Major League Baseball has a probe looking into allegations that the Mets made improper use of the injured list, according to Mike Puma, Joel Sherman, Jon Heyman, and Mark W. Sanchez of the New York Post. The exact nature of the investigation and the specific allegations or players involved aren’t yet known at this time. Former Mets GM Billy Eppler (who stepped down from the job earlier today) is cooperating with the investigation, though he has yet to formally speak with league officials.
Eppler’s resignation was seen by many as a surprise, since by all appearances, he was fully ready to act as the front office’s new number two behind president of baseball operations David Stearns. As per the Post’s report, the league’s probe was the reason for Eppler’s departure, as he informed Mets upper management that he didn’t want to be a distraction to the club.
More will be known once more details of the league’s investigation surface, or when MLB announces (if any) its final findings. On the surface, improper uses of the injured list would simply seem to suggest that the Mets placed a player or players on the 10-day, 15-day or 60-day IL when they weren’t actually hurt, thus allowing the club to add a new player to the 26-man or 40-man rosters.
These kinds of “phantom IL” transactions have existed within the game for decades. A team might send a struggling player to the injured list with a harder-to-define issue like arm soreness or a bad back, when in reality the player is just getting a mental and physical break to reset. Every club in baseball has made such a move at some point, and in some cases, players have openly admitted that they aren’t actually hurt.
While this practice is technically illegal, it is also relatively widespread enough that it is rare to see MLB launch an official investigation into improper IL usage. That might suggest that the Mets’ alleged violation is particularly egregious, or (speculatively) that the league might have given the club an initial warning, and are now proceeding with a probe because Eppler’s front office didn’t stop.
Whatever the details, it amounts to “another embarrassing exit for a Mets official,” in the words of the New York Post’s writers. Within the last five years, former Mets GM Jared Porter and former manager Mickey Callaway were each accused of sexual harassment, with the Mets firing Porter and MLB putting Callaway (who had moved on from the Mets to work as the Angels’ pitching coach) on the ineligible list. As well, interim GM Zack Scott was fired when he was arrested on DWI charges, and ex-manager Carlos Beltran was fired due to his part in the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal, before Beltran had even officially managed a single game.
Improper IL placements aren’t nearly as serious as some of those off-the-field concerns, of course, but it is possible Eppler or the Mets might face some kind of penalty (suspensions, fines, etc.) as a result of the league’s investigation. The MLB Players Association might also have an issue, if the situation involves service time or perhaps just a player gaining an “injury-prone” reputation when none was warranted.
Now the resignation makes sense
It also makes sense if Stearns just wants his own person in the position.
It would if Stearns didn’t already outright say he was sticking with Eppler
King – It sounds like Eppler was acting like number two even before Stearns arrived.
You sound gullible
After the Braves, Astros, Cardinals, Yankees, Red Sox… sheesh how many are out there???… scandals in the past decade, one would think teams would stop trying to adversely play the system so egregiously.
That being said: which hunts are always fun!
I think nearly every team is guilty of this.
Just a guess, the source for the allegations is Max Scherzer. It’s Scherzer’s revenge for Eppler and Cohen telling him the lie that they weren’t going to contend in 2024 to get him to waive his no trade.
What lie? Have you seen their rotation? They have one solid starter and one solid closer. Everything else is a question. And the field? They’re relying on 4 kids with less than a year of experience going into next year to take the field.
@julius like the article said, basically every team does do this, but if there’s an investigation it’s likely that the Mets situation was more than the typical fashion it’s used in. So possibly they may have manipulated someone’s service clock or done so with the intent of switching players out more frequently to get fresher ones up or maybe even coaxed someone into it who initially didn’t want to
@padam, you actually think the ball club the Mets have now will look like the one on opening day? Too funny. No chance of that. What was said to Scherzer and Verlander was what was needed to be said to get them to agree to the trades.
I’m a Dodger fan, and my team has definitely made IR moves that seemed more strategic than medical
Mets GMs and hiring have been a dumpster fire. The IL investigation just gets a let’s wait and see. What did the Mets do beyond other teams?
I don’t know, which hunts are fun?
I prefer deer or pheasant
Witch ones!
Which hunts? I like fox hunts.
Witch hunt is spot on!
First, they add the Cohen tax to the new CBA.
Second, the Scherzer rule added to the pitch clock rules.
And lastly this, going after Cohen’s Mets for something all teams are doing.
