Tigers owner Mike Ilitch can decide for himself if Delmon Young is the type of guy he wants representing him and his team.
But major-league players also represent the game itself, and that's why baseball is more than justified in handing Young a seven-day-without-pay suspension for his drunken and possibly racist incident the other night in New York.
The Tigers had already made clear that they had no plans to discipline Young themselves. Club president Dave Dombrowski said Saturday that Young would return to the lineup as soon as MLB allowed, and that the team planned to continue to pay him while he was on the restricted list.
As I wrote that day, the team's response didn't feel right.
The commissioner's response does.
Young was evaluated by a doctor on Monday, under a program that the new collective bargaining agreement provides for any player involved in an alcohol-related offense. By day's end, MLB had announced the suspension, along with a quote from Bud Selig saying that "those associated with our game should meet the responsibilities and standards that stem from our game's stature as a social institution. An incident like this cannot and will not be tolerated."
Exactly.
For those saying that Young should be considered innocent until proven guilty, that's exactly true in a legal sense. He can defend himself in court.
But let's remember that Young has already issued a statement of apology. Let's remember that he told Dombrowski there was "no excuse" for his actions that night.
He may not be guilty of everything he's accused of. The legal system can determine that.
At the very least, though, he's guilty of representing his team and his sport very poorly.
Young even seems to understand that, to the point where Dombrowski told reporters Monday night in Detroit that Young "is accepting" the punishment and will participate in a required treatment program.
Baseball discipline is complicated, because the players' union is so much stronger than unions in other sports. That's why baseball felt it was unable to respond to a spree of drunk driving incidents last year, and why MLB pushed to have the employee assistance program included in the new CBA.
Dombrowski told reporters Monday that the team couldn't impose any further discipline on Young, but let's be serious. The Tigers had made clear over the weekend that they really didn't want to discipline him at all, beyond having him spend the weekend on the restricted list with pay.
Perhaps, as one person in baseball told me Saturday, it's too difficult for teams to step in, since even the absence of a very average player like Young can be tough on a lineup. Perhaps it has to be the commissioner's office.
I don't what I'd have done if I owned the Tigers and Young was representing me. But I do know it felt wrong that Young would simply reenter the lineup as if nothing had happened.
Now he won't. He'll miss a week, and he'll miss a week's pay.
And with what we know so far, that feels just about right.
But major-league players also represent the game itself, and that's why baseball is more than justified in handing Young a seven-day-without-pay suspension for his drunken and possibly racist incident the other night in New York.
The Tigers had already made clear that they had no plans to discipline Young themselves. Club president Dave Dombrowski said Saturday that Young would return to the lineup as soon as MLB allowed, and that the team planned to continue to pay him while he was on the restricted list.
As I wrote that day, the team's response didn't feel right.
The commissioner's response does.
Young was evaluated by a doctor on Monday, under a program that the new collective bargaining agreement provides for any player involved in an alcohol-related offense. By day's end, MLB had announced the suspension, along with a quote from Bud Selig saying that "those associated with our game should meet the responsibilities and standards that stem from our game's stature as a social institution. An incident like this cannot and will not be tolerated."
Exactly.
For those saying that Young should be considered innocent until proven guilty, that's exactly true in a legal sense. He can defend himself in court.
But let's remember that Young has already issued a statement of apology. Let's remember that he told Dombrowski there was "no excuse" for his actions that night.
He may not be guilty of everything he's accused of. The legal system can determine that.
At the very least, though, he's guilty of representing his team and his sport very poorly.
Young even seems to understand that, to the point where Dombrowski told reporters Monday night in Detroit that Young "is accepting" the punishment and will participate in a required treatment program.
Baseball discipline is complicated, because the players' union is so much stronger than unions in other sports. That's why baseball felt it was unable to respond to a spree of drunk driving incidents last year, and why MLB pushed to have the employee assistance program included in the new CBA.
Dombrowski told reporters Monday that the team couldn't impose any further discipline on Young, but let's be serious. The Tigers had made clear over the weekend that they really didn't want to discipline him at all, beyond having him spend the weekend on the restricted list with pay.
Perhaps, as one person in baseball told me Saturday, it's too difficult for teams to step in, since even the absence of a very average player like Young can be tough on a lineup. Perhaps it has to be the commissioner's office.
I don't what I'd have done if I owned the Tigers and Young was representing me. But I do know it felt wrong that Young would simply reenter the lineup as if nothing had happened.
Now he won't. He'll miss a week, and he'll miss a week's pay.
And with what we know so far, that feels just about right.
