data-mm-id=”_flprw4lc4″>If there's one lesson Major League Baseball has emphasized over the last few decades, it's that cheaters prosper. But while the steroid era and lack of accountability was bad enough, the latest cheating scandal proves that all MLB teams should cheat. Because guess what? You're gonna get away with it. The MLB just handed down a slap-on-the-wrist penalty to the Boston Red Sox for their cheating ways during the 2018 season. You know, the year where they won 108 games and the World Series. Well, for their actions, they'll be STRIPPED of a second-round draft pick (LOL), a replay operator has been suspended for a year (can someone say scapegoat?) and 2018 manager Alex Cora was suspended for 2020 because of his involvement in the Astros cheating scandal, which obviously really matters because Cora was fired by the Red Sox and is out of baseball for this season anyway. That comes on the heels of the Astros getting an even more laughable penalty when they admitted to cheating during the 2017 season when, yep, they won 101 games and the World Series. As restitution for FULLY cheating over MULTIPLE YEARS by relaying pitch information to their hitters, they were fined $5 million, already-fired GM Jeff Luhnow was suspended for one year, already-fired manager A.J. Hinch was suspended for one year, already-gone former assistant GM Brandon Taubman was suspended for one year and the Astros forfeited their first and second-round draft picks the next two years.What a joke. Not only do draft picks not matter nearly as much in baseball as they do in any other sport, but only one person still associated with the teams at the time penalties were handed out was suspended– and it was a replay operator. You've gotta be kidding me. So the Red Sox cheated in 2017, got caught, told MLB they wouldn't do it again, then did it again the very next year, and that's the punishment? pic.twitter.com/Kxq1Mphr3J— Mike Axisa (@mikeaxisa) April 22, 2020Based on those penalties, and the fact that the two teams in question not only dominated baseball that year but won World Series for their troubles, I'd say the payoff for cheating far outweighs the potential ramifications. People can feel bad for the players and say how hard this whole thing for them has been. But they cheated, they won, and now they've all gotten away with it. Of course, this is nothing new for MLB. Plenty of star players did the same thing, and while they might not get into Cooperstown, they certainly are living a good life. Alex Rodriguez cheated multiple times, won a World Series, and remains the highest-paid player in baseball history. He won't be a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer, but do you think him and J-Lo care about that? Hell no. They're currently trying to buy the New York Mets. Barry Bonds still has the most home runs in MLB history even though everyone knows his numbers are as inflated as his head got from all the steroids he took. Roger Clemens' MLB records still stand, Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa's home run duel still helped save baseball. The list goes on and on. All of those players are still rich, or at least should be, based on the money they earned cheating. Listen, no game is clean and perfect. That's not the point, nor an expectation I hold the league to. But to hand down such light penalties for the Astros when they admitted to cheating, and the Red Sox when they seemingly were caught red-handed, proves that when it comes to Major League Baseball, cheating is worth it in the end. You get rich and you get the ring. What more does a player want?
Related Posts
data-mm-id=”_3e57u43xk”>As one of the foremost draft experts in media, when Mel Kiper Jr. speaks, we all tend to listen. That is why you find yourself here, wanting to hear his explanation of why Oklahoma's Jalen Hurts will not be selected anywhere near the first round come April 2020. Kiper not only said Hurts wouldn't be a first-rounder, he's projecting him to land somewhere in the fourth or fifth-round as an unfinished quarterback who will need a lot of work to become NFL-ready. He cites Lincoln Riley, QB whisperer, as the central reason for Hurts' success, although Kiper noted Hurts has made significant strides over the last few years as a whole. This is obviously quite interesting because Hurts is at or near the top of the Heisman leaderboard, depending on who …
data-mm-id=”_w2fes8kaz”>Despite trading away any and all talent they had on the roster, the Miami Dolphins didn't end up with the first overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Instead, they found themselves at No. 5, but fortunately for them, still ended up with what they hope is their quarterback of the future in Tua Tagovailoa. While their efforts to land the Alabama star didn't lack the usual dose of NFL subterfuge, it also came from a bit of luck after Tagovailoa's injury suffered in November raised enough medical red flags for him to drop. The development may have worked out fortuitously for Miami, but now that he's on the roster, they have to confront the very-real problems that Tagovailoa's injury history represents. If anything can be said about Miami'…
data-mm-id=”_d6qwwe2fq”>The St. Louis Cardinals have played all of five baseball games this season and had to miss 14 after a spate of positive COVID-19 tests brought about postponement after postponement. With each day the notion that they'd be able to erase the backlog and get to the prescribed 60-contest mark because less likely. Bloggers began to see the handwriting growing in font size on the wall and suggested Major League Baseball set a minimum-games-played requirement far ahead of the playoffs so everyone was on the same page.But the plan remains for St. Louis to make them all up. They return to action with a doubleheader tomorrow against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. They'll play three more twinbills at Wrigley before Sept. 5. They have four doubleheaders in Aug…
