Marlins CEO speaks out about MLB cheating scandal

Miami Marlins CEO weighs in on the Astros cheating scandal and how it affects Major League Baseball.

The Houston Astros cheating scandal isn’t going to go away anytime soon. Major news outlets want to hear what former players who have an impact on the game think about the recent findings regarding the biggest incident since the exposure of steroids in the mid to late 1990s, so asking Miami Marlins CEO Derek Jeter his thoughts on the situation isn’t unexpected.

And like many who have spoken before him, Jeter, who is the antithesis of everything related to baseball’s latest soap opera, wishes the situation would vanish into thin air.

Unfortunately, this is a topic that’s not going anywhere.

"“When you talk about people trying to get an edge in baseball, I don’t think that’s anything new. People have been trying to do it for years,” Jeter said. “But, obviously, people took it way too far. And there are penalties for it. They’re paying the price."

Jeter is correct in his assessment. There has been talk about sign stealing for as long as I can remember, and well before I started appreciating the game. But because it affected a run to the World Series and a world championship, it takes on a different meaning. There have been other greats of the game who have been outspoken about this topic, including Henry Aaron, who wants the players involved to be banned for life.

While it is still being dealt with each spring training game that is played, the backlash for the lack of punishment by the MLB home office and commissioner Rob Manfred continues to grow.

As a player and an icon in the city of Gotham, there may not be another individual who identifies with the purity of the game more than Jeter, who is helping to make baseball in Miami popular once again.

The Marlins are currently the only undefeated team in the Grapefruit League, which doesn’t mean as much as it would during the regular season, but it speaks to his conviction of building a winner the right way.

"“It’s like a slow drip of responses coming out from everyone,” Jeter said Monday at the Marlins’ spring training camp. “You hope at some point people can just move on. But look, it’s unfortunate. It’s a black eye for the sport.”"

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The Marlins have been a perennial losing baseball team since their last winning record in 2009 and have not reached the playoffs since 2003 when they beat Jeter and the Yankees in the World Series. For everything that has been wrong about this franchise, prior to the purchase made by him as a minority owner and Bruce Sherman who is the principal owner of the organization, there has never been a reason to question impropriety.

As long as the Astros continue to shrug off the accusations and to show a lack of contrition for what has taken place, baseball is going to keep that blackeye while players or former players like Jeter are going to continually be asked their thoughts.

"“Regardless of what the penalties are, others are going to have their opinions on what they think should happen. You hope that over time it passes. But I’m sure this is going to sting for a while, Jeter added.”"

The sport needs Jeter and the heroes of my generation to step forward to reassure the current generation and the one after this one that this game is still played for the right reasons. Boys and girls who embrace it need to know how good it is and what it represents.

Hopefully, Jeter’s message, although he hopes to shy away from the spotlight it represents, is one the fans see is truly for the good of the game.

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