Melky Cabrera DQ's himself from batting title

That doesn't look to me like a rule that they can choose to apply when they want to. It's the rule.

 

The rule should be changed -- like tonight -- that if a player fails to meet minimum appearance standards in any given season due to PED suspension, he is ineligible for any statistical leadership awards.

And if that's unfair to Melky Cabrera, tough shit. Maybe he shouldn't have gotten caught.

 

I would go a step farther and say that in any season a player misses time due to PED suspension, he's ineligible. Accounts for the leftovers who were discovered late the previous season. Merriman precedent and all.

But as to the actual Gwynn Rule, which makes no judgment on the reason for the missed time (suspension, injury, late call-up), I just don't see how any option applies. It isn't as if baseball has previously said "well, on this one we'll take a look." If a guy can take an ohfer all the way up to 502 and still win, he wins.

 

You're right, normally players should pick and choose. But Cabrera is taking responsibility for his wrong doing by making sure he doesn't get rewarded even after getting his 50 games suspension. My issue with this is Cabrera said he doesn't want to accept a tainted award, but would he have accepted this award if he never got caught? Of course he would. It's at best a shallow expression of apology. This way, MLB doesn't give him the title anyway and make up some malarkey that gives him the title anyway.

 

According to CSN Bay Area's Andrew Baggarly, who broke the story, this is one step in Cabrera's image-rehab efforts in hopes of getting added to the postseason roster. He's on the shelf for five postseason games, and out here there has been quite a bit of discussion about what they'll do if they make it to the NLCS or beyond.

 

Melky didn't need to do this. He accepted his punishment by serving his suspension. We also don't know how much or if the steroids even helped at all. Everyone seems to think there are many more using PEDs so if that's true how come Melky was the only one to hit .346?

 

This. This is exactly the slippery slope Commish-for-Life Bud said he didn't want, but now he's letting it happen. I actually applaud the sentiment on Cabrera's point, though I doubt it is anything but image rehab on his part, but no way in hell MLB should do this.

 

This is an off the wall idea, but what if MLB allowed one player in each team to take any PEDs they wanted?

 

Is that like how prison-league basketball teams each get one former pro athlete?

 

It would level the playing field and also give scientists a chance to find out what affect certain drugs have on a player's performance. Also it would inject (pun intended) some more strategy into the game. Do you give the PEDs to a player in their prime and watch them break records or try it on an aging player? Should it be a pitcher or an every day player?

 

Rulings in other sports can set precedents?

 

There's no "title". It's not an "award".

There's nothing for MLB to give or take away. This is stupid.

The only possible real-world repercussion this situation could have is if Cabrera has a performance-based bonus in his contract for "winning a batting title" — and I have yet to hear if he does or not. Cot's doesn't have one listed, but I'm not sure if all bonus clauses are listed there: http://www.baseballprospectus.com/compensation/cots/?page_id=152

The fact is: Melky Cabrera has made safe hits in 34.6% of his at-bats this season, a higher percentage than any other player in the National League using any reasonable standard of "qualifying". Major League Baseball has no jurisdiction over basic math.

And 100 years from now, when you check your Baseball-Reference virtual mind chip to see who had the highest batting average in 2012, you'll see Cabrera's name at the top of the list just like you see Nap Lajoie's name at the top of the 1910 AL list, even though Cobb "officially" won it at the time due to Lajoie's tainted final doubleheader, when he got 7 bunt hits because the Browns third baseman was ordered to play in the outfield grass and let Lajoie reach base:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1910-batting-leaders.shtml

It's not worth getting upset about. MLB can rule however it wants on an "award" that doesn't even exist. The rest of us can use math.

Besides, Sean Forman is the ultimate arbiter these days anyway.