-newspaper-link-peds-alex-rodriguez
 
New York Daily News is probably the best source for A-Rod coverage as this sorry spectacle unravels. The link above from brs3 is a day ahead of everyone else covering this story.

 

[lostjumper]

ARod thinks MFY and MLB are out to get him
 

 

"He's scared". Love it. A-Rod is trying to play the victim card he because the big bad Yankee's and MLB are trying to take him down. I don't know of anyone in sports who would get less sympathy right now for playing the victim card except for maybe Lance Armstrong. I hope it ends terribly for him but still leaves the Yankees on the hook for his contract.

 

[lostjumper]

MLB investigators in Miami, reviewing the documents alleged to have come from Bosch's lab, and hope to obtain them from the New Times. This raises an interesting ethical question for the New Times' editors. If they give them the documents, they are caving in to investigators, and setting a bad precedent for their organization, and the media in general. Standard rule is media protects sources and documentation of stories from outside agencies. New Times' now "deliberating," to use the editor's word, over this request from MLB.

 
Could you explain this a bit more? I would understand this if it was a source. Obviously you don't want to give up an anonymous source. But isn't this Bosch's notebook? It's not like they are outing a source by turning over his notebook. We already know who's it is, and much of whats in it. Are they trying to protect the identities of people outlined in the book not connected to baseball?

 

[Rovin Romine]

MLB investigators in Miami, reviewing the documents alleged to have come from Bosch's lab, and hope to obtain them from the New Times. This raises an interesting ethical question for the New Times' editors. If they give them the documents, they are caving in to investigators, and setting a bad precedent for their organization, and the media in general. Standard rule is media protects sources and documentation of stories from outside agencies. New Times' now "deliberating," to use the editor's word, over this request from MLB.

 
Certainly they can begin by *asking* the sources if they want to come forward. 

 

[Average Reds]

Could you explain this a bit more? I would understand this if it was a source. Obviously you don't want to give up an anonymous source. But isn't this Bosch's notebook? It's not like they are outing a source by turning over his notebook. We already know who's it is, and much of whats in it. Are they trying to protect the identities of people outlined in the book not connected to baseball?

 
The media's job is to report, not to prosecute or to assist in any sort of enforcement. I don't think there is any question that Bosch's notebook will contain information that will be damaging to a lot of people, and once you turn over the notebook, you lose control over that information. This would have a devastating impact on this organization's ability to perform any sort of investigative journalism in the future.
 
None of this even touches on the fact that MLB is a private organization and has no ability to compel production of sources or documents. Since it's not in their interests to cooperate with MLB, I can't for the life of me understand why the New Times wouldn't just tell MLB to take a hike.
 
There may be factors that I am unaware of that would change things, but the only way I could see the notebook being turned over is if the source asks the New Times to do so. 

 

[joyofsox]

 

[SoxLegacy]

Wow! Those are some headlines! I can't see how A-roid ever plays for the Yanks again.