Hard to know without the facts, but with the leagues zero tolerance policy along with the probability that his hands are likely dirty in some regard (though we don't know what or how, yet), it would've likely prolonged the inevitable suspension anyway. There is no way the league would've allowed an appeal to last 75 days, so he probably thought it better to serve the suspension and then have his day in court. I'm not advocating his innocence by any stretch. I'm also just not in the same boat as the pitch fork carrying crowd that want to skewer the guy before the facts are out. I trust that Luhnow did his due diligence. If this all ends up in the tank, cut bait and move on. It's clear they'd lost faith in Giles, so what's the harm?
Concerning the whole Roberto Osuna situation: The deep truth is that there is a different set of rules for very valuable players. The Astros would not have traded for Osuna if he wasn't very good at baseball or didn't fill a glaring need at the top of their bullpen. Jeff Luhnow can discuss "zero tolerance" all he wants, but if Roberto Osuna was Tony Sipp, he would not be given a second chance. If you read what Luhnow has said carefully, he never said that Osuna was innocent or would be found innocent. The Astros know that he did something wrong, involving domestic violence. So we can discuss "what if he didn't do it" all we want, but the comments from the Astros lead me to believe that at a minimum they expect that he did something physically that he should not have. Where I do agree with those representing Osuna, is that we do not know all the facts. I find it odd that the Judge is allowing Osuna to break his restraining order to attend the graduation of the victims brother. If the victim or her family had a problem with it, there is almost no way the Judge would allow it. As for the Blue Jays, if Osuna did not have value, they would not have kept him on their roster. The Blue Jays and their fans can take a holier than though attitude, but the reality is that they didn't release him. They kept him on their roster and they traded him to another club. Also, if you believe the fans, there were known issues with Osuna prior to his arrest. As for the talking heads like Olney and Passan, I appreciate that they are taking a stand against domestic violence. However, first, do they take a stand every time Chapman signs a new contract? Have they historically railed against every player that has been involved with domestic violence? What about the big leaguers that got in trouble in the minors? Further, what Passan and Olney don't seem to realize, is that the criticism shouldn't be leveled at the individual teams. The criticism (if they have any) should be leveled against the league office and the players association. They decide what punishments are. Last, what is forgotten in all this is that Osuna already has been punished 75 games, and lost almost half his pay for the season. Further, Osuna likely lost a year of service time so he will not be a free agent until 2022. People can argue about whether or not this is sufficient punishment, but it is a punishment handed down by his employer. What is the end game? Does Roberto Osuna, or anyone that commits a crime, ever get to return to major league baseball to earn a living? To those saying the players in the Astros locker room don't care, of course they do. Would you want to work with a new employee that you knew had been recently charged with beating his girlfriend? No..... neither would I. However, the Astros are professionals and they have all worked with players that were not exactly great citizens. If Osuna is humble, does his job and is direct with his teammates... then he will be accepted and left alone. He won't be getting invites to McCullers' or Verlander's house for Christmas...... but not everyone on every team are fast friends. I was in Chicago when the Chapman deal was done....... people cared that Chapman was a terrible person for less than 48 hours. Theo Epstein tried to run the same line about "zero tolerance" and "second chance" and "legal process" that Luhnow did. At the end of the day, it is about winning.
I think lots of people go well beyond that. They want players that they can root for and teams that do things the right way. Is it necessary? Not at all. But I imagine there's a lot more satisfaction, for example, to winning a World Series the Astros' way than, say, having a $500 MM payroll and buying all the best players. Winning is not the entirety of sports - if it were, everyone would hate sports since most people can't win in the end. I imagine having some of the most exciting games in World Series history last year made people's memories of the Astros' run a lot better than if they'd just won those games in a ho-hum 5-2 fashion with no drama. *How* you win is part of the story of how you experience the season and how you connect with a team. And for many people, rooting for "good guys" is part of that.
Zero ****s will be given when we win the World Series. I don’t think there’s enough information out there for anyone to say that this guy should never have a job again, which seems to be the general sentiment. It’s a little dangerous to broadly paint everyone with the same brush especially with a lack of any significant knowledge of their character. He very well may be a piece of **** that deserves everything taken away from. I have no idea. But the Astros thought enough of his remorsefulness to take a gamble and, at this point, that’s good enough for me.
I don't think anyone is arguing that he should be forced to starve to death on the streets. But maybe when there is a preponderance of evidence that someone committed an act of domestic violence that person should not be rewarded with the opportunity to play major league baseball for millions of dollars. Maybe that roster spot should go to someone else instead.
