New York Baseball Hack

This thing about Bud Selig considering a suspension for A-Rod seems a little silly. There were no penalties in place during the time when Alex admits to having used steroids (though certainly, the drugs were illegal, and had someone been caught using them at that time he would have been subject to some sort of punishment), and it makes little sense to suspend him six years later. Plus, the union would have a chicken.

I wonder if this is an attempt by Selig to get A-Rod to do what he made Jason Giambi do a couple of years ago, when Giambi slipped and acknowledged his past steroid use in an interview with USA Today. Under threat of suspension, Giambi resolved the situation by going in and talking to MLB officials (and George Mitchell) about exactly what he did, when he did it and, presumably, why. Since I believe there's something to be gained by finding out as many specifics as possible about what went on during the "Steroid Era," I think it would be nice of Alex to go in and spend some time with the MLB officials in charge of investigating and prosecuting drug use in the game. His information could be valuable, and as of now there's no reason for him not to offer it -- if, as he claims, he's come clean about absolutely everything. And of course, we're all entitled to our doubts about that.

A few more notes from around the league:

*A front-office official with a major-league team that isn't the Mets told me yesterday that the Mets were one of the teams with a serious chance of signing left-handed reliever Will Ohman, and that Ohman was likely to sign somewhere before the weekend. The Phillies' obvious interest in Ohman, this person said, has led the Mets to consider paying more for Ohman than they initially intended to pay, though this person believed it unlikely that they would offer more than a one-year deal. Just passing it along.

*Rather than injuring the bargaining position of the Dodgers or Manny Ramirez, I believe the recent signings of Bobby Abreu (Angels) and Adam Dunn (Nationals) signals that the Dodgers are close to finalizing a deal with Ramirez. My theory is that the sides got close enough, in recent days, that a deal is inevitable, and that word of such got out, so Abreu and Dunn, who were on the Dodgers' list of backup plans, decided to take the offers they already had. This is an educated hunch of mine, based on experience with the way these things tend to work. I have no direct knowledge of any impending announcement of a Ramirez-Dodgers deal. I just wouldn't be surprised.

*Everybody knows pitchers and catchers are reporting to spring training this week, but I wanted to offer my best wishes to the writers who are reporting for nearly two months of work with almost no time off. Spring training is the most grueling part of the baseball year for those who cover the teams, and if any of my former colleagues/competitors are reading this, know that I feel for you. And that a great, big, kinda-sad part of me wishes I were down there with you.