TORONTO – Major League Baseball is placing Roberto Alomar on its ineligible list after reviewing an allegation of sexual misconduct against the Hall of Fame second baseman.
Alomar’s contract as a consultant to MLB in Puerto Rico was terminated, as anyone on the ineligible list is banned from working in the league office or for any team in the majors or affiliated minors. He also served on commissioner Rob Manfred’s competition committee and worked for the Toronto Blue Jays as a special assistant, but that position was restructured as part of wider cost-cutting moves last September.
My statement: pic.twitter.com/4AXQeDH6vd
— Roberto Alomar (@Robbiealomar) April 30, 2021
The discipline comes after an external law firm hired by MLB investigated the allegation and presented its findings to commissioner Rob Manfred, who determined a violation of league policies occurred.
It is a stunning fall from grace for an industry giant, beloved both in his native Puerto Rico and in Toronto, where his No. 12 was retired and his name interwoven into the fabric of the franchise. The Blue Jays announced they would be removing him from the Level of Excellence and taking down his banner at Rogers Centre.
Alomar’s Hall of Fame plaque will remain on display in Cooperstown, N.Y.
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Major League Baseball has in recent months faced a public reckoning for its treatment of women in the industry. Back in January, a report from ESPN’s Mina Kimes and Jeff Passan about a string of unsolicited and inappropriate messages Jared Porter sent a woman led to his firing as New York Mets general manager.
Britt Ghiroli and Katie Strang of The Athletic subsequently reported on former Mets manager Mickey Callaway’s serial harassment of women in New York and Cleveland, when he was the pitching coach there.
The Alomar case is the latest evidence of how widespread the problem is, although his effective banning from the sport is a sign that men of accomplishment won’t be allowed to hide behind their status.
