Recently, a Deadspin investigation uncovered shocking photos of Nicole Holder following an assault by Dallas Cowboys defensive end/ex-boyfriend Greg Hardy. The photos are gruesome and have sparked a public outcry by fans questioning why someone like Hardy is able to continue playing football.
Cowboy’s owner Jerry Jones has repeatedly defended Hardy as well as the team’s decision to sign him in the first place when they knew full-well of the legal baggage he came with. Despite claiming that his organization doesn’t condone domestic violence, as recently as last week, Jones called Hardy a team leader. And so, despite fan outrage, players across the league expressing disgust, and sports pundits –even Steven A. Smith – calling for the Cowboys to cut Hardy, he continues to play. (Perhaps karma is the reason the Cowboys are 2-6 going into week 10 and last in NFC east!?)
The National Football League has notoriously mishandled allegations of domestic violence and sexual assault.
In 2014, former Ravens running back, Ray Rice faced a two-game suspension handed down by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell for punching and knocking out his then-fiancée. It wasn’t until video of the incident surfaced that Goodell suspended Rice indefinitely.
The sad saga of tolerance for violence continued this year when the Tampa Bay Buccaneer’s selected quarterbacks Jameis Winston as the first overall draft pick. Winston was accused of sexual assault while a student at Florida State University and has numerous other legal infractions on his record. Yet the NFL gave the greenlight to the Bucs who signed him to a four-year, more than $25 million deal. Let’s hope Winston doesn’t turn into more negative press.
The “devil may care” attitude that the NFL applies to instances of domestic violence and sexual assault is and has been truly appalling. So what does this have to do with baseball?
On Oct. 31, Colorado Rockies shortstop Jose Reyes was arrested after an alleged assault on his wife in a Maui hotel. So now we wait to see how Major League Baseball and the Colorado Rockies will respond.
In August, largely as a result of the NFL’s high-profile maladministration, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced that the league was adopting a collectively-bargained and “comprehensive policy that reflects the gravity and the sensitivities of these significant societal issues” known as the Joint Domestic Violence Policy.
According to ESPN, the policy allows MLB to suspend players with pay while criminal charges are pending, but requires the player to repay any salary received during the suspension if the suspension is upheld. The policy also includes mandatory counseling and the submission of a treatment plan.
Jose Reyes will be a test of MLB’s new policy. The league and Manfred both know it. As details of the Maui incident continue to be uncovered, Major League Baseball has an opportunity to do the right thing and to show the country how a professional sports league should handle instances of domestic violence; something the NFL and commissioner Goodell have failed to do time and time again.
Baseball should heed the lessons that the NFL learned the hard way in the instances of Hardy and Rice. It should operate a zero tolerance Domestic Violence Policy and in turn truly solidify its status as America’s (good and wholesome) pastime.
-Daisy Letendre
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