Author: Nick Abbate

Nick is from the Bronx and grew up just a short subway ride away from the original Yankee Stadium. He spent many days of his youth sitting in those old seats and from that, he has developed a strong love for sports.

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Sports

While Yankees Try To Void A-Rod, There’s Another Way Out

A source with knowledge of the situation has told the media that the Yankees are looking into at least 20 different ways to void the remainder of Alex Rodriguez’s contract. The source did not go in depth with information but one route is by claiming A-Rod accepted treatment from a physician not authorized by the Yankee organization. A definite violation of his contract. Another option is to try to void the contract based on the drugs he purchased. Let’s not forget what A-Rod did was not only against the rules, it was illegal. Not only should he be out of a job, he should be doing 3-5 in a prison somewhere.

Does this all sound good so far Yankee fans? Don’t get too excited. The Yanks face an uphill battle. Although a situation like this should allow a team to void a player’s contract, it most likely will not. The way the MLB drug policy was written was so that a team could not get out of a contract just because of a steroid violation.

The truth is, the rewards out-weigh the risks of PED use right now. Mainly because the MLB can’t just do what they want. These players are in a union therefore the MLBPA must agree to the drug policy. Recently, the two sides did come to an agreement on a much stricter testing system. One that includes random in-season human growth hormone testing. However, until the punishments get more intimidating, you’re still going to have players taking a chance.

Currently, the rules are for the first infraction, a player receives a 50 game suspension without pay. After the second infraction, the player receives a 100 game suspension without pay. Finally, the third infraction results in a lifetime ban from baseball. Three strikes and you’re out. This policy was a step in the right direction but it’s not there yet. A better policy would have a player suspended a full season for the first infraction and receive a lifetime ban after just a second infraction. Furthermore, a team needs to be able to void the contract of any player found guilty of breaking the MLB drug policy. If these rules were adopted, players would think twice about cheating.

Getting back to the Yankees, though they face a tough task of voiding the contract. The attempt shows that they are done with Alex and want him off this team and there maybe a simple way out.

A-Rod already admitted to using PEDs between 2001-2003. Now with the evidence suggesting use from 2009-2012, it becomes pretty clear that Rodriguez is not confident in his own ability without the assistance of banned substances. So battling back from a hip injury now that his help is gone could prove to be a very daunting task for him. Also, the fans and media haven’t exactly been his biggest supporters recently and now with all this going on, it makes sense that the fans and media will be brutal towards him if he does come back. Who would be in a rush to face hostility like that?

If Alex simply retired, the Yankees would be off the hook for the remainder of A-Rod’s contract but he would not earn another penny. However, if he were to find a doctor who stated that he was suffering from a career ending injury, he could walk away from the game with his $114 million owed to him. The Yankees would have to pay him in full but they can then turn around and cash in on the insurance policy they have on the contract and make at least 85% of the money back. It’s a win-win situation that is not so far fetched.

Alex has disgraced the Yankees as well as Major League Baseball. It’s time the game moves on and this could be how it happens.

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Sports

We Were Supposed To Be Passed This

On Saturday, it was exposed that a Miami area clinic was being investigated for ties to steroids but details were not clear. Tuesday morning, the picture became much, much clearer. According to an in depth article that was three months in the making published in this morning’s Miami New Times, Anthony Bosch was the head of Biogenesis of America, a clinic which had a list of clients that included several notable MLB players. Most notably, Alex Rodriguez is said to be a client of Bosch’s and although Rodriguez had already admitted to using steroids during his career, he assured the MLB Commissioners Office that his use was limited to 2001-2003. Evidence acquired from the investigation into Biogenesis of America is suggesting that A-Rod was lying. There is evidence that suggests A-Rod was using PEDs in 2009 after his admission to using band substances and during the Yankees’ World Series run as well as in 2010, 2011 and 2012.

The other players that have been named so far are Melky Cabrera, Gio Gonzalez, Bartolo Colon, Nelson Cruz, Yasmani Grandal and even former University of Miami star pitcher Cesar Carrillio. The implications are said to be well founded and if proven true, MLB would be well within their rights to suspend all players involved. Alex Rodriguez is looking at a bad situation since it seems he lied during an official investigation by MLB. According to the agreement between the MLB and MLBPA, the league does not need a positive drug test to suspend a player for breaking the drug policy. They just need proof of an infraction. MLB may be able to treat each season as a different infraction and possibly ban A-Rod for life. It is a far fetched situation but if the commissioner finds it necessary to make an example out of him it could end up happening.

