February 23, 201214 yr Honestly, I'm glad to hear this. http://hardballtalk...._medium=twitter Ryan Braun wins the appeal of his drug suspension Craig Calcaterra Feb 23, 2012, 5:22 PM EST Huge news: Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel is reporting that Ryan Braun has won the appeal of his 50-game suspension for taking a banned substance. The MLBPA has confirmed. Braun is the first player to successfully appeal a drug suspension. Immediately after this news broke, Major League Baseball released a statement, printed in full below, saying that while they “vehemently disagree� with the arbitrator’s decision, it will respect the process. To which I say: how freaking noble of you to respect the process, Major League Baseball. And to all of the writers who, in the wake of the leak of Braun’s positive test, demanded that he either give up his MVP award of have it put up to a re-vote, I suppose you should probably revisit that view in light of the appeal. You know, now that the process has actually run its course and there is a determination you can assess rather than an unauthorized leak to which you can react. As for Braun and the Brewers: nothing but good news here. From staring a 50-game suspension in the face to reporting to camp tomorrow as if nothing had happened. Which, if the integrity of the testing and the appeal process had been respected like it had been in all other cases, would have been totally unremarkable. Here’s Major League Baseball’s statement: “Major League Baseball considers the obligations of the Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program essential to the integrity of our game, our Clubs and all of the players who take the field. It has always been Major League Baseball’s position that no matter who tests positive, we will exhaust all avenues in pursuit of the appropriate discipline. We have been true to that position in every instance, because baseball fans deserve nothing less. “As a part of our drug testing program, the Commissioner’s Office and the Players Association agreed to a neutral third party review for instances that are under dispute. While we have always respected that process, Major League Baseball vehemently disagrees with the decision rendered today by arbitrator Shyam Das.�
February 23, 201214 yr Although the result of the appeal should make people lean towards saying "he's innocent" it probably won't happen. Eric Byrnes said on MLB Network what a lot of people will be thinking. If he got off because of some procedural issue (i.e. the test not being shipped on time) then people will still think he's guilty. It's something that will probably continue to follow him through his career.
February 23, 201214 yr I keep hearing that Braun's angle was that he's innocent because the sample might have been compromised because the processing time was delayed. If that was the reason for the ruling, I have some major issues with that. There needs to be some evidence that the sample was compromised. To say "the sample was unsupervised for 2 days, so it could have been tampered with" is not sufficient for me.
February 23, 201214 yr Haudricourt says the appeal went Braun's way not because of the test result, but because of a technicality with the testing process. Independent arbitrator Shyam Das ruled in favor of the technicality, give the reigning NL MVP the win by a 2-1 margin. Braun is the first player to have a suspension overtuned through the appeals process. Yeah, that's total bulls*** unless there is evidence that sample was actually comprised. I don't blame MLB for being pissed.
February 23, 201214 yr Well, according to what I've read, the sample needs to be sent to the lab within 24 hours. If that's their policy, that's their policy, and they need to stick with it.
February 24, 201214 yr According to ESPN's Karl Ravech, Ryan Braun won his PED suspension appeal on a revelation that a courier did not take his urine sample immediately to FedEx because he thought it was closed on Saturday nights. The sample sat in the courier's fridge for two days, violating the normal protocol for the handling of PED tests. It might sound like a ridiculous out for Braun, but it's an absolute must that the testing process is conducted according to the policies that have been agreed upon between the players' union and the commissioner's office. Braun will be in camp on Friday.
February 24, 201214 yr Well, according to what I've read, the sample needs to be sent to the lab within 24 hours. If that's their policy, that's their policy, and they need to stick with it. So that mean's that he got off an a technicality, because there is no real reason to believe that the sample was tampered with. The testosterone count is not going to shoot up by waiting in the mail room. He failed a drug test. Despite when shipment policy says, I will continue to believe that Braun failed that test unless there is proof that the sampled was deliberately tampered with.
February 24, 201214 yr Well, according to what I've read, the sample needs to be sent to the lab within 24 hours. If that's their policy, that's their policy, and they need to stick with it. So that mean's that he got off an a technicality, because there is no real reason to believe that the sample was tampered with. The testosterone count is not going to shoot up by waiting in the mail room. He failed a drug test. Despite when shipment policy says, I will continue to believe that Braun failed that test unless there is proof that the sampled was deliberately tampered with. Your personal opinion rightly has a much different standard than MLB's policy does. With 50 games and millions of dollars at stake, the process needs to be airtight.
February 24, 201214 yr It's still a black mark on what we thought was a clean player. He may technically have gotten away with it, but his reputation isn't hot
February 24, 201214 yr Well, according to what I've read, the sample needs to be sent to the lab within 24 hours. If that's their policy, that's their policy, and they need to stick with it. So that mean's that he got off an a technicality, because there is no real reason to believe that the sample was tampered with. The testosterone count is not going to shoot up by waiting in the mail room. He failed a drug test. Despite when shipment policy says, I will continue to believe that Braun failed that test unless there is proof that the sampled was deliberately tampered with. Your personal opinion rightly has a much different standard than MLB's policy does. With 50 games and millions of dollars at stake, the process needs to be airtight. With that much at stake, hard evidence of a failed test shouldn't be dismissed unless there is proof of the sample being comprised. For one, I've heard no reports that the security seals on the sample were broken. Does anyone have the most recent Drug Testing policy agreement? I looked over one from 2005 and the only time sensitive component was shipments to medical representatives after the positive test.
February 24, 201214 yr Also, two ESPN articles I've read say samples must be shipped "as soon as possible" and don't mention a 24 hour period. This sounds like the most up to date version of the rules. I don't see anything wrong: http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/downloads/joint_drug_prevention_and_treatment_program_2005.pdf
February 24, 201214 yr I'm happy he got off tbh. I never for a moment thought he was guilty, I know he got off on a technicality but imo he was innocent regardless.
February 24, 201214 yr How could you know such a thing? Because of his demeanor and because you like him?
February 24, 201214 yr Gut feeling. Just doesn't strike me as a guy who would juice. I dunno man. I'm pretty convinced that it doesn't matter who it is - anyone can be juicing and you wouldn't know it.
February 24, 201214 yr It usually is the guy who you would expect least, but I'm going with my gut still.
February 24, 201214 yr Gut feeling. Just doesn't strike me as a guy who would juice. I hope you never serve on a jury.
February 24, 201214 yr Gut feeling. Just doesn't strike me as a guy who would juice. I hope you never serve on a jury. Being on a jury in a court of law and being apart of the court of public opinion are two entirely different things.
February 24, 201214 yr It usually is the guy who you would expect least, but I'm going with my gut still. Actually, it's usually the guys you would expect most, like Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, and Mark McGwire.
February 24, 201214 yr Gut feeling. Just doesn't strike me as a guy who would juice. I hope you never serve on a jury. Being on a jury in a court of law and being apart of the court of public opinion are two entirely different things. They use the same jurors. Or if your opinion on the matter actually had consequences would you suddenly abandon your "hunch" and acknowledge the fact that Braun failed a drug test?
February 24, 201214 yr Author I have a feeling his response will be along the lines of, "I'd wait til all the facts are out there and make a decision." And, I'll actually believe him if he says that.
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