Ryan Braun exonerated, no suspension… Latest: MLB drops Eliezer Alfonzo suspension; case similar to Braun's (part 2)

[rwa12]

If they had video of a crackhead peeing into Braun's cup, he would still be labeled a juicer. It's like being accused of rape, you may be found absolutely not guilty, but you are forever linked to rape.

 

I don't want Braun to talk further. I don't need to know the details. I don't give a damn if he's exonerated by the media. He is playing every day, and fairly well. That is all that matters to me.

 

He beat the system, to do this, he had to take a PR hit. This was calculated. At some point his lawyers looked at him and said, we can win this, but you're not going to look good doing it.

 

The quickest way for this to go away is for it to be ignored. It's the first week of the season, so it's a story. It will fade as soon as a better story comes along. Given the state of the game, it shouldn't take too long. He's a player from Milwaukee, even when ESPN bad mouths him, they are only allotted 30 seconds

[dlk9s]

That doesn't make it okay for "journalists" who admit to not having the entire story to speculate that his silence implies guilt.

 

I suppose that depends on whether they are writing a "news" story or an editorial/opinion piece. I write for a poker news site and when I write news pieces, I just stick to the facts, but if I write an editorial, I give my opinion. If in the editorials I don't have all the facts or am just speculating, I say so and make it clear that my opinion is possibly based on incomplete information.

 

Most sports writers seem to blur the line between "journalism" and "opinion," especially in this day and age of hyper-posting on the internet.

[topper09er]

We can argue about the technical definition of a technicality, but the main point is that the average fans thinks Braun had a high test result but was not suspended NOT because he proved the test was incorrect, but because he proved there was a chain of custody problem. ESPN called it a technicality and based on Braun's press conference he said nothing to indicate his innocence had anything to do with anything besides the chain of custody which added to the problem. People are too dumb and too eager to just believe whatever ESPN says to actually think about how a chain of custody problem could lead to a false positive test. Most people think that Braun's sample was never tainted or altered at all and the only reason he got off is because the collector did everything correctly just not the "official" way. That is a technicality and if it is actually what happened Braun should be booed. The problem is that Braun has never said anything definitive to counter this line of thought.

 

We should work up a concise explanation as a retort to drunken idiot fans that will be harassing us at away games this season.

[Blancofan1]

What I find really interesting in the Fox Sports article is that Greg Couch, journalist extraordinaire that he is, spent a good chunk of the game on Monday in the Wrigley bleachers. I know Wrigley is small, but wouldn't most journalists spend time in a press box or did Couch not even have the credentials to get in as an actual member of the press or media? Low class article written by a low class writer.

 

 

edit--Fox Sports and ESPN would be better off posting links to http://forum.brewerfan.net/viewtopic.php?f=63&t=27834 that show how a sport really can affect people's lives than letting no talent hacks like Greg Couch post articles.

[ninja33]

I'm pretty sure Couch was sent to the game to gauge and write about the fan reaction in Braun's first road game. That's what Fox wanted, and that's what he wrote about (or at least what the story was framed around). The best way to get that fan reaction is to be with the fans (and in wrigley, in the bleachers), not in a press box.

 

It was an opinion piece, and he has the right to his opinion. Like dlk9s said, there's a very blurry line between fact and opinion when it comes to journalism (specifically in sports). Writers blur that line, and readers tend to take everything as "fact". Just the way it is.

 

And for the record, I thought the article wasn't very good and didn't need to be written. Just defending Couch's right to his opinion, and I think brewers fans get overly defensive and overreact every time something is written negatively about braun. I'm of the opinion of rwa above, he beat it and knew he would take a PR hit. I don't give a damn about the PR hit, he's playing and that's what matters. Let them write their articles, Braun doesn't care and I don't either.

[thebruce44]

What I find really interesting in the Fox Sports article is that Greg Couch, journalist extraordinaire that he is, spent a good chunk of the game on Monday in the Wrigley bleachers. I know Wrigley is small, but wouldn't most journalists spend time in a press box or did Couch not even have the credentials to get in as an actual member of the press or media? Low class article written by a low class writer.

 

 

edit--Fox Sports and ESPN would be better off posting links to http://forum.brewerfan.net/viewtopic.php?f=63&t=27834 that show how a sport really can affect people's lives than letting no talent hacks like Greg Couch post articles.

 

The funny thing is, even the stories about the heckling were false and misleading. The MVP chants easily drown out the cheater or whatever else chants by Cubs fans. I wasn't there Monday, but last night it was pretty obvious.

[Invader3K]

@injuryexpert just tweeted that MLB is implementing changes to its drug testing policy, including requiring same day shipment of samples. To me, this indicates they know something was amiss with how Braun sample was handled.

[brwrsfan]

Well it acknowledges that somewhat, but moreso I think they don't want players to think it's a loophole they can exploit. And really, that should have been the policy all along.

[dlk9s]

I was the first game of the Braves series and hoo boy did the crowd let him have it. Every time he was up to bat, fielded a ball, ran to second, anything. It was loud. There was even a chant of "Ster-oids" started. Someone also hung a huge banner from the Chophouse (the restaurant in right field where the big Budweiser sign is) that read, "Congrats, Ryan! 'Urine' MVP now!"

 

And this was one of the least passionate, tamest fanbases in the game. It's going to get really bad elsewhere.

