That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

A-Rod was suspended by an arbitrator for the 2014 season without pay, the whole season, and the playoffs (if the Yankees make it that far) The suspension will cost Rodriguez all of the $25 million the Yankees were obligated to pay him for the 2014 season.

But when the suspension ends, Rodriguez will still be owed $61 million through a contract that runs through 2017. Rodriguez will have an incentive to find a way to keep playing. Next July Rodríguez will turn 39.

That means his “comeback” from the game will be around 40. He said he will appeal the 2014 suspension in Federal court, but very rarely in this case an arbitrator’s ruling is overturned. To refresh our collective memories; Barry Bonds hit 73 home runs in the 2001 season at the age of 41. Both A-Rod and Bonds(together with Roger Clemens) are the biggest baseball stars to date to be accused of using steroids and other illegal substances.

Commissioner Selig is retiring following the 2014 season. Under Bud H. Selig’s reign as commissioner, Major League Baseball revenues have skyrocketed to unprecedented levels, television contracts in the billions of dollars, mediocre players, receiving very lucrative deals, but amid all this bonanza, he will also be the Steroids Era Commissioner in history forever. Bud Selig made money for his fellow owners, no doubt about that.

Common sense tells me, that Selig wants to leave the game and retire without Alex Rodriguez playing on the field. You might called a vendetta (ala Commissioner Bart Giamatti and Pete Rose, years ago)or you might say, that it is a coincidence that both A-Rod and Selig would be leaving the game at the same time, I am not a fan of conspiracies, but this one will always be talked about through out history.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the vice president for the Major League Baseball Hispanic Heritage Museum and does News and Commentary for Sportstalk radio