 |
| Kirk Gibson wants tougher penalties against players who test positive for performance enhancing drugs. (US Presswire) |
The Giants are 10 games above .500, one game out of first place in the National League West and 5 1/2 games ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks. San Francisco is in that position in no small part because of the play of outfielder Melky Cabrera, who was suspended 50 games for violating Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.
Cabrera was in the MVP discussion before his suspension on the heels of his .346/.390/.516 slahs line with 11 home runs, 60 RBI and a league-leading 84 runs scored.
While Cabrera will miss the rest of the regular season and the first five games of the postseason if the Giants make it that far, Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson said he didn't think that's enough. Gibson suggested a year-long ban for the first failed test and a permanent ban if a player tests positive a second time.
In nine games against the Diamondbacks this season, Cabrera hit .462/.475/.692 with two home runs, three doubles and six RBI.
"He's had a huge impact against us," Gibson said according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. "And then you go back to 2008 with the Manny [Ramirez] thing. Huge impact. You compare like in the NCAA with Penn State. All those people are gone and Penn State is paying for it. Here it's just tied to the individual. I think we need much stronger ramifications for that type of activity. It just absolutely cannot be tolerated."
Piecoro also noted that Gibson didn't reference Ryan Braun, who went 9 for 18 with a home run and four doubles in five games in last year's National League Division Series, a series won by the Brewers.
For more baseball news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnBaseball on Twitter, subscribe to the RSS feed and "like" us on Facebook.