Alex has completely destroyed his legacy. By admitting to using steroids early in his career and being found to use them late in his career, there is little doubt that he has used PEDs for most if not all of his play. He will never be the “clean” player to break the all time home run record or even break the record at all. He will never realize his dream of owning a professional baseball team, MLB would never allow it. He likely blew his chance at the Hall of Fame after being viewed as a first ballot Hall of Famer. If the Yankees succeed at voiding A-Rod’s contract and no other team wants to take a risk on him, A-Rod may never reach his 3,000 hit.

Alex is denying the allegations in a statement he put out today. The statement said; “The news report about a purported relationship between Alex Rodriguez and Anthony Bosch are not true, Alex Rodriguez was not Mr. Bosch’s patient, he was never treated by him and he was never advised by him. The purported documents referenced in the story — at least as they relate to Alex Rodriguez — are not legitimate.”

The Yankees then released a statement of their own. After the team supported him in ’09 during his first steroid scandal, it was interesting to see which direction the organization would go. The statement read as follows; “We fully support the Commissioner’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program, This matter is now in the hands of the Commissioner’s Office. We will have no further comment until that investigation has concluded.” There was no mention of A-Rod at all. It seems the Yankees are done supporting him.

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Sports

A-Rod Among Those Named in Doping Scandal

This morning, the Miami New Times broke a story of epic proportions linking Alex Rodriguez to performance enhancing drugs as recently as last season and as notably as 2009. The 3 month investigation into a Miami area clinic uncovered overwhelming evidence linking not only A-Rod but several other well known players.

The clinic’s client list includes Nationals pitcher Gio Gonzales, Rangers slugger Nelson Cruz, Blue Jays outfielder Melky Cabrera and Athletics pitcher Bartolo Colon. In what is being called the East Coast version of BALCO, this most recent blow to Major League Baseball will likely have a lasting impact on these players.

More on this as the story unfolds.

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Sports

Stan The Man Laid To Rest

Stan “Stan The Man” Musial was laid to rest today. After his funeral, his family laid a wreath outside of Busch Stadium in St. Louis while the band played “Amazing Grace.” After, fans who had gathered, broke out into a touching tribute to Stan The Man by singing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.”

Video: TRIBUTE TO STAN THE MAN

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Sports Super Bowl

All Eyes On Ray Lewis

Every now and then, sports gives us a story worth paying close attention too. I am of course speaking of the up coming Super Bowl but I’m not talking about the Harbaugh brothers. Don’t get me wrong, a brother on brother Super Bowl is very interesting especially when the brothers are both head coaches. However, I’m talking about a story that started back in 1996 when a 21 year old kid was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens and went on to lead the team in tackles with 110 that year.

Ray Lewis needs no description of how impressive his 13x Pro Bowl career has been. He has been the heart and soul of the the Ravens since the late 90’s and here he is, once again at the center of an amazing playoff run. The difference between this year and years passed is this playoff run will be his last. Just after the season ended with a loss to the Bengals, Lewis announced that he would retire at the end of the teams playoff run bringing a legendary career to an end. It seems his teammates wanted to make sure they could put off his retirement as long as possible. The Ravens have gone on an unlikely Super Bowl run in true underdog fashion.

The team has beat the Colts, Broncos and Patriots to earn a trip to the big game against the 49ers. They haven’t been the favorites so far and the Super Bowl is no different. They’ll go into the final game of the season with one single goal and its the same goal the Giants had last year; FINISH.

So my pick for you’re Super Bowl champions is none other than the Baltimore Ravens, and before you call me crazy, I’ll remind you all that I did successfully pick the Super Bowl teams. So my guess is that come February 3rd, Ray Lewis will hoist his second and final Lombardi trophy bringing a story book ending to an incredible career spent entirely with one team. That’s something that has become extremely rare.

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Sports

Lance Armstrong Argues Semantics With Oprah

I tuned in last night like many others, to see if I could forgive a man who used to command much of my respect. Lance Armstrong had a great chance last night to own it all. Oprah gave him the platform to take the bull by the horns and fess up to everything he was guilty of. That’s what I expected of him last night and I think that’s what Oprah expected. Sadly, Armstrong let us all down.