"Obviously, we are aware of the circumstances surrounding Aroldis Chapman's suspension earlier this season. We are also aware that he cooperated fully with the league investigation and takes responsibility for his actions. "Today, prior to completing the trade, Theo, Jed and I spoke with Aroldis. I shared with him the high expectations we set for our players and staff both on and off the field. Aroldis indicated he is comfortable with meeting those expectations. "Finally, my family, this team and Major League Baseball take the issue of domestic violence very seriously and support efforts to reduce domestic violence through education, awareness and intervention." - Tom Ricketts, Cubs Chairman after trade.... Very similar. BTW if you look at the team pages following the deals... COMPLETELY DIFFERENT in regards to comments from fans. BUT LITTLE TO NO BACKLASH FROM MEDIA... It was " oh, how can Chapman increase Cubs WS chances!"... Ridiculous. We live in a hypersensitive time (for good reason IMO) and are quick to judge on first mistake. Casting doubt and taking what others say as fact. I believe he did something but I don't know to what extent. It looks like a Peace Bond will be implemented tho and all charges will be dropped. https://www.chron.com/sports/astros...suna-attorney-peace-bond-charges-13120022.php He has to stay on good behavior or his career is over.
So what is the appropriate level of punishment for someone that has been accused of domestic violence? Future salary cannot exceed $50k per year? $75k? He cannot perform duties that are in the public eye?
A lot of selective memory going on around here. Boo hoo.. we aren't the "good guys" anymore. Last era that we had a run at the World Series it was lead by a couple juice heads in Pettitte and Roger Clemens. Also, the squeaky clean phony image of the Astros went out the window with Gurriel's antics during the World Series. Do I like rooting for people with this kind of history? Nope, but I don't like watching my teams lose time and time again to teams like the Yankees with Chapman, Steven Wright with the Red Sox, Michael Vick, Ray Lewis with the Ravens (obstruction of justice on a murder case), etc, etc, etc. If you go look in the Texans threads you see people for years complaining the Texans never took a risk on a player with baggage. Now everyone is all up in arms that the city has a scum bag on their sports team again. Talent outweighs morality in sports. This is nothing new.
What I'm interested in... is how opposing fans welcome Osuna... he's going to get scolded. I'm talking slurs, SIGNS, etc. The questions the team will have to answer as they prep for playoffs. I really hope this passes fast, because it's a clear distraction. We need a 10 game win streak RN. This is a whole new beast for these Astros players as a whole. If it works, it'll be amazing. If it starts to fall apart, I'd expect Astros to part ways.
This is a weird quote: On Monday, Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow said he had spoken to Osuna and said that the reliever was "remorseful." "People can be remorseful for a lot of reasons when they're facing a criminal allegation," Basile said. "Roberto is obviously remorseful about the set of circumstances that have arisen and caused him to be in front of the courts, but that doesn't mean for a moment that Roberto is remorseful or sorry for what the allegations are. MLB is requcring him to take counseling. He's going to do that. I can tell you as well, I have Roberto involved in counseling with rpofessionals who can assist with any issues that are there."
I have always been wired to play with class above all. I also believe everyone makes mistakes and if they are willing to accept the consequences then they can have a 2nd chance. Very few people know the actual circumstances of this ordeal. I'm taking the path that Osuna did something wrong but to what degree I have no idea. He is serving his 75 games for whatever reason he saw in his best interest. If the Astros feel he is "remorseful" and are ready to give him a chance then I will do the same for now. If the dude is a punk loser that can never change then it will come out and he will be gone. Every player can't be Craig Biggio.
Not defending the guy but I would just point out that he has lost $2.5 million out of this. Lots of crimes involve some sort of fine. That is a hell of a fine.
Maybe there should be a zero tolerance policy in MLB for domestic violence. At the very least I wish the Astros were one of the other organizations who chose to pass on Osuna. As for your question, I don't believe that Manfred has the authority to set peoples' salaries outside of his league.
I think what Luhnow is trying to say is that Roberto is sorry for putting himself in that situation but that Roberto has no remorse for what the allegations are because he believes he's innocent. Maybe I'm wrong in interpreting it that way but that's my understanding. Mixing of words maybe? With him taking the Peace Bond, he's betting on himself. Regardless of what happened or didn't happen. He knows he can't convince people to change their mind, he's doing it for himself. Such a slippery slope. I'm starting to understand why Luhnow made deal... Osuna must win the clubhouse over though. If he doesn't... It'll be rough going. Osuna is prone to anxiety and has even stated that sometimes he feels "disoriented" and doesn't know where he is sometimes. He's got ice in his veins but he's prone to blowing saves in big moments, though rare. I hope this works.
What did the witness see? Did he hear shouting and called the police? There is also a video of the incident. Have the Astros seen the video....is that why they are more willing to give him a second chance? We shall see.
Okay....... so losing what is likely 10 million dollars (between his lost pay and service penalty) isn't sufficient? So he should never be able to play major league baseball again? I am not picking on you, as I don't have all the answers.... it is just a discussion that I believe should be had.
We need to see the end result of his court date. We have no idea what happened. So it's hard for us to judge. There was a witness.....what did they see? There was a video....what is shown? Astros said they did their due diligence and are willing to give the player a second chance. Astros have seen and know more then we do. Have to give them the benefit of the doubt.....Astros organizations reputation is on the line. If the Astros haven't seen the video and it comes out and it's bad...... it will be hard for the Astros organization to save face. They have to know that, that's why I'm given them the benefit of the doubt. They have done their due diligence and at the end of the day everything will work out. Just like Chapman of the Yankees.