data-mm-id=”_m3wdjrguj”>Eminem released a surprise album today. The new album is called "Music to Be Murdered By — Side B" and is a follow-up to the surprise album he released in January. There's been a whole pandemic since then so of course Slim Shady had to address it, which he did in the COVID-19 themed first single and video off the album, GNAT.According to NME, Eminem takes a, "scorched-earth policy to the pop culture landscape" on the album. So it's no surprise he references Shaquille O'Neal in the song as well as Michael Vick and dog fighting. He also bites the head off a bat. It's not all scorched earth though. Em apologizes to Rihanna on one track according to CNN. When he releases his next album, he may have to apologize to Paul McCar…
data-mm-id=”_j1uye9ara”>Shannon Sharpe was the perfect counterbalance for Skip Bayless on Undisputed. That's not an endorsement of the show or what it aims to be by any stretch, but the duo had real chemistry, real tension, and Sharpe was uniquely suited to hold his own against a firehose of Baylessian spray. Identifying and developing the talent Sharpe has but had never honed before his FS1 run is one of the more impressive things Skip has done in recent years. But emotional goodbyes and thank-yous have been doled out and Undisputed needs a new voice. Bayless needs a partner he can work with in order to stay relevant. This is an especially intriguing story because jobs like this and microphones this size don't grow on trees. The visibility is great if you can learn to exist …
data-mm-id=”_hufg3p1ns”>Last night Ole Miss pulled off a big upset and took down No. 13 LSU, 55-49. Since the game was at Vaught–Hemingway Stadium in Mississippi the crowd was ecstatic as the ball fell to the turf on LSU's final play and the fans rushed the field. One fan went viral for scrambling up the goalpost and managing to scooch his way almost halfway up one of the uprights. Ole Miss fan didn't know how to act after upsetting LSU 💀🤣(via @BradLoganCOTE) pic.twitter.com/P4o8wxuhdI— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 1, 2023On Sunday morning, video of the fan's antics made its way around the Internet and it gets better than merely climbing higher than he should. He kissed the goalpost numerous times and when security finally came over to tell him to …
data-mm-id=”_1023vdfnr”>Week 12 of the 2023 NFL season is now in the books and it has been quite a campaign so far. The top teams have separated themselves from the pack, while a large chunk of squads are still in contention for playoff berths. What follows is a look at the current standings and what the NFL's playoff bracket would look like if the season ended today. AFC Playoff StandingsCurrent AFC standings1. Baltimore Ravens (9-3)2. Kansas City Chiefs (8-3)3. Jacksonville Jaguars (8-3)4. Miami Dolphins (8-3)5. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-4)6. Cleveland Browns (7-4)7. Indianapolis Colts (6-5)NFC Playoff StandingsCurrent NFC standings1. Philadelphia Eagles (10-1)2. San Francisco 49ers (8-3)3. Detroit Lions (8-3)4. Atlanta Falcons (5-6)5. Dallas Cowboys (8-3)6. Seattle Seahawks (6-5)7…
data-mm-id=”_hwwtzn3jy”>The Los Angeles Lakers are In-Season Tournament champions and that's about the only good thing they have going for them right now. The roster has battled injuries to pretty much everybody but Anthony Davis and LeBron James all season. The questionable construction of the team as it relates to a lack of three-point shooting has become a nightly problem. And it seems that things are coming to a head for the man in charge of it all– head coach Darvin Ham. After the Lakers lost to the Miami Heat without Jimmy Butler by 14 points at home last night, LeBron exited the arena without speaking to reporters. Davis sounded miserable during his media appearance. Nobody had any answers for how the Lakers are going to improve on their 17-18 record. Then, less than 12 ho…
data-mm-id=”_vjxw4rd7l”>Alex Pereira stands 6-foot-4 and is the reigning champion of the UFC's light heavyweight division at 205 pounds. He has defended his title twice, most recently in June when he scored a second-round TKO of Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303.In pound-for-pound rankings that assess fighters regardless of weight class, Pereira is a consensus No. 2 selection behind Islam Makhachev, the UFC's lightweight champion.On Friday, Pereira was second-best … to a YouTube star listed at 5-9.Pereira went head-to-head with IShowSpeed, a 19-year-old live streamer whose real name is Darren Jason Watkins Jr., in a test of punching strength on the UFC Striking Challenge machine.Pereira went first and registered a punch of 907. IShowSpeed stepped up next and shockingly surpassed Pe…
data-mm-id=”_ravxxszg5″>Caleb Williams hasn't even thrown his first official pass in the National Football League, and the 2024 No. 1 overall pick has already earned a proud distinction.On Monday, the rookie quarterback was named one of the Chicago Bears' eight captains for the 2024 season, which begins Sunday with the team's opener at home against the Tennessee Titans.Head coach Matt Eberflus said he had players on offense and defense choose team captains by a ranked vote. While he admitted it's unusual for a rookie to be named a team leader, Eberflus said the votes for Williams "came out really high.""It's a really good sign that he has good leadership throughout the team," Eberflus told reporters.The 22-year-old Williams is believed to be…