 

I can't see how he can keep his mouth shut if he really has a story that could get him back in the good graces of the public. The abuse and general hate from fans is going to wear on him.

[TooLiveBrew]

It was loud.

That came across on the TV broadcast. I have to agree that the jeering is going to be much worse in other NL towns.

[Oldcity]

All that did is make me realize how surprisingly timid Cubs fans were.

[PKBadger]

I'll be honest - I was taken aback by the Braves fans tonight. I figured that he would get the worst heckling in Chicago, STL, Cincy, and maybe Philly (because it's Philly). Didn't think fans in any of the other divisions would care this much.

 

If somebody like Reyes or Kemp was in the same situation, I'd probably make some jokes at their expense but I definitely wouldn't have the same dislike that I do for players in the NL Central.

[dlk9s]

I think the Arizona fans are going to be the worst. They booed Fielder pretty lustily just for not picking Upton for the HR Derby. Now they have a target on the same team, a team which just happened to knock them out of the playoffs. Oh, and the positive test happened during the playoffs.

[ninja33]

I don't think last night's game is an indicator for the rest of the season....like you said in the other thread there were soooo many casual fans. lots of drunk 20 somethings who needed something to yell about. I'll provide an update on how tonight goes, I don't think it'll be as bad....I could be wrong though.

 

And you're right on Arizona.

[BradWI]

This may have been mentioned previously, but as long as these reactions continue, you can forget about Braun ever starting in an All-Star Game again. There's no way he'll get enough votes nationally to even sniff the top spot. So unless the Brewers stage a huge "us against them" campaign to get him votes, it won't happen, which is sad if he continues to play well during his career.

[RockCoCougars]

It's pretty obvious that this isn't going to go away. I was actually more surprised by the lack of reaction in Chicago (probably due in large part to all the Brewer fans) than I was what he got last night. I'd be willing to bet that ESPN covered this, and fans elsewhere will see it and feed off it.

[TooLiveBrew]

I think the Arizona fans are going to be the worst. They booed Fielder pretty lustily just for not picking Upton for the HR Derby. Now they have a target on the same team, a team which just happened to knock them out of the playoffs. Oh, and the positive test happened during the playoffs.

I don't think anyone's going to be able to match the Classies' fans, but maybe you'll be right on Arizona.

[thebruce44]

All that did is make me realize how surprisingly timid Cubs fans were.

 

They aren't timid, they just weren't there or were indifferent.

[pebadger]

And all of these reactions are occurring because ONE gutless, dishonorable person betrayed a trust and went running to the media with a story that hadn't played out yet. A very strong argument can be made that it's quite likely the leak was made with malice aforethought BECAUSE it hadn't played out yet and Braun's people were quite confident way back on that first day in December that they were going to win this thing (meaning that the time to strike for maximum damage infliction was BEFORE the story changed to a default setting favorable for Braun).

 

If I had the money Ryan Braun does I'd spend a considerable amount of it quietly and consistently ruining that person's life, but that's because I'm bitter and vindictive. I'm sure others are bigger people than me and would just let it slide.

[Fear The Chorizo]

If I'm Braun, at this point I really don't care how much I respect the confidentiality of this process - if the leak was someone you consulted with prior to the appeal, he has to "out" them publicly and disclose additional information you provided during the appeal that led to you winning the appeal. He is going to get hammered everywhere he goes by fans and media until this happens. If there's more to the story as he's indicated over and over again, he should just spill the beans - not doing so but repeatedly referring to it just makes him look phony. His PR reps have to be sick right now.

[GormanHarvey]

Interesting, to say the least...

 

http://m.jsonline.com/more/sports/blogs/brewers/148599485.htm

[pebadger]

Das heard two days of testimony in New York in late January and eventually ruled in Braun's favor because of the 40-hour delay in shipping, which he considered questionable.

 

If there is no written decision, how can anyone make this statement?

 

This stinks to high heaven. The fact that there is no written decision leads me to beleive that MLB has a lot to hide.

[Schlitz001]

According to ESPN, the player's union "has no interest in getting an explanation of a decision many believe let Braun off on a technicality." Why would the union want to hide the truth about this case, unless the details of the case make Braun/the players look worse? Wouldn't the union want to protect Braun if, for instance, the sample was tampered with? Clearly, both MLB and the player's union just want to move past this embarrassment. The more exposure this gets, the bigger the black eye for everyone.

 

I agree with Chorizo, there's probably not anything more to this story, or someone in Braun's camp would have leaked it by now.

[endaround]

Baseball players are protected by teams and the league. Braun's legal team knows that push too much and that protection can disappear. ARod wasn't shown with strippers until he opted out of his Yankee contract after all. So yes Braun does have something to lose.

[Schlitz001]

Right now Braun is probably not going to be an All-Star. If at the end of his career he has Hall of Fame numbers, he's probably not going to be elected to the Hall of Fame because of this. Almost everyone outside of Milwaukee, including the media thinks that he is a steroid user. He has gotten booed loudly on the road so far. He has probably lost endorsements because of this incident.

 

Braun has lost A LOT already because of this terrible situation. We are not talking about strippers here. If Braun had something new to clear his name, he would present it to the world and clear his tarnished name. Tell me; what's the worst that could happen if Braun tells us his side of the story? Now what's the best that could happen?