Reinstate Romero!

Major League Baseball officially suspended J.C. Romero this afternoon. While some hoped Commissioner Bud Selig might step in and do the right thing, he chose to stand firm on baseball's drug policy, even when the guilty party did nothing wrong. Before taking the suppliement, Romero ask his nutritionist, his trainer, and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) to review the contents, and all three approved its use as no substances in listed were on Major League Baseball's banned list.

Well just because the commissioner of baseball chooses to turn a blind eye to flaws in his drug policy doesn't mean you, the fan, have to. We at Hot Stove Philly have started an online petition in support of J.C. Romero and his innocence.

While he did test positive, Romero took all the necessary precautions to ensure this would not happen, and if Commissioner Bud Selig chooses not to do anything it doesn't mean fans of Major League Baseball can't show their displeasure.

I use the phrase "baseball fans," not Phillies fans, for a reason. This could happen to any player taking supplements they buy at a vitamin store. Fans of other teams may laugh that Romero was suspended and they might even label him a cheater, but I'm sure if it was a player on their favorite team and the circumstances were the same, they'd feel the same way.

In fact, it did happen to another player, the Yankees' Sergio Mitre, who also unknowingly took a banned substance contained in an over-the-counter supplement.

"We strongly disagree with the Commissioner's discipline and with the arbitrator's decision," said the Major League Baseball Players Association in a statement.

"Mitre and Romero both legally purchased nutritional supplements from national chain stores in the United States. Nothing on the labels of those supplements indicated that they contained a trace amount of a substance prohibited under Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Neither player intentionally ingested this prohibited substance, but the arbitrator nevertheless found, wrongly in our view, that the players' conduct violated the program's 'no fault or negligence' standard.

"The union respects the arbitration process and treats the decision as final. In our view, though, the resulting discipline imposed upon Mitre and Romero is unfair."

So click on the link below and let Bud Selig know what might be acceptable to him isn't acceptable to the fans of Major League Baseball!

http://www.petitiononline.com/romero16/petition.html

http://www.hotstovephilly.com/2009/01/06/reinstate-romero/