MLBPA wanted to expel Alex Rodriguez
By Matt Fisher
If anyone were to wonder whether Major League Baseball players were going to accept Alex Rodriguez back into the game following his suspension, they need to wonder no longer.
In an article for Yahoo! Sports, Jeff Passan writes that the Major League Baseball Players Association held a conference call with certain players and board members following A-Rod’s announced lawsuit against the union. In it, the union members let their displeasure be loudly known and came to a unanimous conclusion that the beleaguered Yankee be removed from the Union – but were then told that they could not legally kick him out.
In a somewhat shocking act, Rodriguez, in his attempt to overturn his 162-game suspension by Major League Baseball, sued MLB (not shocking), but then sued the Players’ Association (shocking); in effect, Alex Rodriguez sued every player in Major League Baseball. This, according to several players and Passan, was the ultimate breach of trust, as many members hold the union as a brotherhood.
The act of defending himself to Major League Baseball was something that the players understood and supported, the betrayal to the Union was unexpected and angering, according to one player.
"Guys understand people make bad decisions, they lie when they’re embarrassed or trying to avoid punishment. Those are human qualities. Guys understand. But what made guys incensed is he would bring a suit against the union."
The call continued to go for about an hour and half, with every member of the call agreeing that action would be taken ON the field, should Rodriguez ever return. One player mentioned that pitchers SHOULD aim for A-Rod and ‘hit him hard,’ while another let it be known that he should be scared of coming back to the game. The very first player who was given the floor to speak on the conference call voiced everyone’s thoughts immediately: ‘Can we kick him out of the union?’