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According to the New York Daily News, Alex Rodriguez didn't do himself any favors in his post-game press conference last night in Trenton. If the NYDN is correct in their report, MLB has decided not to negotiate on the length of A-Rod's upcoming suspension for his connection to Biogenesis. MLB Players Association director Michael Weiner tried to reach out on behalf of A-Rod to continue discussing a settlement for the number of games and was told that MLB is no longer interested in settling with Rodriguez.
The Daily News reports that the minimum Rodriguez faces is a 214-game ban that would keep him away from the game through the 2014 season. Rodriguez did not have complimentary things to say about the way he has been treated throughout this process by MLB or the Yankees, and he reportedly contacted the Yankees this morning to discuss a possible buyout of his contract. The team refused to discuss it.
According to ESPN's Stephen A. Smith, A-Rod and his representatives believe that MLB is negotiating with the Yankees to keep Rodriguez off the field. The drama surrounding this case seems to be never ending and constantly getting worse. If all this is true, what will it be like if A-Rod ever plays a game for the Yankees again?
Rodriguez's plan was to settle for a 80-100-game suspension with the promise that he would retire once his suspension was up, also according to the New York Daily News. However, even once retired, A-Rod and his representatives wanted the Yankees to pay the remainder of the money owed to him on his contract.
If MLB doesn't push back their announcement again, hopefully more will be known on Monday. All players expected to be suspended, with the possible exception of A-Rod now, have until tomorrow at 6:00 pm to negotiate the terms of their suspension with MLB. Until then, and probably well after, it doesn't look like the mud will stop flying on any side.