- Title: USA/FILE: BASEBALL: Yankees fans react to Alex Rodriguez's suspension
- Date: 13th January 2014
- Summary: NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (JANUARY 13, 2014) (REUTERS) TRAFFIC YANKEES CLUBHOUSE STORE SIGN IN WINDOW READING "YANKEES TICKETS ON SALE NOW!!" MAN WALKS BY WEARING A NY YANKEES BASEBALL CAP (SOUNDBITE) (English) LEON DOZIER, YANKEES FAN, SAYING: "I think that's pretty harsh. I think that's a pretty harsh suspension for a professional athlete that's in the game that actually produces." (SOUNDBITE) (English) KELLY DESOTO, YANKEES FAN, SAYING: "He's going to be in a lot of trouble if he lied this whole time, because he came out on national television saying, 'No I didn't do nothing', so he's going to look real stupid and he's probably going to lose a lot of fans, a lot of Yankee fans for sure." (SOUNDBITE) (English) ARTINCES SMITH, YANKEES FAN, SAYING: "I understand there are penalties for, I guess, adding possible illegal things to enhance your performance. Do I think it's maybe a bit harsh? Sure, yeah, I do, I mean he's a great player, so." (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRANDON SWIM, YANKEES FAN, SAYING: "I think he should be gone, for life. He's worse than Pete Rose." (SOUNDBITE) (English) KLINTON PORTER, YANKEES FAN, SAYING: "I think it was a bit harsh, actually. I think he's an amazing player and I think it's really going to hurt the team." YANKEES CLUBHOUSE STORE MAN WALKS BY WEARING A NY YANKEES BASEBALL CAP
- Embargoed: 28th January 2014 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Usa
- Country: USA
- Topics: Sports
- Reuters ID: LVA482I87UFKU6PXM554RD1GSDH5
- Story Text: New York Yankees fans reacted on Monday (January 13) to Alex Rodriguez's suspension.
The slugger will be out for the entire 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) season and playoffs for doping.
Leon Dozier said the decision should have been more lenient and combined with a fine, so that the All-Star third baseman didn't have to miss all 162 games.
"I think that's a pretty harsh suspension for a professional athlete that's in the game that actually produces," said Dozier.
The suspension was a reduction on the initial penalty of 211 games handed down by MLB, but it's still the longest sentence ever imposed for doping offenses in the sport.
Another sympathetic fan, Artinces Smith, said most people don't realize what pressure professional sports people are under much of the time.
"I understand there are penalties for, I guess, adding possible illegal things to enhance your performance. Do I think it's maybe a bit harsh? Sure, yeah, I do, I mean he's a great player, so," said Smith.
Brandon Swim told Reuters that 38-year-old Rodriguez should have been handed a much harsher sentence -- a life ban.
"I think he should be gone, for life. He's worse than Pete Rose," said Swim.
On Sunday (January 12) Anthony Bosch, the owner of a now-closed Florida clinic accused of supplying banned performance enhancing drugs to Major League Baseball players, including Rodriguez, said in a TV interview that Rodriguez was a long-time drug user.
He told CBS News "60 Minutes" broadcast that he was an expert in doping who only stopped and agreed to speak up because he got caught.
Rodriguez, who has never failed a drug test but admitted using performance-enhancing drugs early in his career, issued a lengthy statement maintaining his position that he has been the victim of an MLB witch hunt out to destroy his career.
Reuters asked Yankees fan, Kelly DeSoto whether Bosch's testimony might undermine Rodriguez's claims of innocence.
"He's going to be in a lot of trouble if he lied this whole time, because he came out on national television saying, 'No I didn't do nothing', so he's going to look real stupid and he's probably going to lose a lot of fans, a lot of Yankee fans for sure," said DeSoto.
Rodriguez asked a federal judge on Monday to throw out the suspension decision.
The ban, which was lower than the 211 games MLB had sought, will cost Rodriguez $25 million (USD) in salary. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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