He admitted to using banned substances for every single Tour De France victory and for the first 15 minutes of the interview it seemed like this was going well. Then Armstrong took a weird turn, telling Oprah he never pressured a single teammate to do the things he was doing because he “never outright told them to use PEDs.” Oprah tried to make a point that Armstrong was the leader of his team and since he was so open about his steroid use, when he told a teammate that he wanted them to step up and do better, this pressure to take PEDs was implied. Oprah’s point was met by an argument over semantics. Armstrong conceded that he was supposed to lead by example but then pushed the fact that he never said the words “do steroids” so he was not guilty of pressuring anyone.

That was not the only time Armstrong claimed innocence based on semantics. Oprah asked him while he was doping, if he realized he was cheating. He answered with a clear and firm “no.” Oprah was blown away so she pushed the topic. “How could you not realize you we’re cheating?” Oprah asked. Armstrong then explained that he had looked up the definition of cheating and that it was defined as gaining an unfair advantage over an opponent or foe. He said that he never did that. Armstrong’s argument is that everyone else was on performance enhancing drugs so he never gained an unfair advantage.

Lance Armstrong struck me as a cheating spouse who was only owning up to what they were caught doing instead of owning the whole situation. I didn’t see his confession as genuine. Maybe it was just a sad attempt to stay relevant but he has attacked so many people for accusing him of things he really did that if he is not going to own everything and apologize to every person he sued, this whole interview is moot.

The topic of his ex teammate’s wife came up. Betsy Andreu had told people that she heard Armstrong tell a doctor that he had done a whole list of banned substances. Armstrong not only sued her for this but he called her a “crazy whore.” Andreu was under the impression Armstrong called her a “crazy fat whore.” Armstrong made a point of saying that he did call her a crazy whore but that he never called her fat. So I guess that makes it all better.

Armstrong didn’t lose all my respect by doing all the things he did. He lost my respect last night when he somehow confessed but still took almost no responsibility for what he did. He claimed it was all on him but everything he said last night leads me to believe that he still doesn’t see anything wrong with what he did.

Before I end this post, I’ll leave you with this final point. Mark McGwire used steroids to prolong a career of high production. A career where his home run and RBI totals were always high as long as he was healthy. Roger Clemens is without a doubt, one of the best pitchers to ever grace the mound. He used steroids when he saw his career starting to decline. He used them to keep an already very successful career going. Lance Armstrong would have been a nobody if he didn’t take PED’s. That’s the difference between him and every other great athlete that cheated. He built his career on lies.

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Sports United States

Team USA Has Been Selected For WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC

Today at 10am, Joe Torre released a provisional 27 man roster for the World Baseball Classic. Above is a break down of that roster. The team has some powerful bats in Ryan Braun, Mark Teixiera, Giancarlo Stanton and David Wright. I like the team that was put together but I don’t love it. This is why Baseball was eliminated as an Olympic sport. Countries continuously brought their top talent and the U.S. shows up with a B team.

You have to love the strong outfield on Team USA but where is Josh Hamilton, Mike Trout and Bryce Harper? The infield looks pretty strong but where is Troy Tulowitzki? He was rumored to be on the roster but then come 10am and his name was left off. Another person who was oddly left off the roster is Andy Pettitte. He was confirmed to be on the team but was left off the roster due to his contract being uninsured. Pettitte is 40 years old and was injured for 3 months last season. So his contract was too risky to insure should he get injured.

Pettitte would have been a nice addition to what I think is a drab rotation behind Cy-Young winner R.A. Dickey but, where is David Price, Clayton Kershaw and Justin Verlander? That would have been a great group of guys to see on the mound along with Dickey. Nothing against Torre’s team, he obviously did his best but I’m wondering why all these guys said no to representing the United States.

The World Baseball Classic is very popular throughout the world but as long as MLB players keep turning down the opportunity to put on the red white and blue, it’s never going to be very popular in the U.S.

Team USA will begin there quest to dethrone Japan on March 8th at 9pm ET.

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Sports

Yankees To Play Army at West Point Exhibition Game

The Yankees have a very rich history with the Military Academy at West Point. Often, West Point cadets are invited to Yankee Stadium for countless reasons ranging from unfurling large American flags, playing the Star Spangled Banner, fund raisers and College Football games. The history goes back to the days of Gehrig and Ruth. It was not uncommon to see the Yankees play Army in an exhibition game in those days.