Cohen has clearly gotten under the skin of the other 29 owners of their private boys club.
“This is baseballs dirty little secret, and this is the wrong place to be exposing it… wrong time, simple as that? Look does gio put on a little sunscreen here and there throughout a season so he doesn’t get melanoma?”
What does Mr. Met have to say about all this?
*middle finger salute*
Did you sprain your finger or something?. You’re going on the 60-day IL. – Eppler
Mr. Met has no middle finger!
Hang on bud.. Mr. Met has a thumb and three fingers, therefore a middle finger. I have a thumb and four fingers, therefore a … hmmm.
True. Figures it would take a Cardinals fan to point it out!
Technically your thumb is a finger, so the Blue Baron is technically correct.
I have never seen that lol
That’s Eplla pal…
Said like Robert De Niro portraying Thomas Wayne
The Yankees do the same exact thing. Seems like a bunch of BS. Hate defending the Mets but I have to.
LOLMETS
What an original observation. Bravo, sir!
What an origiinal response to a snarky comment! Bravo, dingbat!
@AgeeHarrelsonJones He’s… not wrong.
In 2024 Jeff Wilpon will show up at a presser and remove the Steve Cohen mask he’s been wearing for 3 years.
They are guilty claiming phantom injuries to shuttle RP back and forth to the minors with abusing player options. This was intended roster construction by Eppler. Fugazi IL stints I knew it.
Wow, nothing gets by you does it?
Fugazi? Nah this is Charles Ponzi type matieral here
wow. what a snitch. every team does this, Epplard.
Cooperating with an investigation is not synonymous with being a snitch…
“Cooperating with the investigation” is the PR language used by teams/executives for all PED, drug, DV, and cheating investigations. Once MLB makes its decisions, we will probably hear that the team “fully supports MLB’s actions and will have no further comments.” We may even hear that from Eppler if he thinks it will get him a new job.
Snitch…. is that like what the people were El Chapo had El Pozolero man dissolve bodies for being?
I wanna meet the Mets… I wanna greet the Mets….I wanna step right up and…..
Don’t forget to bring your kiddies and wife!
And yet this is the comment you approve of? You really are a moron.
If teams didn’t do this they’d be stupidly self-handicapping. Presumably the Metsies actions were particularly egregious. Oh, and Uncle Steve has a target on his back.
Steve has also been known to game the system, and was shut down for it for a couple of years—oh, and fined 2 billion dollars.
Come on and step right up? Everybody’s a winner we got bargains gallor? Half priced kitchen drudgery, act now act now, no huss, no fuss volume volume turn up the volume cut out the middle man you can drive it away today come on and step right up? It’ll find that slipper that’s been at large for several weeks under the sofa! It’ll turn you into a nine year old Hindu boy! Gets rid of your wife! It’ll remove embarrassing stains from conduit sheets! It’ll remove unwanted lipstick stains from your collar! And it’s only a dollar! Come on and step right up! It’s legenths, it’s strengthens! It’ll give you an erection that’ll win the election! You can live in it! Live it in laugh in it love in it! It’ll give you a barging on smoked damaged furniture! Come on and step right up step right up…. step right up yes you to can be a winner, the proud owner of a brand new shower robe once in a billion to make the earth erode while your calling up the captain saying this whole thing is about to Implode! Come on and step right up… step right up
They’re investigating Eppler, not the Mets
You can’t investigate the employee without investigating the organization who employs him. Likely situation is the player(s) moved to the IL didn’t agree with the decision.
Were there any particular suspicious moves? Dodgers appear to pull this stuff all the time. The Dodgers website injury log quite forthrightly says it’s unclear when Varland and Cyr suffered the injuries that landed them on the DL.
Justice for Cyr. That guy would be good given the chance.
I swear the Dodgers just use the IL to rest Kershaw every year for starters.
first thing I thought was that the dodgers have been doing it for years. it’s brilliant really
That’s why MLB increased the DL for pitchers to 15 days while it’s stayed at 10 for position players.
Wasn’t Syndergard on the IL for sucking?
yes, Syndergarbage was put on the IL for the for said reason.
He had a blister, but they certainly didn’t rush him back.
Every team does this! Skip comes up and asks how’s your arm ? Looked a little uncomfortable out there.
Yes. There were a lot of teams doing this last season.
Gotta look into the giants too after ross stripper went to the media and claimed he was on the phantom IL and not actually hurt
*Ross Stripling
You must have been trying too hard to be funny.
Does Ross work at a ladies club?
“First, it was not a ladies club. It was an erotic club.” —Marion Barry
I suspect many teams do this.
While you’re at it MLB, please investigate Anthony Rendons improper usage of the IL as well. If you need evidence, start with the Cheetos stains on his couch.
wish I could upvote this x 1000!!!
Do you deviate at all from this line?
sometimes it’s just a 100 times.
I understand that some players don’t want to deal with the media, but Rendon has taken it too far with his antics. He probably is injured but the way he handled the media painted him as a jerk. A jerk that is getting paid quite handsomely too.
Anthony Rendon should be on the Restricted List for excess fapping and wasting the Angel’s payroll.
There were maybe three people that thought that contract would be a good idea and one of them for some reason was Arte Moreno.
The others were Rendon and his agent?
The fact that Boras pivoted the Angels from Gerritt Cole to spend basically the same amount of money on an aging (unmotivated) 3rd baseman was a con job up there with Charles Ponzi.
This blunder has costs the Angels dearly with nary a hint of responsibility from the douchebag player or the douchebag agent.
Rendon and his Mother, even his agent (who is smart but does not care about his PR impact on the game) was laughing in private
Well I mean its not like he precipitated the Great Depression or nothing.
Eh… Texas did tbat with Brad Miller maybe 10 times the last 2 seasons. The whole front office better duck and cover then.
Angels did it with Saurez this year
I think every team does this tbh. Not sure why the Mets are getting singled out but I’m getting my popcorn ready!
I had a feeling him resigning was due to some form of misconduct.
tlh
I’ll believe it when I see the time stamp
Way too much micromanagement by MLB.
If MLB doesn’t enforce the rules, everyone will cheat, only they will call it being shrewd. and working at the margins of the rules to gain a competitive advantage. PEDs. Sticky stuff. Video sign stealing. In NASCAR, they say that if you aren’t cheatin’, you aren’t tryin’. Insiders say over and over that every team does it, not just the ones that get caught. I’m convinced that’s true in most sports.
@marcfrombrooklyn
MLB has spent most of it’s existence allowing all of that to happen with a blind eye. If you’re worried about the integrity of the game, I guess we should have worried about that back in the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 2000s, and present day. Personally, if we want to be enforcing the rules today, the writers that elect people to the HOF should be kicking out the players who have cheated and were elected along with those who were elected because they were friends with those in powerful positions. This would send a better warning to those coming down the pipeline.
Enforcing the rules is micromanaging. That statement is a special brand of stupid.
@blackandorange
MLB doesn’t enforce all their rules to 100% and history has shown that. So, what’s the point of having those rules in the first place?
Haven’t they suffered enough?
A question Mets fans have been asking themselves every year for some time now it seems.
I doubt that the penalties will involved a salary cap or losing draft picks
Jeez Mets are certainly making the headlines. Hopefully David Stearns gets a handle of things, and Cohen gives him free rein. I can understand why Eppler wanted to leave, he wasn’t Cohen’s first choice for GM in the first place, and Stearns probably wants a GM he has a rapport with.
He has a rapport with Eppler.
Explains the resignation. However they should be investigating him for not only employing Dan Vogelbach all season but also demanding he play everyday
Vogey has an under active thyroid! Plus plus, he is no worse than probably 20 other players on the 25 man roster. They’re all under achievers.
I doubt the investigation has anything to do with his resignation, every team does fake IL stints.
He probably just became aware that if he had decided to stay he would have lost any decision making power and he didn’t want to stay just to hold Stearns beer:).
The Post is reporting he stepped down because of the investigation.
The sad part is that if Eppler is guilty, it still didn’t help the Mets win.
It might even cost them a protected draft pick.
He must be taught well in the crooked Braves.
The Mets are providing a nice side show during the playoffs for the media and fans to enjoy.
This should be up voted 88 times!
MLB investigating the Mets for sucking so much ass
60 day IL with the shitz
I guess I shouldn’t be a GM since I’d be doing the same thing. I don’t have any issue with it
Heck InEppler couldn’t even put players on the IL correctly. This is who they hired to a 4 year deal? Cohen must have been drugged. Worst GM ever in all of sports history
LFGMets Well…you nailed it at the start. Crazy how accurate your Mets predictions were.
@VonPurplesHayes Well atleast you admitted it. More than I could say about a lot of the other people here. Respect. I’m just a baseball genius
All sports? Really? I’m happy for you. I’m sure you blew an oyster in your shorts and had to change underwear.
@DaOldDerbyBastard Its ok that you don’t know a thing about baseball, not everyone is fit for it. I reccomend you watch Woman’s Basketball. The sport could use a couple dozen fans
Your attack on women’s basketball took petty banter and upped it to misogyny
Worst GM in all of sports history is an extreme stretch. The Mets themselves have had worse GMs. Keeping it local, the football Giants had GMs so bad in the 60s and 70s the NFL had to step in and force them to look at candidates like George Young. And that’s not even mentioning the Knicks and Jets.
Will the MLB investigate the false claims made by a former Padres employee? The MLB spent a lot of time and money chasing her lies. At this rate Alex Corra will be the next commissioner of baseball after Manfred accepts a lobbying job in Washington DC. Manfred is always investigating something.
Watch this injured list investigation lead to a bigger penalty than what Corra got for orchestrating the biggest cheating scandal ever.
Anonymous call
A poisoned pen
A brick in the small
Of the back again
Any other team and it’s a big yawn, but if it’s the Mets all the idiots pile on the tired cliches.
Not really. A GM resigned. An insider reported it was related to this scandal. Where there’s smoke, there’s often fire. This isn’t a Mets hit piece.
@Von: I can’t imagine anything in this ‘scandal’ could possibly be big enough to make Eppler resign. It’s IL manipulation. Who really cares?
imo, Eppler resigned because he wasn’t very good at his job and Stearns gave him the option or resigning or getting fired. Cut and dry if you ask me. Buck was given the same option.
I think it’s a combination of both. With Stearns coming in, Eppler’s role was somewhat redundant. I do think this investigation has a bit more to it though.
Are you not familiar with the Angels?
So a major league player gets to accumulate service time while clearing his head. Oh the humanity!!!!,!
Dodgers fan here. They do this all the time!!!! And really soreness is enough.
And Cyr and Varland are thinking this is great because we get paid at the MLB level and will accumulate more service time than they had in their entire careers!! It’s almost a favor!!
The plot thickens.
What exactly would raise flags with MLB? If every team does this, does a player have to complain? There are other teams around the league that would seemingly draw more attention than the Mets did so I am genuinely curious how an investigation would get started.
Someone dropped a dime. Buck? Hahaha
It appears to be a trainer and it appears to be deeper than just IL manipulation.
This has Buck Showalter written all over it. Ubaldo Jimenez stepped in a pothole outside camden yards. A pothole
That is more of a reflection of Baltimore public works, no?
What’s next MLB. Investigating the Mets because the drinks weren’t cold enough in the clubhouse. What a joke. I’d be ashamed to announce I was investigating such a thing.
Has to be because someone ratted on them.
Looks like Mets are MLB new punching bag. Before it was the Astros then Braves then Astros again. Now it’s the Mets turn. I am sick of Manfred and wish we could have Bud back. Manfred resume is filled with investigations by manipulation of some sort. Rather it was the PEDs investigation in early part of 2000s, sign stealing investigation, or simple rule violations like this one, he has to be the worst commissioner in MLB history. His main focus is to investigate everything imaginable, increase offensive production, and other annoying unwanted trash in the game. Banning the shift and the pitch clock or throw over to first base rules, drive my insane. The ghost runner in extra innings down right p!SS me off.
The game is changing so badly to try and draw in the young audience. NASCAR did the same thing year after year. They lost 60% of their fan base because of it. At one point, NASCAR was becoming bigger than baseball and football until all the changes started to happen. MLB is going down that same path and it’s only going to get worse. More robotic/computer technology is going into the game. Pretty soon it’s going to be all automation during the game. Almost cartoon-ish like Avatar. Get your 3D glasses ready
Off topic-
An Independent Counsel should investigate MLB, seriously. Allowing the A’s to move to Las Vegas while protecting the Giants so-called “territorial rights” is a violation of anti-trust laws. I’d like to see MLB’s exemption removed once and for all. It’s monopolistic and needs to be brought into compliance of the laws.
The San Jose Athletics would be better for everyone.
Every single team blatantly does this all season long, so if MLB wants to make it stop somehow, then great. But don’t just single out the Mets because they were slightly more egregious than some of the other teams, if that’s the case.
JT
Curious where you stand on the “Astros cheating scandal”
I feel the opposite way about that. The Astros took it way too far; they should have been punished harder and the players should have been punished, too. Sign stealing is fine as a part of the game, as long as it’s between the batter and the baserunners, not people watching the game on television monitors.
JT
My point was it seems like it wasn’t just the Astros cheating
The Astros cheated on a mich higher level than any other team. That’s why they were singled out. Otherwise, all teams would start doing what they did.
VPH
Yes. That was the point
Though, punishing all the teams involved in cheating might have, you know, also discouraged them from cheating.
It also might have shut up some “Trashtro” hot taekers if their teams had also been publicly acknowledged has having cheated.
It’s like colleges with “academic dishonesty.” Sure, a lot of people break the rules, and only a few get caught and punished, but that’s just the way of the world.
Maybe a player, former player, or someone else didn’t love Buck getting scapegoated and Billy keeping his gig.
Worthy of a Shakespeare play.
Alas, poor Eppler, I knew him.
John Fisher, never a borrower nor a beggar be.
It would be cool if there were a lag time to filling the roster spot…..
Or…..
Not allowing replacements at all…..
Sounds silly…but attrition would be an interesting factor…..
No IL….you just lose a player until he comes back…..
I know…never happen. But it would be interesting. Compensate by expanding the active roster to a larger number.
Oh yeah, that would be great to see teams putting players with clear injuries on the field since they cannot replace them. That would make for some great Crash TV. Either that or you would have some teams that have a pitching staff of 4 players because all the rest are down with injuries.
Maybe the Tigers would have chance then. I’m all for it. Anything to help my team.
🙂
Managers give players rests with subs and super subs. It may not be so noticeable.
Much ado about nothing in my opinion. If a guy needs a mental break, I have no problem with them using the IL. Technically it is a case of mental illness.
That diminishes the reality of mental illness for those who really struggle with it (Austin Meadows, Zack Greinke, etc)
There are different degrees of mental illness. By your logic, no one should consider a sprained ankle a physical injury because it is not as bad as a broken leg.
He didn’t have much success with the Angels either. Probably would be a good usher though.
332-376
A guy people love to make excuses for, for some reason.
So was the source Buck or Scherzer?
I’d be surprised that it’s either. Scherzer was a lead MLBPA rep during the last CBA negotiations and Buck is a baseball man. This has to be the Commissioner’s office looking into the Mets’ medicals.
Well, I’m pretty sure that every MLB team uses the IL improperly. The problem here is that Eppler got caught.
Every time I read about the Mets the Talking Heads’ Burnin Down The House pops into my mind ….
Actually, since this is MLBT-RUMORS, what I’d like to see is a best guess at what the infractions might be.. Maybe just a nonjudgmental list of major moves that were made during the past season.
Good start! As long as we’re throwing spaghetti up on the wall- Rumour has it Steve’s comment output is produced by an adorable little pet monkey who lives in the utility room and types 140 wpm
I wonder if MLB is cracking down on the Mets now because a lot of owners,especially smaller and mid markets are furious that Cohen spends so much money and makes them look stingy.
The Mets are this seasons example team. Two ridiculous pitching contracts that both left before the end of the season, a massive spend now-win now winter overall, and now we have the league picking at them for something that…..
I as a Dodger fan just wanted to chime in and say that I’ve questioned literally every IL placement this year that wasn’t covered by video footage of the injury. We were getting A LOT of early looks at almost ready guys, sans any regular September call-ups.
This would be the motivating factor for any team I’d imagine, other than playing time gerrymandering perhaps.
I’m just a tinfoil idiot though, by most accounts, so take everything with a grain of salt.
I am really curious to hear the details on this one.. seems like the only way to get caught is if someone blows the whistle on you. Even then, you probably have to be pretty blatant and open about it.
Whatever he allegedly did, it didn’t work so well
“♪Meet the Mess, meet the Mess, step wright up and meet the Mess♪♫”
If a player is found doing this, will the sports writers keep them from the hall of fame to punish the behavior?
I think it was some Mets pitchers that complained about this about ten years ago. Out of options players were told they were hurt so they could be sent down without being removed from the roster and being exposed to waivers or having the opportunity to become a free agent. Or whatever the rules were then. All or at least most teams do this to some extent, so assuming they were warned then, a new complaint might bring the hammer down.