Players union backs Romero
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Players union backs Romero
Daily News staff
As the news continues to unfold on the 50-game suspension of Phillies reliever J.C. Romero, the Major League Baseball Players Association issued a statement, describing the penalty as "unfair" and saying it "strongly disagrees" with the suspension by the commissioner's office and the ruling by the arbitration panel.
The union said Romero should not be suspended, however, it also said it recognizes the arbitration process as final.
Also suspended for 50 games was Yankees minor league pitcher Sergio Mitre, who is with the team's Triple A affiliate in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
The statement:
General Counsel, Michael Weiner, today released the following statement regarding the suspensions of Sergio Mitre and J.C. Romero.
“Sergio Mitre and J.C. Romero were suspended for fifty games each by the Commissioner because they tested positive during the 2008 regular season for a Performance Enhancing Substance. Those suspensions were upheld by a neutral third-party arbitrator after hearing. We strongly disagree with the Commissioner’s discipline and with the arbitrator’s decision.
“Mitre and Romero both legally purchased nutritional supplements from national chain stores in the United States. Nothing on the labels of those supplements indicated that they contained a trace amount of a substance prohibited under Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Neither player intentionally ingested this prohibited substance, but the arbitrator nevertheless found, wrongly in our view, that the players’ conduct violated the Program’s “no fault or negligence” standard.
“The Union respects the arbitration process and treats the decision as final. In our view, though, the resulting discipline imposed upon Mitre and Romero is unfair. These players should not be suspended. Their unknowing actions plainly are distinguishable from those of a person who intentionally used an illegal performance-enhancing substance.
“The Association and the Commissioner’s Office must now act to prevent future similar occurrences within baseball. The Association remains committed to a strong Joint Drug Program, but will continue to advocate forcefully for fair treatment of our members.”
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agreeing with the player's union is a strange feeling i'm having a hard time getting used to.— Marrrk- Is there anyway we can protest as fans for JC?— Beef69
- If rulings like this are allowed to stand, good luck getting the players to agree to a drug-testing policy when it's time for the next CBA. The MLB and the arbitrators are completely wrong in this case and should all be held accountable. Its going to lead to another strike in a few years, bank on it.— Bunns
- Who does Shemp have on his arbitration panel? Moe...Larry...Curley perhaps? What a joke...I bet it was his "arbitration panel" that brilliantly schemed out game 5 too...— wvbillz
- What good is the statement if it recognizes the arbitrator's decision is final?— Gary Varsho
- “The Association and the Commissioner’s Office must now act..." ha, this is the same office that failed to act properly during the Game 5 monsoon— LongtimeFan3
- Dave are you hearing anything we arent that hasnt been reported yet? With everything laid out there is no way this can be upheld with legal action right? Especially with 1.25 M at stake, thats a big chunk for any player.— philsfan in the atx
- I fail to see how not having the spine to fight the decision constitutes "backing" the player. I thought the purpose of labor unions was to protect the rights of its members to work in a just and fair environment. Regardless of whether or not the arbitration process is viewed as "final", if the decision is considered unjust or unfair it is incumbent upon the union to continue to fight for the player. This release is just a way for the union to try to save face before the rest of its members. Romero should procure himself a lawyer, and sue MLB for unfair labor practices, sue the Union to recoup his union dues for failure to perform in their duties, and sue the manufacturer for not properly labeling their product and costing him $1.25M in salary. That is if, in fact, he believes everything he is saying and honestly does not believe he did anything wrong. You never know in pro sports these days.— RollinsWasRight
- Can JC sue to block the suspension like the players from Minnesota and New Orleans did in the NFL? If a player is told that what he is taking is ok by MLB, then how did the player violate the “no fault or negligence” standard.— wtphillies
- Amaro is gonna lose the fans quick with his lame response. Fight for whats right, you can do it an appropriate way and not piss off the league...Ruben needs to have a spine on this one.— philsfan in the atx
- Yet another ridiculous move by a commissioner unfit for the job...— Grazman
- Definitely a law suit should be filed. JC needs to take this to the higher courts. Its wrongful defamation, wrongful loss of income. He is out a million plus because the MLB doesnt have the stones to admit it made a mistake. The Union doesnt have the stones to say that they made a mistake and wont protect its own client. To purchase a product that was not on the list, and then to later be tested and found positive after the MLB decided to include the product on the list is just retarded. Thanks again Bud, you have done nothing but wonders for the game of baseball.— Superkavi
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- Bud Selig shoud be recused from this decision as he is the owner of the Brewers who were beaten by the Phils in the playoffs.....how can this guy be unbiased? He is the same guy that made all of the Philly fans sit in the rain. Let's string 'em up.— rockinrob
- Save the union bashing. They are bound by the collective bargaining agreement, which has been amended I believe twice, under tremendous pressure from fans, Congress and the owners as a result of the game being lost to the drug abusers for over a decade. The pendulum always swings to far the other way in these cases. Romero absolutely should file a federal lawsuit, like the suspended NFLer's...absolute same collective barganing standard and issue. A million dollars is certainly worth fighting for. And what did you expect Rube to say...stand by the player and snub the arbitrators, etc. Wake up.— bigredmachinefan
This is punishment for not taking the 25 game suspension plea bargain - plain and simple.- Melyssa, Mitre pitches for Los Yankees, so what is your point?— cadilacjack
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- STRIKE!— SirAlden
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- Rubie looks weak on this issue.— mick314
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- They are really nit-pickin with this one but I guess JC is going to be made the example in this situation of how MLB and owners are cleaning up the game after letting it get out of hand for over 10yrs by letting players turn themselves into freaks in order to bring more people to the ballparks. Maybe a random owner out there can spot JC the one mil that he's gonna lose from the money they raked in during the steroid era.......scumbags— MrFancyPants
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- SO... UNION... WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO??? Maybe WHISKEYBREATH is not President of the Player's Union...— rcw333
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- Two wrongs don't make a right! Bud Selig is a finger wagging hypocrite. Integrity? Puh-leeze! I'm sure he's a great fan but he's a terrible custodian of the game. We go from overlooking rampant abuse to nitpicking and heavy-handedness. Mr. Selig's contrived sense of right and wrong is a joke. Can we get a real leader? One who isn't an old ball of tangled string? What a disgrace to the game. Someone needs to make a Bud Selig doll as chew toy for dogs. He'll have his finger up, his severe frown, his Hank Aaron jersey and he'll squeak when bitten.— xfactor