Recently though, no such games have been played. In fact, the most recent visit the Yankees have made to West Point was in 1982 when at the request of George Steinbrenner, the Yankees conducted preseason workouts in front of cadets due to snowy conditions at Yankee Stadium. Steinbrenner’s admiration and respect for the school was very well known but for some reason he either never tried to or never succeeded in setting up an exhibition game between his Yankees and the Army Black Knights.

However, this year the Yankee organization was able to do just that. After the Yankees leave Florida, they will make a stop in Washington D.C. to play an exhibition game against the Nationals in their home park. After that, on March 30th, the Yankees will make the trip north of Yankee Stadium to play an exhibition game against the Black Knights in historic West Point. I’m sure many fans will take this opportunity to see a great afternoon of Baseball. I know I will.

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New Orleans NFL Sports

NFL Championship Weekend

The NFL playoffs have been incredible so far and now we enter Championship Weekend with two great games set to be played. First, the Falcons will see if Matt Ryan can seal the deal against Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers in Atlanta. Then it’s up to Foxboro to see if the Ravens can help Ray Lewis end his career hoisting the Lombardi Trophy or if the Patriots are going to setup their second straight trip to the Super Bowl.

At this point, my hopes of a Washington vs Indianapolis matchup are dead. So at this point, I’m pulling for a Ravens vs 49ers big game. I think Kaepernick is going to outshine Ryan and despite my hatred for the 49ers, I believe they are going to win the NFC Championship game they couldn’t win last year, and book a trip to New Orleans on February 3rd.

I also think that the Patriots will not return to the Super Bowl this year. I think the Ravens are a good team that got hot at the right time and will ride this wave straight to New Orleans. I don’t think either game will be a laugher but I expect the Ravens, Pats games to be especially nerve racking.

Sunday will come soon and we shall see if I’m correct.

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Sports

Lance Armstrong: Forgive Him or Forget Him

Oprah has wrapped her interview with alleged performance enhancing drug user, Lance Armstrong. In the interview that will air on Thursday, Armstrong admits to using PEDs throughout his career. The interview was two and a half hours long and Armstrong reportedly gets into details about when exactly he used PEDs and why but as of right now, there aren’t many details from the interview because their is a non-disclosure agreement in place since the interview will air on Thursday.

What’s the next step? Do we forgive what Armstrong has done? Or maybe we just forget about him forever. Well, I don’t think either of those answers are right. This man is not stupid. He was risking being charged for perjury but the statute of limitations has run out on that charge. We are not talking about a man who is desperately looking for forgiveness and will take whatever punishment he deserves. We’re talking about a man who is cunningly making his way through the apology tour to rehabilitate his shattered public image. The excuse that he did it because everyone else was too, that doesn’t make it ok. That just makes everyone else wrong also.

So his seven Tour De France wins were a lie. Actually, it’s unclear at this point if they were all tainted but even if they all are, does that mean that everything he’s ever done is tainted? Even Livestrong? No, of course not. Lance Armstrong cheated. He made a huge career altering and defining mistake. However, Armstrong created and helped lead an organization that has raised over $470 million for cancer research. That’s still pretty damn incredible.

So before you rip off your Livestrong bracelet and throw it in the trash, think about what that yellow bracelet means. Do you wear it because its going to help you win the Tour De France? No. You bought it because the money went to help someone with cancer.

I’m disappointed that Armstrong did PEDs but I would be much more disappointed if all that money didn’t go to an amazing cause. But it did. Don’t forget that.

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Politics Sports

Cervelli’s Dream

We are just under a month away from pitchers and catchers reporting to their respective spring training camps. Right now, however, these camps are quiet. Not a creature stirring, not even a mouse. Well, with one exception. Francisco Cervelli has already reported to Tampa to get a head start on making a big league run this year with the Yankees. Cervelli’s chances of becoming the club’s primary catcher are pretty good coming into camp. If the Yankees continue to look internally for the solution to their vacant catcher position, the options are Cervelli, Chris Stewart and Austin Romine.

None of theses options are what you would call “sexy.” But I have always loved Cervelli’s intensity and heart. He plays with a fire that most guys don’t have. Romine is young and calls a very good game. His hitting is not where the organization hoped it would be. He was improving a great deal until he hurt his back and missed most of the 2012 season. Chris Stewart isn’t a bad option but he is definitely not your starting catcher if I had any say. Come Opening Day, my two catchers would be Cervelli and Romine. Spring training will tell who gets the start on Opening Day.

