The Colorado Rockies got it right on Wednesday when they designated SS Jose Reyes for assignment. Reyes has not appear for the Rockies this season, mostly due to a suspension for violating the MLB domestic violence policy.
The case against Reyes was dropped after his wife refused to cooperate with prosecutors. However, his reputation in the Denver community still took a serious hit.
The play of rookie Trevor Story at shortstop definitely made the Reyes decision easier for the Rockies, but even without the emergence of Story, it is difficult to believe that Reyes would have ever made it back to the Colorado roster.
Reyes was a declining shortstop in his short time with the Rockies. He was a textbook version of an overpaid and underachieving athlete. On top of that, Reyes allegedly was involved in the one thing athletes cannot be involved in this day and age, which is domestic violence.
Professional sports have taught us over the last few years that it will not tolerate domestic violence. The league will suspend the players involved and the teams will most likely pass on signing players involved. Reyes is clearly no exception and the Rockies told their fans and the community that on Wednesday.
Colorado’s prize for doing the right thing will most likely cost the team the remainining $38 million due to Reyes.
In today’s society, where domestic violence is so frowned upon, it would be nice to see the league help teams like the Rockies out financially when a situation like this comes up. Or perhaps there should be language in contracts that void remaining salary due to players such as Reyes.
The latter would be extremely unrealistic because of unions and agents. However, it probably isn’t too much to ask for the league to give teams like Colorado some compensation for taking a stand and helping keep the image of the league cleaner.
Instead, Colorado will most likely eat the contract of Reyes and realistically receive no pat on the back from the MLB. Their decision, though, in regards to Reyes, did their fan base and the Denver community proud.
Whatever your opinion of the Rockies is on the field, you must applaud the fact that the organization made a stand and said domestic violence will not be tolerated.
To hear more more about Reyes, listen to the podcast below …
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