AROD'S CONFESSION: WHAT COMES NEXT

So at long last Alex Rodriguez' confession has come to light. On BYB I wrote about how the Miami Herald broke the news, telling us that ARod had confessed in a DEA conference room in January in exchange for immunity. His confession will be used in the case against his cousin, Yuri Sucart, and the other co-defendants in the Biogenesis case. Anthony Bosch, who plead guilty, is awaiting sentencing set for December. Sucart, on the other hand, has plead not guilty and his trial will commence February 9th, in Miami.

This confession brings up many questions. Is ARod guilty of obstruction of justice and perjury? Could the MLB seek further punishment? Frank Quintero Jr, attorney to former University of Miami pitching coach, Lazaro Collazo, seems to think that ARod should face further punishment. According to the Daily News, Quintero said:

"From the newspaper articles that have been published, going way back to January of 2013, all the way to the present, plus the review of the discovery in this case, there is no doubt that some of the major-league ballplayers, not all of  them, committed some very serious crimes."

"The charges that my client is facing pale in comparison to these alleged crimes."

"The crimes that have been reported and the crimes that we've seen evidence of - bribing witnesses, suborning perjury, interfering with a state and federal criminal investigation, obstruction of justice, tampering with evidence - all these charges go to the core of the justice system. And the government, for lack of a better term, is saying, 'No harm, no foul.'"

Quintero's claims about ARod sound very much like what former Florida Health investigator, Jerome Hill, accused the MLB of doing. In a statement last month, the former investigator outright said "MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL HINDERED MY INVESTIGATION." Hill went on to tell the Miami New Times all about his warnings to the MLB that purchasing certain documents would impede upon the investigation he was building to take down Bosch, and the others. Remember, both Bud Selig and Rob Manfred denied having any knowledge that the documents they procured were stolen. The MLB also worked out a deal with the DEA on behalf of Bosch.

Quintero's client, Collazo, is one of the six co-defendants in the case built by the DEA to bring down those responsible for distributing PEDs to athletes, from high school students to major league players. He feels his client is being unjustly punished. I tend to disagree, however. If Collazo is part of the distribution ring, he most certainly deserves the prison time he may be facing. Collazo currently faces charges of distribution of testosterone and HGH. He is believed to have obtained HGH for minors, and even injected a minor in June of 2012. It brings to mind the question of whether part of the reason that Collazo is facing "unfair punishment" is due to the statements provided to the DEA by ARod? 

The agreement signed by ARod, his former attorney, Joseph Tacopina, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Sullivan, guaranteed that their admissions won't be used against them in later proceedings. Of course, he isn't only talking about ARod. He means all of the MLB players that received immunity from the DEA, including Nelson Cruz, Francisco Cervelli, Melky Cabrera, Ryan Braun and a few others.

Here's the thing, we do not know what statements the others have given. Did the confession given by the other MLB players corroborate ARod's confession? Did any of the others implicate ARod with their confessions? And what is the likelihood that the only common thread these players had to Bosch is Sucart? 

I will say it again, it is unlikely that ARod is a target in this case. The DEA wants the suppliers, not the users. The users are only a means to an end. Hence the statements, and the immunity. They want to take down Bosch, Sucart, and the others in connection to defunct Coral Gables Biogenesis clinic. But, could the MLB use the confession against ARod? His confession, provided it is in sync with the confessions of the others, leaves him safe from facing further legal troubles. He has already served his suspension for the PED usage he confessed to, so it is unlikely that the MLB will pursue that further. The question is, if ARod is guilty of everything that is being speculated, does this immunity agreement mean he is in the clear for further legal troubles?

This is all provided that the others confessions do not implicate ARod. If, for some reason, the other confessions do in fact reveal some evidence that ARod himself did not offer to the DEA, then we could conceivably see another long tortuous legal battle for ARod. In this case, he could possibly face  charges for perjury, obstruction of justice, and a laundry list of other charges. It may then also be possible that the MLB and the Yankees could meet with ARod to discuss a settlement for the remaining $61 million on his contract.

This entire thing is becoming trickier by the second. There are a lot of "what if's." A ton of questions and not a lot of answers. Could ARod face further legal troubles? Of course, but that isn't set in stone. There are a lot of factors that come into play. Basically, it's a lot of sit and wait.

There is a lot of information to give, as this story is constantly growing. As always, BYB will keep you posted.

--Erica Morales BYB Senior Writer 

Twitter: @e_morales1804

 




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