Baseball's players' union is conducting an investigation into the role some agents might have played in the Biogenesis doping scandal that rocked the sport last year, several sources told ESPN's T.J. Quinn.
The MLB Players' Association, which certifies player agents, retained veteran Washington attorney Robert Muse to run the investigation several months ago, the sources said, and he and his staff are expected to issue a report within the next few weeks.
According to sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the two primary subjects of the investigation have been the ACES agency out of Brooklyn, run by longtime agents Seth and Sam Levinson, and CAA in Los Angeles, where agent Nez Balelo represents
Ryan Braun. Braun, who plays for the
Milwaukee Brewers, accepted a 65-game suspension for PED use.
If the agents are found to have been complicit or have violated their duties, they could face decertification, although the MLPBA's agent regulations also allow for lesser penalties.
MLBPA general counsel David Prouty declined to confirm the existence of the investigation, saying, "We don't comment on internal investigations or whether we're conducting them."
A spokesman for MLB described the investigation as "an internal union matter" and referred questions to the MLBPA.
ACES came under the spotlight in 2012 when MLB discovered that
Melky Cabrera, who tested positive for testosterone, tried to create a fake website as part of a plan to explain the failed test. The ACES agent who was working with Cabrera, Juan Carlos Nunez, was decertified after he was connected to the conspiracy. Nunez was later identified as a conduit between Biogenesis founder Tony Bosch and numerous ACES clients, including Cabrera, who were suspended for violating the PED policy. Of the 25 major and minor league players who were identified as Biogenesis clients -- not all were suspended -- 10 were ACES clients.
The union censured ACES last year for failing to supervise Nunez properly, but then-union executive director Michael Weiner also issued a statement saying, "We conducted a thorough investigation and concluded that none of the ACES principals were involved in the scheme and that there was no knowledge or involvement by Seth and Sam."
But several sources familiar with the case said Muse's investigation is looking into whether the Levinsons were indeed aware of Nunez's work as a leg man for Bosch or his part in the Cabrera website.
Seth Levinson did not respond to a message seeking comment, but in the past has denied that he or his brother were aware of Nunez's activities. They described him as a consultant, although Nunez was certified by the union as an agent.
Balelo and CAA also did not return a call for comment.
Muse is, by any standard, a heavyweight, and has worked as a staff attorney or consultant on numerous congressional investigations, starting with Watergate, up through the Iran-Contra Affair and the special Senate committee to investigate Hurricane Katrina in 2005-06. He has been a partner at Stein, Mitchell, Muse, Cipollone and Beato since 1983.
Muse did not return a call or email seeking comment.