New York Mets General Manager Sandy Alderson sounded like a college football coach when announcing Sunday that pitcher Matt Harvey would not be taking the mound against the Miami Marlins.
"Matt Harvey has been suspended for three days without pay for violation of club rules," Alderson said, reading from a statement and not answering questions. "And has been sent home. He will not start today."
The violation of team rules thing has become a coverup for just about any indiscretion committed by a college athlete that does not involve a police report. It's been going on for years as a way to protect the privacy of the student-athletes.
Professional teams don't normally try to hide the truth, because it almost always gets out.
And in New York, where professional sports teams are scrutinized by journalists, talking heads, bloggers, even beer vendors, it seems Harvey's violation of team rules will be exposed sooner than later.
All the violation of team rules nonsense does is pour gasoline on the fire of speculation, and sometimes that fire burns out of control.
Right away, twitterites were connecting the dots between Harvey's suspension and the picture of a sex toy that was revealed in a photo sent out by the Mets media department.
The Mets tweeted out a photo of infielder T.J. Rivera wearing the star-of-the-game crown in the clubhouse Friday night after a victory over Miami -- and the background included a clearly visible sex toy in backup catcher Kevin Plawecki's locker.
Next thing you know, folks figured it was Harvey who planted the toy in Plawecki's locker as a prank, and the Mets didn't like it.
But Sunday night, an ESPN.com report put that rumor to bed.
"A source told ESPN on Sunday that the pitcher was suspended for not showing up to the ballpark on Saturday. Harvey's absence Saturday was first reported by Fox Sports, which also reported that a source close to Harvey said that the pitcher had a migraine and that there were possible communication issues with the team.
"The New York Daily News reported that the ban stems from a compilation of issues dating back to last season.
"The suspension apparently does not have anything to do with another recent Mets controversy. The team posted and then deleted a photo on social media Saturday that showed a sex toy in backup catcher Kevin Plawecki's locker, but an MLB source told ESPN's Jerry Crasnick on Sunday that the discipline for Harvey is not related to that."
Harvey, 2-2 with a 5.14 ERA in 6 starts this season, is expected to return to the team Tuesday.
Identity crisis
Trainers Bob Baffert and D. Wayne Lukas are the most recognizable faces in horse racing, but Todd Pletcher is trying to change that.
Winning the Kentucky Derby for the second time on Saturday with Always Dreaming won't hurt Pletcher's fame.
But to a general public that tunes into horse racing once a year (on Derby Day) and sometimes twice, if there is a Triple Crown opportunity in the Belmont Stakes, the white-haired Baffert and the outspoken Lukas are the sport's spokesmen.
Pletcher, the sport's all-time leading trainer in terms of money earned, arrived at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., sporting a goatee that was described as being "as steel gray as his close-cropped hair."
When asked about the new look, he told a story about being stared at by a woman at the airport.
"I know you," he recalled her telling him. "You are D. Wayne Baffert."
Pletcher first job was as an assistant to Lukas, one of the greatest trainers in the sport; Baffert, known for his white hair and wisecracks, won the Triple Crown with American Pharoah in 2015.
"I knew I had to change my look," Pletcher said.
Sports on 05/08/2017