As long as the Yankees stick to their plans of getting a righty outfielder/DH and don’t go get a catcher, the job is Cervelli’s to win. He has something to prove to himself and to this team. He’s looking to show everyone that he can help the big league club and not just as a back up. He told Bryan Hoch of Yankees.com that this is his dream opportunity and he’s not about to settle. It will be interesting to watch him in spring training. He’s a great team guy and he’s a fan favorite. I’m pulling for him.

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Sports

Tragedy At Penn State: Who Is To Blame?

I understand that when it comes to the media, scandal attracts more attention than tragedy. However, in the case of Penn State University, scandal just doesn’t explain the delicate nature of the situation. Herman Cain’s wandering hands are a scandal. Eight lives will never be the same because of the actions of the athletic department at Penn State.

The monster here is former PSU defensive coördinator, Jerry Sandusky. Mike McQueary is not guilty of these horrifying acts of sexual abuse, nor is Joe Paterno. Still, Edmund Burke had a quote that is very fitting for this situation. “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” McQueary and Paterno simply did not do enough to satisfy a good man’s conscience.

To explain to you what has happened in this prestigious state university means we have to go back to 2002, to the day Mike McQueary walked into the football locker room at PSU and saw the shower lights on and heard the water running. I apologize for the graphic nature of the following text but this is as it appears in the court statement. As McQueary approached the shower he could hear what he described to be rhythmic slapping. He believed the sounds to be of a sexual nature so he continued toward the shower to investigate. Upon peering into the showers, McQueary saw Jerry Sandusky engaging in anal sex with a boy he believed to be only ten years old. Sandusky allegedly saw McQueary which caused McQueary to leave the premises abruptly.

When McQueary consulted a relative about what he should do, he was instructed to tell Coach Paterno. Mike McQueary confided in Joe Paterno and left it up to him to decide how to handle the situation. Now this is where the story gets fuzzy. It has been widely spread that Paterno informed his boss, Tim Curley of the situation but then forgot about the issue when nothing was done.

Most recently, Paterno was fired from his position at PSU. Saturday was the first time he was not a member of the coaching staff since 1950. The game resulted in a 17-14 loss. Paterno is the winningest coach in Division 1 Football history. It’s a shame his career had to end like this but the truth is Paterno owed it to that child to do more. Eight more children have accused Sandusky of inappropriate sexual behavior. Every child after the one Paterno knew about falls under his responsibility. It could have been stopped and it wasn’t.

The blame can not fall only on Paterno and McQueary. In 2000, a janitor at Penn State walked in on Sandusky performing oral sex on a child. Even before that in 1998, a child’s mother confronted Sandusky about showering with her son and engaging in inappropriate sexual behavior. Sandusky responded to the accusation by apologizing and wishing he could take back what he did and further wishing that he were dead.

The simple fact is, where there is tons of smoke, their tends to be a whole lot of fire to go with it. Jerry Sandusky is a monster and there were many people who knew this. So why are we just hearing about all this now? It seems that too many people were aware of this for Sandusky to just be given the benefit of the doubt.

What we have here seems to be a coverup. Numerous questions remain unanswered. How deep does this coverup go? Are there more guilty parties? Has all the information come out? We can be sure that not all the information has come out. In fact, Mike McQueary has recently made several statements eluding to the fact that more information will come out showing that he did more to blow the whistle at this horrible secret. If we read between the lines we can see that this is likely true. When Sandusky was finally told to move on, he peaked the interest of one other school’s athletic department despite a stellar history as a defensive coördinator. So did other schools know what was going on here? And if so, how much did they know. There is even information slowly coming out that suggests local law enforcement knew entirely of the goings on at Penn State.

Is it possible that the community knowingly helped sweep these horrific crimes under the rug for the sake of preserving the idea of “Success With Honor” at PSU? Can that even exist at a place of learning if the school is involved in something so morally wrong?

After listening to Jerry Sandusky break his silence last night with legendary sportscaster Bob Costas, one thing can be concluded. Sandusky is a sick man. He claims he is completely innocent of these crimes and that everyone is lying about the things that took place. Further, he seems unsure as to why he would be set up like this.

After assessing all this information and internalizing it, there are two certainties. This is going to get a whole lot bigger before it goes away and Jerry Sandusky is evil.

Follow Nick on twitter @captainclutch27

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