I had heard the rumors a few weeks ago, but once quelled, I pushed them to the back of my mind. I didn't worry or think about it at all. Until yesterday. The updates came through on my cell phone that Melky Cabrera had been suspended for testing positive for a banned substance. Effective immediately. He'll be out for fifty games. The Giants have forty-five left. The Melkman is done in San Francisco for the 2012 regular season. There are so many ways that this affects the entire organization and the fan base. People will be angry, some will be sad, and some will be defiant and still root for their Melkman. But the many problems are there. I know that I am one of the angry ones, for a few reasons.
I am angry for the fan base, and the betrayal they feel. Unlike Barry Bonds, another steroid-linked Giants left fielder, Melky Cabrera seemed like a very nice guy. He was always friendly to the reporters and the fans. His carefree manner and attitude earned him the love and respect of the fans. He had the Melkmen, who showed up in their old-fashioned milkman uniforms to support him. We all saw him tie the Giants hit record for a single month. Voted for him to be in the All-Star game. Watched the touching moment when he received his All-Star MVP Award with his mom and grandma on the field with him. We went through the joy of all of these moments, only to find that it was all a fraud. As a fan, I felt cheated. I was there when Melky tied the hits record for a single month (I have the ticket stub and newspaper article on display). I cast at least a thousand All-Star votes for him. I made my "Got Melk?" sign to take to the ballpark. And now he's gone, having made a selfish decision to take a substance for personal achievements. A substance that he knew could get him suspended, resulting in a huge loss for the team. But he cheated anyway.
As angry as I am for what Melky did to the fans, what he did to his teammates and the organization makes me even more angry. The Giants have now been counting on Melky. He and Buster were the offensive forces that carried the lineup. They needed production from every one of their players to reach the postseason. They needed to do it as a team and Melky has hurt the team's chances of doing that because he made a decision to use a substance for individual performance. Now the team has to regroup from losing one of their best players, as well as losing an essential clubhouse presence. There are people in that clubhouse that deserve to be playoff contenders. Buster Posey. Matt Cain. Ryan Vogelsong. Brandon Belt. The list goes on. But Melky betrayed them.
Not only has he let down his teammates, but he has caused the organization to regress in its efforts to eliminate the steroids rap it gets. They had several players involved in the BALCO scandal, most notably Barry Bonds. Jose Guillen and Miguel Tejada were linked in the Mitchell Report and they signed reliever Guillermo Mota, who received a fifty game suspension in 2005. After the 2010 Championship, though, the Giants looked ready to move past that. But Mota received another suspension this year and is now joined by Melky Cabrera. This makes the organization look bad, even though the core of their team is not involved in any steroid suspicion.
Perhaps the most infuriating thing about Melky's suspension is something that hasn't been talked about as much. Most people are primarily upset for the reasons above, as well they should be, but what makes me so irate is how Melky made Andrew Baggarly (reporter and Jeopardy! extraordinaire) look bad. About three weeks before his suspension was officially announced, Baggarly had heard rumors that Melky had tested positive for PEDs, so he went to ask Melky about it. Melky informed Baggarly that he and his agent had heard NOTHING about this. He told Baggarly that he had absolutely no idea where the rumors came from and that Dodgers fans could have even made them up as a distraction. Baggarly is one of the best in the business and said that bringing that question to Melky was poor journalism since he had no basis to the rumors. He felt terrible about it and even went on to write an incredibly long and sincere apology to Melky. Melky's comments seemed perfectly believable at the time, until I found yesterday that the day Baggarly asked Melky the question, Melky was in the middle of his appeals process. It's perfectly acceptable to not tell the reporter what is going on. But to make excuses up as to where the rumor came from? That seemed pretty low to me. Baggarly put his reputation on the line for the fans inquiring and Melky made him look bad. As it turns out, Baggs was asking a very reasonable question, one that Melky could have handled better.
(*Even after Baggarly heard the news of Cabrera's suspension, he stood by his apology, saying it was the right thing to do. He still says that is was poor journalism on his part. I think this incident shows who had the better character...)
Melky Cabrera's suspension will handicap the Giants, both in their on-field production and their morale. Team leader Buster Posey has already spoken up, saying, "We have to approach the rest of the year with a chip on our shoulders. I'm happy with the guys we've got here." (reported by Alex Pavlovic via Twitter). It's important that the Giants focus on that for the rest of the season and not the cloud of doom that has started to cast a shadow on them. They need to use this as a chance to unify the team. It's now going to take production and contributions from everyone if they want a shot to reach the postseason. A postseason berth that is now making itself harder and harder to obtain.
