Statistically Irrelevant

If you're scoring at home, make that "HBP." That's "Hit By Pitch." That's what Boston Red Sox pitcher Ryan Dempster did to New York Yankees "star" Alex Rodriguez. "Star" as in a player for a professional sports team that has become more famous for things that he did or does off the field than on. Or in this case, it should be pointed out that currently Mister Rodriguez is more famous for what he has put in himself prior to going on the field. A-Rod (to his friends) was suspended for the remainder of the 2013 season and all of the 2014 season for violations of the Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program and the Basic Agreement. Ale Rodriguez was cheating. He took drugs. Drugs that were supposed to make him a better player, even if it didn't make him a better person. As a matter of perspective, Donald Trump thinks that Mister Rodriguez is "a bad guy."
Is Ryan Dempster a bad guy? Well, if you're a Yankee fan, you might have to jump to that conclusion based on the color of his socks, but if you follow baseball, it might be worth noting that there are forty-seven major league pitchers who have hit batters more often this season than Ryan. That would suggest two possible conclusions: First, Ryan Dempster doesn't  hit that many batters, so he's hardly a "bean-baller." Second, he's probably a good enough pitcher that he probably could have thrown that ball anywhere he wanted, and he picked Alex Rodriguez's left elbow. Both conclusions are probably correct, which is why Major League Baseball suspended Dempster for five games for his misconduct. He said he thought about appealing the suspension. He didn't. This is what he said: ''At the end of the day, I think Major League Baseball does a really good job of thinking through punishments before they hand them out. I thought it was in the best interest of us as a team to go ahead and serve my suspension.''
This isn't exactly Alex Rodriguez's view. He is currently playing professional baseball in spite of the fact that he has been suspended by that same group of individuals who looked to protect him from mean men hurling projectiles at him. If A-Rod had been serving his suspension, he never would have been hit with the ball in the first place. Cheaters may end up prospering, but they will probably need to learn when to bail out of the batter's box.