The more I think about cheating in baseball the more my head spins around. There’s so much to try and wrap your head around. The part I keep coming back to is the part where players are not going to be punished and the World Series is not going to be stripped away.

Now, I should clarify and say that Houston and Boston may have won the title without cheating. Problem is, we will never know because they did cheat. To hear the MLB Commisioner say that stripping the title wouldn’t do anything or wouldn’t be right is mind boggling to me. That’s the entire reason these guys play the game. The opportunity to tell the world and the rest of your peers that you were one of the best and you are a world champion.

People’s lives were effected because of this. There were positive effects and negative ones too. Bonuses and salaries were effected. Pitchers careers took a hit because of homeruns that were hit. All because the batter knew what pitch was coming before the ball was thrown. But we don’t need to punish the players. As long as the organization is fined and loses some draft picks, that’s ok? What kind of logic is that? Does it make sense? No!

Pete Rose was banned from baseball for life because he gambled on games. Games in which he could effect the outcome one way or the other. The Chicago White Sox (or Black Sox) were banned from baseball for life becaus they threw the World Series in 1919 and lost on purpose. Both instances were things in which players/managers had the direct influence on the outcome of games and/or championships. Both were banned from baseball and neither have been reinstated.

Tell me how the players involved in this scandal are any different and why they should be allowed to play baseball in the 2020 season? Tell me why they should be allowed to retain that World Series Title? Better yet, explain it to the LA Dodgers and the New York Yankees. Explain it to Yu Darvish. They are the ones impacted by this fallout. Not Me. I’m just a sports guy watching a disaster unfold in front of my eyes.