I think it's highly unlikely that Selig uses his powers under Article 11. As Jeff and I discuss above, Selig wrote a letter to Michael Weiner that is Attachment 1 to the CBA assuring him that he would not use his powers under Article XI to negate any player rights. That wouldn't, however, preclude him from using his…

Wendy has a great answer to this above. The short answer is that courts give great deference to arbitration decisions and will only interfere if there is evidence of fraud, bias, the decision was arbitrary and capricious, or that MLB didn't follow its own rules. Of course, if A-Rod appeals to an arbitrator and loses,…

Great question. The strength of a non-analytical positive vs. a positive test depends on your view of the science behind drug testing and the actual evidence used to support the non-analytical positive. One could argue that multiple eyewitnesses, receipts, etc. would constitute stronger evidence than a drug test. In…

As Wendy said, it's difficult to mount a defense without seeing the evidence or knowing the punishment, but here are some potential defenses:

In response to Jeff here— I have a different take. Attachment 1 only mentions Article XI(A)(1)(b) and doesn't seem to preclude Selig from suspending under Article XII(B). No?

One other point on this— it is an open question whether the commish has the authority to use his "best interest" powers under the CBA to punish A-Rod here. On the one hand, the league could argue that that clause is broad and ambiguous and could arguably cover attempts by A-Rod to tamper with the investigation, etc. …

Whatever the reason, it's pretty fascinating to see. This case likely doesn't have legs— and Braun and the other all stars don't get suspended— if MLB didn't file suit against Bosch for interfering with the players' contracts. MLB could have simply thrown their hands up in the air and said we've done all we could but…

I would actually argue that the MLBPA has been courageous in its efforts here. As discussed elsewhere, I have no doubt that the PA is making sure that the players' rights under the CBA are being protected, but sometimes it makes more sense to settle a losing case than fight it. I haven't seen the evidence so I don't…

If he is suspended under the drug agreement, he can play while he appeals. If he is suspended under the CBA, he cannot play while he appeals. In theory, the decision of the arbitrator on appeal is "final and binding," but if A-Rod ends up appealing and losing, I'd be shocked if he then didn't bring a suit in court to…

There are 2 "best interest"-ish provisions in the CBA. One allows the commish to punish if a player violates the integrity of the game or harms the public's confidence in the game. Any punishment under that section can only be appealed back to the commish. Selig assured the PA in a letter that he wouldn't use this…

One further note on this. It seems most likely that MLB is using the threat of lifetime ban as leverage to push A-Rod to accept a 100+ game suspension without appeal. I agree with Wendy that MLB wouldn't want to defend a lifetime suspension in arbitration or court.

Good question (as are all of the others, of course). There are actually 2 separate provisions in the CBA that speak to the commish's powers in this case. The first is contained in Article 12, which allows the commish to suspend for conduct detrimental/against the best interests of the game. Any suspension under that…

There are at least 2 ways for them to do it:

I'm more of a directional punter. Legal coffin corners are my specialty...

It's not quite unprecedented, but it's rare. Most of the lifetime suspensions have involved players, managers, or former players involved with gambling (Shoeless Joe, Pete Rose, Willie Mays), but the commish did try to ban Steve Howe for life back in the day. That case is quite different from what we have today for a…

The Joint Drug Agreement has strict confidentiality provisions to protect the player (and, in some respects, the league). In theory, none of the evidence should become public . In reality, there's always a chance some of it could be leaked/released. A-Rod might try disclose some of the evidence if he chose to do so…

Here's the short-ish answer: