Alex Rodriguez’s lawyers blocked from citing whistleblower

Rodriguez’s legal team initially called a news conference at 5 p.m. ET to present someone described as unhappy with the MLB’s investigation methods into Rodriguez’s case. About a hour later, Jamie McCarroll, a member of Rodriguez’s legal team, read from a paper by Horowitz issuing an order restraining any press conferences or briefings regarding subject matter pertaining to the hearing.

McCarroll said they had a presentation more than 100 pages long prepared to showcase the misconduct on MLB’s part, although he acknowledged it didn’t directly relate to the subject of the arbitration. The capacity in which the whistleblower works with MLB is unknown.

MLB spokesman Pat Courtney agreed with Horowitz’s ruling on the matter.

“We think the arbitrator issued an appropriate ruling consistent with the confidentiality provisions of the Basic Agreement,” MLB spokesman Pat Courtney said. “The fact that they canceled the briefing shows that we were right in asking that they stop publicly commenting about this matter while we are in the midst of an arbitration hearing.”

The appeal of Rodriguez’s 211-game suspension has gotten increasingly ugly with each passing day. Both sides have accused each other of leaking confidential information, and the Rodriguez team has tried to make the hearings more public.

Joseph Tacopina, another member of Rodriguez’s legal team, has called for MLB and the players’ association to release the transcripts of eight days of sessions to the public. The hearings are scheduled to resume the week of Nov. 18.

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